Easter in Fairfax

Spent 4 days with ML, R and the boys. Enjoyed being with my family! Pics below. ML and I had dim sum followed by facials. We dyed Easter eggs, went to the kiddie Easter egg hunt in Fairfax, visited a prospective preschool, and had some amazing meals cooked by R. Arlo and I had a lot of play time. I got to feed Lyle a lot of meals. He is an excellent eater. I'm going to miss everyone!

Bible Study on Revelation

On Monday mornings in March, I attended a 4-lecture series of the last book of the New Testament (Book of “Revelation”) given by Professor Mickey Efird who is an Emeritus Professor of Biblical Interpretation at Duke Divinity School.  I have attended several of his lectures in the Fall and Spring here at Fearrington Village and found them very informational.  I was very interested to hear him talk about “Revelation” as he has written several popular books about the subject.  Prof. Efird is a Presbyterian minister who believes that God is all powerful.  My notes from the lectures can be found at this link.

I frequently hear references to verses from "Revelation" but I never really understood them. It just seemed like a bunch of mystical symbolism and obscure references. The lectures began with an explanation of apocalyptic thought and literature popular from 200 BC - 100 AD in both Hebrew and Christian writings.  Prof. Efird explained the symbols of various numbers, colors, and animals used in the imagery contained in the visions to John of Patmos. He put the writings in historical context for the messages the author wants to communicate. Prof. Efird then read through various chapters and verses and explained the imagery and what it probably means.  He also explained how other people interpret the visions and what it may mean for us today.

The target audience for "Revelation" is first century Christians in the Roman province of Asia.  Having visited Ephesus last year, it was very interesting to hear about the Christians' struggle there under the persecution of the Roman Emperor Domitian.  "Revelation" tries to bring hope to those struggling Christians who suffer economic persecution for not bending the knee to Roman gods. The use of imagery provides dramatic effects for the belief that Good will eventually conquer Evil.  I do wonder what the prophet John was smoking or snorting on the Isle of Patmos.  It would be very difficult to make up all this content.

In addition to learning how to interpret the Book of Revelation, I learned many new words such as.. Parousia, Dispensationalism, Eschatology, and Darbyism.  I learned where Christian Fundamentalism was born. I learned that the New Testament is not presented in the chronological order in which the various books were written.  Unfortunately, my notes cannot show the humor with which the lectures were given.  I only wrote down what I had not known before. Please check out the link above to see my notes if you are interested.

Prof. JM Efird

Trip to NYC

Pfizer asked me to come to NYC for some quality control on their analysis using the datasets I used to create when I worked at NCHS.  I flew up on March 16 and returned home March 17. They were so nice and sent limos to take me to and from airports.  Both my hotel room and return airplane seat were upgraded to a suite and first-class, respectively.  So I had an extra bedroom and a kitchen in my hotel and ginger ale in a real glass on the airplane!

I enjoyed visiting with Sim's friends Bobbi and Mickey at a trés lush French bistro across from Lincoln Center.  I had duck paté, saffron risotto, and chocolate souffle with pistachio creme.  It was so tasty and so much fun to catch up with my new friends.

Before I returned to LGA, my client and I went to lunch at Sakagura Japanese Restaurant located in a basement on E 43rd Street.  It was so yummy!!!!  I had a bowl (donburi) of sushi rice topped with tuna and salmon sashimi and salmon roe (there's a picture on that link of sake ikura don).  The rice had little strips of crispy nori mixed with it.  So it was like sushi but not formed into cute little rolls.  It came with a miso soup that was the best tasting miso I have ever had.  For dessert, we shared a Black Sesame ice cream.  This was just vanilla ice cream with swirls of a paste made of black sesame seeds.  It was served with a little round flat brittle made of sugar and sesame seeds.  I highly recommend this to anyone going to NYC, but must warn you it gets crowded so reservations are a good idea.  You also have to walk down 2 flights of stairs to get from the street to the basement.  I don't recall an elevator but they must have one.  I expect if Pfizer asks me to return, I will agree, if only to have a chance to eat here again.

Around the yard today

Last day of February

It was been like Spring here in Fearrington Village.  The warm weather has the cherry trees and Bradford Pear trees blooming as well as daffodils and forsythia.  

I have been living in the 15th C during the Wars of the Roses.  Been watching the Hollow Crown series of Shakepeare's History plays on PBS. I look up all the characters in John's genealogical database and Luminarium to see who's related to me. The answer is almost everybody! I am a direct descendant of about half and niece or cousin to everybody else. The last king from whence my parents descend was Edward III. They each were descendent from several of his many children, half of which were from his granddaughter Joan by John of Guant & Kathryn Swynford. I made up a cheat sheet of the inter-relations of the time and highlight the direct ancestors so when I want to know how this or that character is related I just have to look. I also watched a ten part series of the White Queen that is based on 3 books by Phillipa Gregory. The books are about the women in the Court from 1460-1483: Edward IV's wife Elizabeth Woodville, Henry VII's mother Lady Margaret Beaufort, and the two daughters of Richard Neville the Kingmaker, Isobel and Anne, who each married Edward IV 's brothers. We are descendant from Isobel Neville and George, Duke of Clarence. Many of the others from whom we descend were executed via decapitation, but after they produced children.

