Now this is a story!

Note that NASA's rebuttal did claim that Dr. Mitchell was on medication or seeking any kind of mental health treatment. Merely that they didn't agree with his opinions. Dr. Mitchell doesn't appear to be voicing opinions, but facts....

I won this book back in the fall and am finally getting a chance to read it. I have so enjoyed catching up on my reading, but I probably still have 100 books at home that I have acquired over the last few years that I haven't read yet....going to book sales is something I should not do until I have read the books I already have.... Anyway....

This book combines unusual characters (preachers, deacons, mobsters, and detectives) in a quirky story. There are several threads in this story.

1. Mark Hogan has always longed to own a boat, and when his pastor predicts the day for the Rapture, he sees this as his chance...after all, once he's gone, he won't have to worry about the bill, right? (or the mobsters that he borrowed the money from).

2. Reverend Daniel Glory - a crackpot minister who is trying to convince everyone that he has figured out the day of The Rapture. His conviction leads to problems for Hogan and for the mob. Too bad, he didn't pay more attention to his bible reading.

3. Detective Charlie Paschall is an intuitive and smart detective with great skills on the job, but who becomes a bit flustered when he tries to figure out just where he should volunteer at church. Not only does he figure out who kills the minister, but he does finally find the perfect place for him to volunteer.

One thing we have enjoyed about our time in Bloomington is having a little more cash on hand to do things with. Daniel has been very generous to us so that the kids wouldn't get bored just being in a small apartment all of the time. Today we went to see Journey to the Center of the Earth.

I love Brendan Frasier and I have always enjoyed the tale of Journey to the Center of the Earth. Though I am not a Vernian, I do love the works of Jules Verne. So, the movie called to me from the first time I saw a preview.

When watching previews, I saw that in some theaters the movie would be shown in 3D. I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived at the theater today to find that we were going to be seeing the movie in 3D (though it meant spending an extra 6.00!). The glasses we were given were nice ones and we got to keep them. They were plastic instead of the cardboard ones that fall apart so easily.

The movie was great! Watching it in 3D was so much fun. It was non-stop adventure once the adventure got rolling (a bit of introduction at the beginning). We laughed, we jumped and we had fun!

The kids and I give this movie 3 thumbs up, or 4.5 out of 5 stars. If you want to go see a fun adventure movie that your whole family can enjoy (except for the very young with a couple of scary 'monster' moments), then go see this and if at all possible, try to catch it in 3D!

I have long enjoyed playing Civilizationon the PC, as have my husband and Jack. In fact, Jack has been playing for years and I can remember going to museum exhibits and he recognizing people from the past based on his Civilization play. Civilization is highly fun, educational, and addictive!

After my less than happy experience with Myst, which I purchased earlier this month, I went online and did some research. I didn't even know there was a Civilization game for the DS. So I added it to my cart. Last night I played my first game and actually completed it in 2 1/2 hours and had a blast. Civilization Revolution is a little simpler than the PC versions, but I had a great time with it. They have added some new components (great persons for one) and I really enjoyed that. Also, each time I went to build something, I didn't have to go to another screen to see how it would help me, it was right there where I was looking. There are four ways you can win...economic, cultural, domination and space race. I won the cultural way, but was building the final building to complete the economic win and I also was working on the space components. It was so much fun! I can't wait to play again!

I give this game five stars out of five! Jack is loving it too!

I haven't just been sitting by the pool and lounging on the beach during this trip...I have been busy reading, watching movies and playing video games, but I have also been thinking about returning to the work force. I want to continue homeschooling my children, but I also want to pursue more education for myself with the plan of going back to work, not only to add to our financial solvency, but to broaden my horizons. The kids aren't going to be home forever.

So I have been reading books and perusing websites and talking to people about job possibilities. The tests I have taken point to the following types of careers for me:

Editing (this is a top choice for me, but all indications are that the job market in this area is shrinking)

Nursing (I used to want to be a nurse, but I am not sure I could handle the bodily fluids aspect and I was not very good with remembering things like anatomy when I was in school).

If you enjoy a good ghost story and don't mind subtitles, you should check out The Orphanage This movie was given 4 stars by Roger Ebert and called a superior ghost story.

