...keep my ear to the ground ....

The sun is shining and the wind has gone somewhere else to blow. What a near perfect day it is outside.
I could lean back and take a nap right now but there is just too much to do.

Mean Streets Ministry has taken off with a bang. That pleases me very much. I can't get over the response we get from people we have never met before. They seem to act as though we have been friends for years. I like that. I have rarely ever meet a stranger anyway, but this is going to be easy to get used to.
I stopped to eat at a local restaurant and the waitress asked me if I was a veteran. I had on a camo shirt from Desert Storm someone gave me a week or so back.
"Yes", I replied, "I was in the Marine Corps."
A guy from across the room shouted out, "Semper Fi, Man!"
I was elated. We spoke for a few minutes and he ended up getting a CD after giving us a small donation. He had on a biker outfit and is interested in helping us do a 'Poker Run' next Spring.
I'll explain a Poker Run another time.

I am truly hopeful this turns into a full time job for me. I know I can help a lot of people if we have the funds to keep everything going the way we have it set up.
Everything takes money. I hate that. It would be so nice if all we had to do was gather up what we need from the "storeroom" and head out for the streets. I anticipate that day arriving in the near future though. God knows what we need before we even ask for it so I expect to see the supplies arriving in the near future; including an office with a warehouse area.
For now, I'll just keep on doing what I'm doing and keep my ear to the ground for what's next.

...a work worthy day

The day has gone by so fast I didn't realize that it was already dark outside.
I have been getting ready for the outreach tomorrow. A group from Tinker Air Force Base is going to bring donations of clothing and health care items to OKC Compassion and distribute them to the people living there.
I hadn't been to OKC Compassion in awhile. They lost their building and kitchen and had to move the offices into a house. I knew about the situation from several of my contacts downtown but I don't know the full scope of what is actually going on there. They do such good work, with a few exceptions of course. There are always "the exceptions" in any program, I just hope for the best and go on with what I feel the Lord would have me do, right?

I spent a few hours on artwork and forms today. We didn't have a donation form for Mean Streets yet, so I made that my first priority when I arrived. After about an hour I had both donation and invoice forms ready to go.
I also designed a plaque for the "Scratch Tracks" album and made it into a stand alone sign we can leave with stores and organizations that are selling it for us.
I will load some CD cases in a few minutes and then head for the house. Di has her Thursday Prayer meeting going as we speak. I'll try to time my arrival for just after they all go home.
All in all a work worthy day.

...how he's doing.

I am looking for the best way to help my friend. I have determined that it would help a lot if I can get him out of his 'comfort zone' where he hides on a regular basis with his dog. His trailer is a shambles but that comes with the territory, so to speak when someone is on a binge.
I knocked on the door this morning and woke him. It was almost noon. He hadn't answered his phone all morning and sure enough, he was still asleep on the couch where I left him last night at about  9:30.
I had gone over to try and help him get online on his new laptop, but I was unsuccessful.
I really need more experience with these new phones. I tried to hook up with his WiFi connection on his iPhone.

The fifth he had been working on wasn't down as much today as was yesterday. It looks as though he had indeed cut down on his consumption.
I left with the thought of returning later. I have a small project in mind that will get him out of the house for a while and perhaps give him some inspiration. He just needs a 'nudge', I hope....
I will report later on how I'm doing, or better yet, ...how he's doing.

...it's yours too

Are we making a difference? A difference that people see and feel and relate to?

I knocked on the door and my friend answered by saying, "Come in!"

I could tell he had been drinking ... a lot. He lay sprawled out on the couch with a blanket barely covering his torso. There was trash on the floor in the corner where it looked as though he had been practicing his "free throw" abilities for the past few days in a row. It was evident that he was no Thunder prospect. 

His unshaven appearance gave me a good idea as to how long he had been 'off the wagon' this time.

I had seen him in bad shape like this before but at least it wasn't the very bottom of the barrel.

"How's it goin'?", I asked, trying to find a way to start the conversation on a positive note.

"Oh, you know....", he answered and sat up. "I've been better...."

"I have to go to the studio for awhile. You wanna go? We could work on a website for your project for awhile and maybe get some lunch after that? How 'bout it?"

I knew he would be better off getting out for awhile; away from the dreary surroundings he had created during his current drinking spree.

"Sure... just give me a little time to get up and around and...."

"And a cup of coffee and a shower?"

"Yeah, that 's a good thought... I could use a shower too...", he said as if he hadn't heard me say what  did. That told me he was still 'under the influence' to some degree.

If we don't go... who will? If we ignore the ones around us that are in trouble they will perish and that's no exaggeration. I've seen it first hand. 

The thing is ...it only takes a few minutes of our time to go; often less than an hour in most cases.

 

I know you know someone that needs some personal attention.

They may not be in bad shape like my friend. They may live in seclusion with no one to talk to and no one checking on how they are doing. You can do it. I can do it. What if you were the one in trouble?