Meanwhile, I attend board meetings, call Senators, and play tennis. I started my new Spanish class on Mondays and in March will start a 4-week lecture series on Revelation by an esteemed Duke U. Professor.  Below is a cute pic of Arlo and Lyle playing together. Courtney told me that Lane Baker (Betty Stuart's widower) died last month. And John-Mac Terry has remarried!

Reflections written after election night

Reflections I recorded in the middle of the night after the National election results were called.
November 9, 2016

Hear me, the End Times are at hand!
  Put your house in order and repent.
...

Blessed are the barren
  for they will not weep for their children.

Blessed are the dying
  because they will not experience destruction.

Blessed are the dead
  for their resurrection is soon.

Blessed are the poor and marginalized
  because they are soon to see glory.

Blessed are the blind
 for they will not see injustice and intolerance.

Blessed are the vermin and rodents
   who will inherit the earth.

...

Foolish Virgins (Matthew25:1-13)

I feel this is the time of the foolish virgins, the half of the maidens who were not ready with oil in their lamps to welcome the Bridegroom.  I'm sure you remember this parable of Jesus that he related to the disciples in answer to their question about what sign would signal the Lord’s coming again and the last days (Matthew 24:3).

 “Stay alert because you do not know what day your Lord will come.”

Jesus assures us that we can tell the season of His return (Matthew 24:32-34) by the abomination of desolation and Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:29-31).

The second coming of Christ will be the point of no return (2Thessalonians 2:9-11).

The arrival of the lawless one will be by Satan’s working with all kinds of miracles and signs and false wonders, and with every kind of evil deception directed against those who are perishing, because they found no places in their hearts for the truth so as to be saved.  Consequently God sent on them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false.

Jesus warns that there will be people who think they are Christians who will not be saved at the second coming.

“Watch out for false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are voracious wolves” (Matthew 7:15)

But understand this, that in the last days difficult times will come.  For people will be lovers of themselves, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers without self control, savage, opposed to what is good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, loving pleasure rather than God.  They will maintain the outward appearance of religion but will have repudiated its power. So avoid people like these. (2Timothy 3:1-5)

Now, does that Timothy text remind you of anybody?  We have seen that almost half of voters have cast their votes for a false prophet: a man who lies, cheats, jeers, and disrespects; a man who appoints fellow assholes who will dismantle the good being done. 

Are there signs of miracles and false wonders? You bet – it was a miracle that a person was elected leader of the free world when most people did NOT vote for him.  It seems a false wonder that the stock market continues to rise to new highs when doom is facing us.

And what of the foolish virgins!  They did not bring sufficient fuel to light their lamps.  The fuel that is needed to bring light into darkness includes love, compassion, and tolerance.  The Bridegroom took a long time coming and the maidens fell asleep waiting.  When He did come, half had no oil but it was too late, the wedding feast began without them.  So we also have waited too long to have the needed fuel.  When He comes again, there is no turning back, no saying, “Sorry, save me anyway!”

I fear we cannot correct what is wrong.  The dye is caste. Half will be taken up and half will be left behind.  Make yourselves ready for the final judgment.  Fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be bumpy decade!

Mexico

Spent New Years weekend with Sue and Scott on BHI. Da girls had their first freedom walk on the beach and they loved it!

Two days later we dropped off Zoe and Zelda at Companion Camp while Sim and I flew to Mexico to cat sit and visit Sim's daughter, Lee, her husband, Richard, and his grandchildren, Simon and Noah. The weather there was lovely- high in the 70's, low in the 40's. We stayed up on the hill overlooking San Miguel de Allende (SMA). We got to enjoy the 3 Kings celebrations with King Cake on Ephiphany. All the kids on our alley got new dolls, trikes, and scooters. The decorations were wonderful featuring gigantic perforated tin angels with light shining through them. We took a walk at the Botanical Gardens and ate out most nights. Didn't take many pictures but glad we missed the sub freezing temperatures and snow in Pittsboro. I did get a cold of some kind which I still have. Plane rides were fine but couldn't get car started at the airport to come home so waited for AAA for 2 hours to get us going. My new fountain is not very happy today. I hope it improves after filling with more water. Had an aquarium heater in there to keep the water from freezing.

Dining room in our place

Our view

Our location

Where we were dropped off to walk down the alley

King Cake

Cocktails for Emily's birthday

Sim in Botanical Garden

Little tin angels in the market

Here are some of Sim's pictures including one of the new house in SMA that Lee and Richard will run as a B&B next Fall.

New house

New house

Sim, Richard and Lee on roof of new house

Botanical Garden including Emily and Simon

At cocktails

Our charges, Max and Sophie

We returned home on Lyle's first birthday. Clearly he enjoyed his birthday cake in Fairfax CA!

Happy First Birthday, Lyle (Jan. 15, 2017)