This movie is well produced, has a good story line with an ending that I wasn't anticipating. A young woman and her husband return to the orphanage she grew up in. They plan to manage a home for handicapped children there (the orphanage is no longer in operation), but before long, things are definitely out of whack. Their adopted son starts speaking to invisible friends and even leads his mother on a treasure hunt that the friends have designed... (though she believes he set it up). The bizarre fun quickly turns to horror when the boy disappears and can't be found.

I give this movie four out of five stars. I really enjoyed it and it was a fantastic ghost story.

I have a dear, dear, dear friend who I met when I first started homeschooling. Though we have some very different political and religious views, we enjoy one another's company and she has taught me all I know about Ebay. She is smart, funny, and a treasure trove of knowledge. I have mentioned to her about blogging before, but she has never given it a whirl. Well, there is a list that she is on and one of the gals decided to start up a blog called 365 days in Islip. Everyday, she posts something about her area of the world. After some other of my friends list buddies pressured her, my friend, Carole decided to give it a whirl. Her blog is called 365 Days in The Moonshine Capitol of the World. At the bottom of her blog, you can link to others who are jumping on this band wagon. It looks like a lot of fun and I can assure you that you will enjoy reading Carole's witty posts!

She invited me to join in the fun, but I just can't imagine running another blog, this one keeps me busy enough. But I may try to do a weekly post about where I live once I return to Virginia.

Anyway, this is a great way to get a birdseye view of other parts of the world. So go check out 365 Days in The Moonshine Capitol of the World and other similar blogs. (Cause I know you don't already have enough blogs to read!)

Well, here we are back in Bloomington. One week from today we will be half way back to Virginia. We have had a wonderful couple of months and we are looking forward to going home.

So, for our last 36 hours in Michigan City, I am sure you are wondering what we did. Sunday we hung around the condo in the morning. Reading, playing DS and being lazy. In the afternoon we went to the beach. The kids and I played in the water. Daniel went out for a bit, but said it was a bit too cold. Katrina and I grabbed a raft and paddled and kicked through a deep area to a sandbar that was probably 100 yards from shore. It was neat being way out there and being able to stand. We played around for about an hour, then Katrina and I let the currents/waves take us back to shore.

While on shore, the kids decided one last great sand adventure must happen.

Yesterday, I finished reading the last book in Kathy Herman's Seaport Suspense series. One of the biggest suprises for me was to realize that some of the characters show up again in the Phantom Hollow Series. I didn't make the connection until the author pointed it out at the end. That was pretty cool!

Kathy is not afraid to tackle tough issues and this book tackles one of the toughest...racism. It really struck a chord with me because a friend and I had been recently discussing racism. For some of us who don't have racist feelings, it is a huge surprise to find out that there are those out there who still do and who have strong ones. I grew up with a grandmother whose best friend was a black lady. One of my best friends was a black girl, one of my mom's favorite co-workers was a black man and one of the best carpenters my dad worked with was a black man. There was a biracial kid I went to school with who I remember people saying ugly things to him. I actually attended school with two biracial kids that I knew. And one of them, no one ever said anything to her that I am aware of. The boy had a personality that left him the butt of much ugliness. Would he have been picked on because he was biracial if he hadn't had that personality? I don't know.

Well, we had another lovely day yesterday, although it was an inside day. We woke up to cloudy skies and pouring down rain. It finally stopped about 12, but everything was saturated, so we decided that yesterday would be a good day to do the one excursion we had planned while we were here. Before we went though, the kids spent the morning playing on their DS and I spent the morning reading.

Daniel has been interviewing some people for a project he is working on, so he wasn't done with that until about 2:30, then we all got dressed and headed for the car and New Buffalo, MI which is about 15 minutes away. For those of you counting...that means another state magnet for our refrigerator...yippee!

We were heading for Four Winds Casino and Kid's Quest. It took us almost as long to find a parking space as it did to drive to the Casino. The place was packed! The first thing we did upon arrival was check the kids into Kid's Quest (and think to ourselves that maybe we should stay there too.

