Picture of a Tornado Over My Church

A tornado touched down here in Huntsville a couple of days ago about a mile from my old house. Someone caught this picture of the tornado with my church (First Baptist - Huntsville) in the foreground. Really cool picture, but a little disturbing, too. What do you think?

Headlines

These have been making the rounds on the Net (some of them are old), but they're funny enough that I thought I'd post for those who haven't seen them. I took out a couple. Even some of the ones I left in are a bit crass... but then, they're funny too!

For the record, if police are arresting folks with crack between their buttocks, I had to shower at the gym after playing basketball yesterday, and I'm here to tell you: there are A LOT of criminals down there! Hope you enjoyed these! If there are any "Headlines" you think are funny and are willing to share, post them in the comments. Please and thanks!

2010 Is Rucking, Rhaggy

Can someone PUUUUUUUH-LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAZZZE beat the New York Jets?

Let me just say that if both the Crimson Tide win the National Championship, and the Jets win the Super Bowl in the same year, my head is gonna explode like that guy from the movie Scanners. No. That's a calm understatment of what my head will do.

Somebody wake me please and tell me it was all ONE BIG NIGHTMARE!

Haiti - E-mail from a Missionary

Was forwarded this e-mail from my cousin's wife. It's from my Aunt Dorothy, who is a missionary in Haiti, working with orphans and children whose parents cannot afford to take care of them (heavy emphasis on children with HIV/AIDS). She works for Christian Light Foundation, which I'm linking. A minute ago I was thinking what a disaster it was that I didn't have anything in my fridge to eat tonight when I go home. Then, I read this. Puts things in perspective and sums up what's going on down there. Even though I don't know anyone else she references, I don't need to add anything; I get the picture. Here's a copy of the e-mail:

Jan 15 2010

We survived the earthquake, all of us. PRAISE GOD!!!!!!

Amanda, Natasha and I were just arriving at Sacred Heart Hospital (CDTI) near what we think was the strongest area of the quake. Jesula, our nanny who had been with Poutchino at the hospital, was collapsing on the ground outside, in shock. Natasha ran inside for Poutchino. We parked the car. A man carried Jesula to the car. She was frozen with fear.

Hospital patients were brought outside, injured people came in thru the gate. All hospital personnel worked thru the night and next day with barely a break. Amanda and I took turns holding a flashlight for a surgeon stitching wounds and gradually learned how to do more. Natasha had to stay in the car holding Poutchino.

Some people were beyond help: the doctors gave them medicines for pain and treated those they could help. I counted about 40 people who died during the 24 hours we were there, all ages. Security manned the gate, only letting in the injured people that the doctor felt they could help.
Generators lit the parking lot. It seemed like a scene from hell with all the moans and screams and cries for help and the ground covered with injured people and blood. People panicked at every aftershock. Burns were the worst injuries but thankfully few.

Communications were cut off -- no one could find out about the rest of their loved ones. We had to try hard not to imagine the terribles thing that might have happened to our children and staff. Rumors trickled in about the buildings that had crashed. A rumor started that a tsunami was coming and we had to leave.

Heroes were everywhere. Groups of people sang and prayed and praised God for sparing so many. Doctors and nurses barely stopped to rest thru the night and well into the next day. Pain pills and shots were given freely. Every injured person got a shot of ampicillin. I gave shots, too. The hospital emptied its shelves, giving everything they had to help people. The strong carried the weak. Everyone comforted everyone else. People walked around praying for others. Two people scoured the streets for anything that could be used as splints. I am still amazed and glad that I had donated blood just that morning! We saw God working in us and all around us.
We finally were able to leave the hospital Wednesday afternoon, bring Poutchino with us. Collapsed buildings, wrecked and crushed cars, blood and bodies were everywhere. Coming home was such a blessing! No one was injured, the house was intact! Hallelujah! sweet relief!

Praise God we had just received new supplies of antibiotics. We gave most of them plus a lot of gauze and tape, tylenol and ibuprofen, needles, and IV sypplies to a clinic set up in our neighborhood. We had a little bit left over to give to Healing Hands this morning, and sent home some gauze and soap with a nanny for her injured grandmother.

Poutchino definitely had meningitis but there was no more infection by the time the CSF was tested. Considering the chaos at the hospital we brought him home with us. His abdominal pain is completely gone. He can eat again. I give him 1 gram of ceftriaxone every 12 hours hoping to keep the meningitis from returning. Infection could be hiding in his shunt. An operation to remove the shunt would be difficult to get now.

