Lum and Abner comic strip

Way back in the dark ages--clear back in 1970, probably--I remember my uncles attentively listening to radio show called Lum and Abner. I was too young to pay much attention to it at that time. I had no idea that they were actually listening to re-runs from 30 or so years earlier. Several years later I happened across the show and became a fan myself. I think I was about 14 at the time. My opportunity to listen to the show was pretty hit-or-miss until the advent of the internet, which is kind of ironic when you think about it--an old-time radio show from the 1930s and '40s finally becoming widely accessible due to modern technology. A few years ago I even put together a web page as a tribute to the "old fellers." If you're not familiar with these characters, let me direct you there for more information. If you enjoy "down-home" humor, I expect you'll like it.

Earlier this week I was excited to learn that Donnie Pitchford, the president of the National Lum and Abner Society, has produced a comic strip based on the radio show that he hopes to run as a regular feature in the First Arkansas News. He is currently in the "looking for sponsors" stage. I hope he makes it. I was very impressed with the first comic strip and would love to see more. What fun!

How Huge the Night - review

When I post book reviews on Amazon I am asked to assign a star rating to each title, from 1 to 5 stars. I don't give very many books 5 stars simply because I like to reserve the 5-star rating for those which are real stand-outs. How Huge the Night by Heather Munn and Lydia Munn is such a stand-out. It is one of the best novels about the Europe during World War II that I have ever read-- right up there with The Hiding Place and The Diary of Anne Frank.

The setting is southern France after it had been invaded by Germany. The main character is a 15-year-old boy named Julien who is trying to adjust to all the changes brought about by the war and make sense of it all. I especially appreciated the wisdom of Julien's grandfather as he helps him learn how to talk to and listen to God. There is a parallel story woven throughout the book about Jewish siblings, Nina and Gustav, who are on the run from the Nazis in Austria. It is very well-researched, based on actual events which the authors explain in a note at the end of the book.

You can read the first four chapters in PDF format, but I will warn you, if you do, you will likely be hooked and want to read the whole book. It is one of those stories that is hard to put down. I guess I don't need to say, "I highly recommend this book!" I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Working Dog

 Miss Cookie went out to supervise the lawn mowing yesterday evening...

...which would explain why her pretty white boots turned green!

Homeschool Senior Banquet

Finally-- I can show you what I've been working on for the past few weeks!

Last summer as we began to make plans for my daughter's homeschool graduation, she and her friends said they wanted to have a "prom" but with "no dancing, and no girl/boy stuff." In other words, they wanted a chance to dress up. I told them that would be called a banquet, and yes, we could do that. We decided that about a month before graduation would be a good time, and we planned it to be a gathering of just the seniors and their families. We've been looking forward to it all year.

There are 8 seniors in our group, and the parents hosted and "catered" an "hors d'oeuvres buffet" for our banquet.

The seniors had decided on red and silver for their class colors, so we planned the decorations accordingly. I tried to keep the decorations and favors a secret from the seniors until time for the banquet, just to make it more special. We did everything as inexpensively as possible, but with a little creativity it all turned out very nice. The food was delicious! (I'm hoping to get some the recipes!) Everyone seemed to have a good time.

The highlight of the evening was previewing the PowerPoint presentation that the seniors have put together for the graduation ceremony. Each senior designed their own segment, with pictures from their lives, set to a favorite song. They hadn't seen each other's presentations until last night.

The young people all looked so nice. (Some of the girls even had vintage outfits!) It's just so hard to believe that they've grown up so fast.

Tulip Time

 On our way home from the Christian Heritage conference in the Seattle area, we decided to take a little detour to the tulip farms. Since it was already May 1, I was afraid we might have missed the blooms, but they seemed to be at their peak. What a feast for the eyes! I especially appreciated a sign I saw that said, "To God give the glory!"

Laura took more pictures which she has posted on her photography blog @ Through My Eyes. She got some spectacular ones!