Line upon Line

While my brother was away in Florida for the spring semester, he and I didn't communicate a lot.  Quite frankly, he's not much one for the whole "keeping in touch" thing, and I sort of shrugged and figured I'd see him when he came home.  Which I did.

But there were a few things I kept in contact about.  For instance, there was a switch-up with the traffic light a few blocks from our house, and I knew he'd like to know that it was on the four-way blinker system finally.  I told him that.  I mentioned that our favorite character came back to Adventures in Odyssey.  Well, maybe not a favorite, but it was a dark day in our house when Jason Whittaker was written off the show (worked for the NSA and randomly had to go into witness protection or something--it didn't make much sense unless they were just writing the guy completely out of the show), and then behold! Jason returned!

So I had to tell him.  Obviously.

The other thing I did take the time to tell him was that they painted lines on our road.  This might not seem like a big deal to anybody, including our neighbors (or, possibly, my mother, who said, "wait, those are new lines?") but we've never had lines before, and they don't make much sense.   

See, our street is long, and each block has its own set of rules.  On our block, you can park, but only on the right side of the street.  (I don't know my left and right very well, but I know that if you stand in one direction, it's the right side of the street, so I couldn't go wrong with that.  Ha!)  Further down, you can only park on the left side of the street.  In some places, you can't park on either side.  So, in order to accommodate all of this, they painted the lines accordingly.

You can't see that well, but if you squint, you can get the idea that looking down this road, there's more space on the left side of the line than the other (in order to give room for the sometimes-parked cars).  Way down, however, it switches to the line being in the middle of the road (because all the space will be for driving, as no parking is allowed), which looks weird.

Okay, here's a close-up view of the tragedy.  Those lines DO NOT match up.  I understand why, truly I do, because of the whole sometimes-no-parking thing, they have to move the lines accordingly, but there was a reason that we didn't used to have lines.  And that is because some of the people who live on our street and/or have to drive down it often (I'm sure it's more than just me.  Maybe.) get irked when it looks like a drunken man marched to and fro painting lines wherever he pleased.  I avoid driving down our road now, because I don't even like to look at it.  It's just weird.

And then of course, they decided to erase some of the lines.  On two blocks, and two blocks only, they painted/whatevered over the yellow lines, now making a not-so-attractive black swath in the middle of the street.  It's weird.

All this to say...  Whoever makes the line decisions in my city should clearly consult the residents of the street, because the residents would be able to instantly understand when things just won't, um, line up.  So to speak.

For shame

I listen to the Christian radio a lot.  We have about four, actually, where I live, so if there's a boring conversation/song I don't prefer/lousy reception I just flip to another station and I'm set.  Rather handy.

It's especially handy when it's Share Week (every station calls it something different, but Share Week is the week when listener-supported radio stations ask for donations and hope you feel led/guilted into sharing of your bounty).  I'm going to be honest--I've never donated to a radio station.  Even though I listen to several, most of which are listener-supported (the one Christian station we have that isn't listener-supported is irksome to me because of the commercials.  Which, of course, is what the other ones avoid by being listener-supported), I just don't donate.  And I could say, "Oh, but I don't have a job!" but the truth is, even when I had a job I didn't donate.

So anyhow, obviously guilt keeps me from listening during such weeks (yes, your ministry has been an encouragement.  No, I apparently do not want to help fund you so you can encourage other people.), but sometimes I hear part of their programming anyhow, because I don't prefer the songs on the other ones so I come back, even though I feel guilty.

I should probably stop feeling guilty.  Guilt is a sort of sin.  Or something.  Anyhow, I hope my guilt has not caused you to stumble somehow.  Please ignore me if it has.

So, recently I was listening to part of a Share Week, and they read an email from a listener whose name was Jason.  Jason donated to their Share Week because he liked their radio station.  Jason, however, wasn't a Christian.  He didn't like it because of it's Christian-ness, but he did like what they were doing and wanted to support them.  They obviously asked for prayers that Jason would get saved, and that the programming would perhaps reach others like him.

(Picture this:  me, hearing this on the radio, basically crippled with guilt.  Scene set.)

Jason-who-is-not-saved donates and I don't?  There is something wrong with this picture.

Went to the Moody website and what did I see?  That I can still Share with them.  GUILT.

Down side, though, I still haven't donated to any of those stations.  Up side, I pray for Jason.  I like to think that he's accepted Christ as his Saviour by this point.  I think we would all agree that that would be the nicest happening.