We have been so blessed; my family and I. After all this time and all the turmoil, God has watched over us and blessed time and time again. It's my duty to give back. It's yours too.

... if you only will

I greatly desire the answer to one of life's most sought after questions.
Who in the heck invented computers? Why do I want to know, you ask? I would like to wring his neck.
I think it's an evil plot put into place by this maniacal computer inventing creature, for the express reason of blowing everybody's mind like an old tire on a bad road!
They never work right. They always have to have someone who is smarter than you fix 'em and that makes you feel like a dummy because you don't have any idea how the darn thing works in the first place when all you wanted was an easier way to do your work and , well... I hate 'em. They breakdown right before you get your work done and just sit there with that little blue circle  ...spinning... and spinning ... and spinning. It's like they know you really need that report finished by 5 o'clock and it's 4:50 and the little circle is still spinning ... and  spinning and.... well, you know.
It's a good thing I don't carry a gun.
 I went in to change a few simple things on one of my websites. Do you think that computer cares if I work all day or not? NO! It doesn't care one bit. I could be on it for days on end and it wouldn't care one iota how much data or graphics or audio I enter into that gazillion Mega Byte hard drive it has to have to store everything it has to store, "So it can run like it's supposed to run".
(I think the tech's are in on it too.)

I think it would just keep right on ticking like a well oiled clock if I don't have a deadline or something else to do besides "feed it". My life's of no importance, it's the computer that deserves all the credit and attention, right? Oh yes, it will run fine until I get ready to go home and then it turns on me like a giant Raptor in a dinosaur movie. It somehow senses that moment that I am about to finish up for the day and go home to a life of peace and tranquility ... and dinner.
I only have one more period on the end of the very last sentence and... you've got it ... it suddenly stops .... pauses for about 6 or 7 seconds, as if it is thinking, "How can I exasperate him the most?", and then  .... spinning.... just spinning.... It knew all along I just had one more period to type  ...and yet.... spinning.... just spinning ....
Is there no mercy in this world? Are there no answers to these drastic times? Have I gone too far?

Yes... I'm over the edge aren't I? ... It's too late for me ...  but you can save yourself.... if you only will.

....which way will it be?

I'm torn between two choices on which direction to take. The decision I make means taking a real stand on the issues I hold dear and probably can't be reversed. The cost is high either way and has to do with integrity and honesty and all the other things that go with those traits of the human existence I so highly value.
I've made so many mistakes in the past. I can look back, with many regrets and see fewer victories than defeats, but I have never shrank from the blame or consequences of my actions. This too will be the same.
I do know that I have let people down in the past and have never recovered their trust. That is what plagues me the most I suppose; not being able to regain lost ground as I burned those bridges. I pray that this will not be the case.

This time it's quite different. Before, I was alone and had only myself to consider. Now I have to face the results of my decision along with my wife and family. How will they look at me or judge me or love me if I let them down? That would be something I don't know that I could bear.
My heart cries and yet, I feel a kind of resolve in what I do. Looking at one's 'self' in the mirror of life's reality isn't easy. Truth isn't glamorous it's just the truth.

I know many of you have been here as well. You too have looked at what others would think or do as you tuned one way or the other, deciding which road to take; ultimately having to live with that weighty decision forever.
Now it's my turn, ...which way will it be?

... we shall see

I didn't think I would get out today. The weather has turned nasty. I looked out the window to see cars sliding along on the icy road out front and dreaded the idea of being on the road in the cold... but I needed to get the last song finished up on the Scratch Tracks Project.
I should have them ready for distribution by the end of the week.
I'm not sure it's the way I want it just yet, but I think the idea of "Scratch Tracks" is what we want to portray. Nothing fancy or over produced. Just some good music for people to enjoy.
I'll do a cleaner project in the coming weeks when I have a little more time to concentrate on the sounds and instruments I want on the "Inspired" project. That one should be the better of the two by far.
I'm burning copies of "Scratch Tracks" as we speak. The artwork is complete and I have the cases on hand as well. They came in Friday afternoon just as the cold front landed on our doorstep.
The Printer usually takes about three days to get their part done and it will take me about 4 hours to load and shrink wrap the cases once the discs and inserts are put together.
I pray that they sell out fast.
We need the funding to get started on the Mean Streets Ministry project.
We need an office the most. I'm hoping Leroy's church steps up and makes that happen. I was told that they have a pretty good size building in back of the church that serves as classrooms and storage. That  might be just the thing for us to start out with and grow from there.
Feeling the wind on my neck today really reminds me of what our homeless ones are experiencing right now. They have to navigate in weather like this to get to the various feeding programs that are available in the downtown area. I pray that God allows us to open soon. If we can get everyone on the same page it shouldn't take a very long time to set up some sort of triage area and food distribution so they can have what they need on hand when they really need it.
I often think of Sister Ruth and Sister Betty. They started out in their apartment and grew to be the mainstay in only a few years. I wonder what God has in mind for us?
....we shall see.