I keep wanting to call Michigan City, Lake Michigan City....my apologies to anyone I may have confused. We are staying in Michigan City, Indiana which is situated on Lake Michigan and we are about 10 minutes from the state of Michigan....

So, what did we do yesterday? Well we read books in the morning. After lunch, we went to the beach and spent the afternoon. The kids did more digging, swimming and building. I spent some time in Lake Michigan too, it was very chilly at first, but once in, very relaxing. The advantage of a huge lake over an ocean is that you don't have those waves trying to knock you over all the time!

We came back, got all cleaned up and had dinner at Matey's Restaurant and Beer Garden. I enjoyed their seafood/prime rib buffet (it was all about the seafood for me). Jack and Katrina had some fantastic chicken and fries. Daniel had steak and crab cake dinner. They were hopping and the chef walked around in his chili pepper pants, greeting everyone and talking to them. It was obvious that this place was a favorite with locals because many people came in and greeted the chef personally.

The food was excellent, the atmosphere/ambience was friendly, and the service was fantastic. Right before we arrived, a group of about 20 came in. This tied up the staff for a bit and they kept apologizing to us for the delay, but let me tell you, they were on top of things, and the only delay I noticed was when we waited briefly to get our menus. One of my favorite moments was when the busboy came by and asked if my hubby was finished. Daniel had eaten his potato, his steak, his crab cake, but he hadn't eaten his veggies. The young man admonished Daniel for not eating his veggies and told him there would be no dessert for him tonight...it was funny!

We had to go by Meijer's to pick up a couple of things. Daniel neglected to pack his swimsuit and I forgot to buy ketchup (Jack can't live without ketchup for his chicken and fries). We also picked up two 1.00 rafts for the kids to play with in the pool and the lake. We came back and played in the pool for about an hour before heading in for the night to watch Stargate Atlantis...one of our favorite shows.

A very nice, relaxing and fun day!

Yesterday I finished the third of Kathy Herman's Seaport Series. The title of this book is All Things Hidden and it is another winner! Each of Kathy's books always address events that can affect our spiritual life and growth. This book centers on how the past can come back to haunt you, even if you are now saved and a Christian. In this book, the main family that the series follows, the Jones family, is dealing with problems on two fronts.

Owen, the son was a real rabble rouser, but now has settled down, married, gotten a great job and has an adorable son. But even though God forgives us of our sins, we reap what we sow and Owen's past comes back to play a major role in his present.

Owen's mom, Ellen, learns that her aging and estranged father is suffering from Alzheimer's, one of the worst diseases people experience in my opinion. This disease is bad enough in the best of circumstances, but in this case, Ellen and her father are estranged and Ellen struggles with this and her father's nasty attitude throughout the book.

And if that wasn't enough...Ellen's father is witness to a murder...and until the murder is solved, no one in the Jones family is safe...

Kathy continues to exhibit her amazing ability to craft a well written story with characters you will care about and to provide spiritual encouragement at the same time.

Now I am off to read the conclusion of the Seaport Series...I can't wait to see what's going to happen next!

A friend of mine just sent me an email about a wonderful program by a company Jeld-Wen Windows and Doors. This company chooses one lighthouse a year to restore its windows and doors. The lighthouse is chosen by popular vote. And you can vote for the lighthouse of your choice by visiting this website. BTW, you can vote, even if you are not in the U.S.

I am not going to tell you which lighthouse I voted for because I don't want to influence your opinion, but I will tell you it was a tough choice. I was drawn to some lighthouses for their architectural properties, to other lighthouses for the support they were receiving from their community, and other lighthouses for their history.
Take your time, look at the lighthouses and read their story.

Go check out this article, photos and video from NASA as we get back images of what Earth looks like from 31 million miles away. This will give astronomers ideas of how to look for other earthlike planets...cool, eh?

Daniel was done with work early yesterday and we were delighted to head off on our last big weekend excursion. We arrived at the condo at about 1:30 pm. It's very nice. we have a view of the harbor, we are a short walk from the beach (which is still a little long for my problem knee so we will be driving), and the kids love the spiral staircase that leads up to the loft (where they have a bedroom, bathroom and lounging area...)

The only drawback is we are on the third floor...my knee is definitely not happy about all of the steps.