It was Saturday, July 9th before we celebrated Independence Day and did all the things. Thanks again to our friends Justin and Marisa Henderson for inviting us out maybe for the third year in a row for family friendly grilling out and fireworks after dark. 30 years ago he was a bratty little kid in my Sunday School class. Now he has four kids and manages our local Tractor Supply.

And he let me drive his tractor. I officiated their wedding, sold him a motorcycle a few years back, we’ve kept in touch over the years. Good people.

This is one of those sketchy posts going viral on Facebook that immediately compels one to do their own research. I reached into my pocket and found that yes, the 2022 quarter has been redesigned with a new image of George Washington that does in fact face right. But look at these other two quarters I also had in my pocket, one is from 2006 and the other from 2020:

Washington faces left but the words IN GOD WE TRUST are on the right. As far back as 1999 he has been “looking away” from those words. Which of course means… absolutely nothing. At all. With all of the real problems in the world and division in this country, some people still look for problems where there are none.

Here’s a feel good story just to remind you that everything has not gone to crap. Bad news used to sell newspapers, now it boosts TV ratings and attracts clicks and shares. People slow down to look at train wrecks, that’s just in our nature. And yes, once again I did the research. It took less than a minute to determine that Cena was already in working in Europe and took a break in his schedule to make this trip. There’s video. You can see him, if he wants you to.

Shark Week starts July 24th. There are 100 million sharks killed annually, or about 11,000 per hour worldwide, compared to just 6 to 8 human deaths caused by sharks. Hippos, by contrast, do attack humans. If you’ve ever seen video of them crunching whole watermelons… it’s adorable and terrifying at the same time. I’m not saying don’t watch Shark Week. Spielberg probably make the right decision to film Jaws in 1975 instead of Hungry Hungry Hippo. Fact can easily be separated from fiction. Based on my TV viewing as a child I expected escaping quicksand to be a bigger part of my adult life than it has turned out to be.

Speaking of fact and fiction, here’s a friend IRL visiting the Creel House, or in actuality one of the filming locations for Stranger Things in Rome, GA. This is just about a 20 minute drive from where I live. Scenes from Sweet Home Alabama and Remember the Titans were filmed in Rome as well. If you have never been to Rome you have probably seen it on screen without even knowing.

There was a momma dog hanging around our house just last night. She’s been roaming the neighborhood now for at least a week. We gave her food and water but did not dress her up for a photoshoot. I have a couple more animal stories but don’t want this post to be overrun with them. Gonna save something for next week.

You have to pick your battles. I’ve heard that all my life but one comedian says that’s just what they tell the guys. He was a newlywed and his bride decided they needed to get a puppy. He said “Okay, I’m choosing this one.” His wife was like “… Um, what?!?” “You have to pick your battles and I’m picking this one. We are not getting a puppy.” She had never once heard of picking your battles. Then they got a puppy.