For those of you who know our staff, Claudia's leg is broken and her house destroyed. Jesula and her family are safe but their house was destroyed and they are staying here. Leonne's home was destroyed and she is staying here. Eva's house was destroyed but she has another place to stay. Suzette's house was destroyed: she can't come to work. Rosemanie is fine. Bb was thrown from a truck during the earthquake and was injured but is doing okay. She was on her way to work the overnight shift. The other ladies who were here took care of everything. They worked very very hard. Our staff is fantastic!

Both of our usual grocery stores, Caribbean and One Stop, were destroyed. We haven't heard what happened to the people inside. Those were the only places we could cash checks. Gas stations arent open yet. We heard that Sherrie Fausey's building partially collapsed and one child was killed. Sherrie and Julie are fine. Karen Bultje and her kids are fine. Nikki, who went to live with Roberta, was killed by a falling wall. Roberta and all other children are okay. Pastor CJ came by this morning to see if we were okay. He said Pastor Leny and his family are okay. Pastor Genada called. They were in Port au Prince during the quake and a block fell on his daughter's leg. They had to go all the way back to Gonaives to get help for her. Karen Bultje is still being an angel of mercy for as long as her diesel fuel holds out: she brought us several cases of pop tarts so we have breakfast for a while. Dottie was temporarily trapped in her house but is okay now. Nickson and Ivens and their families are okay. Deedee, the Boyers and the Olssons are okay. Barb Lataillade's foot was nearly amputated. The U.S. military got her out to Jacksonville, Florida for care.. Our pediatrician called to check on us.

Phones are starting to work again but not yet normally.. Helicopters are flying overhead all the time, and small planes. The U.S. military is running the airport now. Civilian flights are all canceled. UN police are in charge of security. Not much is seen of Haitian police, I don't know why. I expect, hope, that relief supplies will come in soon. Our biggest concerns at the moment are cooking fuel and water.

We all are fighting shock, trying not to be overwhelmed with grief and horror. I am trying to plan without being overwhelmed with worry. PRAYER AND PRAISES REALLY WORK TO KEEP SPIRIT UP! Remembering what God has already done in protecting and providing for us reassures me that He will continue to provide for our needs. I am so thank Natasha and Amanda were with me at the hospital and that Natasha can stay here for a while to help.
I have heard that maybe 100,000 people died. I can believe it based on what I have seen. I heard that the earthquake was 7.3 on the Richter scale. We need news from outside but please keep emails strictly to news. We have to use our precious supplies of gasoline to get online. Since we have no place to cash checks I have to work with Christian Light Foundation to find a way to get money to us.

Please pray for all of us in Haiti and for all those sending and bringing help.

Dorothy Pearce

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." I Cor. 13:13

Faith-Hope-Love Infant Rescue
http://dorothypearcehaiti.blogspot.com/

Donations:
Christian Light Foundation, Inc.
P.O.. Box 23881
Jacksonville FL 32241-3881
Memo: For D. Pearce, Haiti

Lists Rich Doesn't Make -- Reprised

Once, a good while back, I claimed on this blog that I wasn't a list-maker. In general, in life, that's true. I don't make many, and my life certainly isn't governed by them. However, blogging being what it is, Ken, our semi-resident Diabolical Genius, pointed out how many times I had posted lists here in The Realm of Possibility just to show me the humorous irony of my words.

Well, guess what?! It's the New Year. What's that mean besides the fact that I'll be receiving my W-2 within the month and get to start dreading tax returns? It means RESOLUTIONS, of course. In an effort to try to maintain some semblance of truth here on the blog to my claim of not being much of a list-guy, I'm going to keep my resolutions short and sweet this year. Without further ado, they are:

• Spend more time with God. Just time. Presence. Prayer. Bible Study.
• Write. Plot and write. Get back in sync with Ken in our writing efforts.
• Learn how to play the guitar. That's right. I'm 43. It's time I knew.
• Curb my television watching.

Short list, but for me, believe it or not, it's tough. Very tough. Each one of those requires self-discipline, which is one life requirement of which I'm sorely lacking. The root of so many of my personal ills. Without it, though, I feel like I just skate through life without much meaning. And that's the mark of too much of my life.

New Year, new beginnings, however, and all that good stuff. So cheers.

Alright. Your turn. New Year's resolutions anyone?