I bought a pouch of Beechnut chewing Tobacco…

I just saw some of you who know me, and knows that I do not use tobacco in any form, just drop your jaw about a foot.  Well, just to let you know, I heard that chewing tobacco boiled in water, then cooled down, drained, and adding some lemon dish soap to it; and putting it in a sprayer is good for killing spiders.  So I bought a pouch, boiled it, neglected to let it cool down, or put the soap in it.  I also bought a pump sprayer, and I poured the boiling hot mix, through a strainer into the sprayer.

I then proceeded to spray it around our house and the other buildings on our place.  I did go back and read that the soap was supposed to be put in, but I will wait and see what happens with only the boiled tobacco juice.

The next time I buy a pouch of chewing tobacco, I will also buy a bottle of lemon dish soap.

Watching for spider activity along the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim

Coldest Day This Winter

When I got up this morning it was 3 degrees outside.  I am thankful that it was not that cold inside.  Whew!  What a mess that would be.  It has dropped a bit since then, though.  It is now 1 degree, and it says “falling”.

This is exactly why Winter is not my favorite time of year.  I like heat.  It seems when I am cold that I cannot get warm enough.  It may be all that blood pressure medicine or some medicine I take; but really I have never been real fond of the cold weather.

Winter is part of the seasons of earth, and I can readily, willingly and thankfully accept that.  I am ready for Spring and Summer.  Please no more of these extreme cold temps.

Thank the LORD for the heat; and the part the cold plays in our world.

-Tim

Coldest Morning

Living in Southwest Missouri is a mystery when it comes to the weather.  In nearby Cassville the temp is showing at 19 degrees; hear at my house at 4 a.m. my thermometer showed 8 degrees…and it is still at 8 degrees.

Winter began officially on December 22, and we have had really nice temps for Christmas, and it began to change a bit on New Years day, getting cooler with wind.  The wind sure does not help any.  We had much colder days before the official start of Winter.

However, this morning is the coldest since the cool weather of Autumn and Winter began.  Our coldest; up until this morning was 12 degrees; but I do not remember what day.  I just remember it being that cold as I stepped out the door to go to work.

We live in a low spot next to the creek, and that probably has something to do with our temps being cooler than other places.  I still like living where I do very much.

I am thankful for my home and the land on which we live and are God’s stewards of.  He has blessed us immensely.

Come heat or cold I will praise the LORD.

-Tim

Eagle On the Hunt

On the afternoon of December 31 I took a walk along the banks of Flat Creek; from just below the old mill pond down around the bend, and then to the place where our family picnics and swims – the Swimming hole.

It was at the Swimming Hole that I sat down for a spell and just looked, watched, and listened for awhile.  I have enjoyed doing that along the creek since I was a boy old enough to venture away from the house; and maybe even before I was old enough.

As I was setting there a bald eagle came soaring near me over the still water of the hole and I assume was looking for his/her prey for food for the day.  I do not believe I was ever as close to a flying eagle as I was at that moment.  I have seen them in zoos sitting on logs for all the world to gauck at, and admire; but never had I been as close as I was at that time and place; while they were flying.

I watched as she/he soared, flapped wings, turned out over the land on the other side, and back over the water, and then flew on down the creek continuing its search.

A beautiful, majestic, bird.  Yet, “bird” for an eagle just seems so small a word.

Remember to go to church today and worship our Creator who has given us all things to enjoy and glorify His name.

-Tim

By the way… HAPPY NEW YEAR.

The Creek is Still Rolling

Flat Creek is still rolling and so am I.  I have even continued to keep up my journal since the end of August.  I think I have missed one day.  I cannot say that it would not bore you to tears, or put you to sleep though.  My journal writing is usually only about one hand written page each day.  I tell the temp outside; what my daily Bible reading is, the scheduled reading I give our church, and what verses I will possibly post on the church blog.

The six puppies are really growing.  They will be six weeks old Sunday/Monday [December 4&5].  One of the males I have called “Butch”.  He acts like Butch; the one I had to put down the other day.  He comes wagging his little tail; of course the other five do as well, but he does it in a different way; looking a small bit like Butch, yet much smaller.  He even almost appears to be the runt of the litter.

I have one of the females named “Spot” because she is black and white with a black spot.  One is named “Fuzzy”, because her hair stands out fuzzier than the others.  One of the males I call “Spoiled”, because he likes to be cuddled; and just soaks it up.  I am trying not to get too attached to them. 🙂

They would be free to a good home.  They would make a good Christmas gift for your children or grand children; even great grand children.  Maybe even someone you do not like?  Just a thought.

Email me if you are interested; and I will get back with you.

t.a.blankenship@gmail.com

Flat Creek is still rolling right along.  Just as it has for thousands of years; and will continue many more, as the Creator ordains it so.

-Tim

Hymn – “Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine”

Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!  Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!  Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

chorus:

This is my story, this is my song,  Praising my Saviour all the day long;  This is my story, this is my song, Praising my Saviour all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,  Visions of rapture now burst on my sight:  Angels descending bring from above Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest,  I in my Saviour am happy and blest:  Watching and waiting, looking above,  Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

Fanny J. Crosby,  1820-1915

Mrs Joseph F. Knapp, 1839-1908

-posted by Tim A. Blankenship

Eagles Are Flying

Of course that is not really anything new.  They have been flying, perching, birthing, eating, breathing, and living for millenniums of time.  However,  I did see my first eagle this season flying over our house.

It flew in a circle over the house as though he was checking us out, and to let me know they were back.  There was no doubt in my mind it was a bald eagle.  The white head and tail feathers glistened in the afternoon sunlight.

I was glad to see our friends had returned to the banks of Flat Creek.  A blessing from our Creator, Jesus the Christ, Son of the Living God.

And, one other little thing.  Do you remember the “Little Girl” (the little corgy dog which adopted us) well, now she is “Little mama”.  On Sunday evening October 23, she was beginning to have puppies when we arrived home from church.  Monday morning when I left to go drive the school bus, she had seven, though one was dead, laying beside its mother.

If anyone wants a puppy in a few months let me know, and we will see what we can do about that.

-Tim

Flat Tire

Over a month ago I borrowed my Dad’s tractor and began doing some brush hawgin on our place.  It was looking pretty good until a broken shear-pin stopped it – the brush hawg that is.  So I was done for the day; then, after I got another pin for the PTO shaft of the machine the right front tire went flat.  It set for several days even over a month, before I decided to take it and get it fixed.

Well I did that on Wednesday morning.  Thursday morning [yesterday, October 13] I did some more brush hawgin finishing up the garden spot, and a small area of the corner of our back yard.  Then, I went down by the old barn, did a few rounds, then, guess what?  That is right.  The right front tire went flat again.

I got the tractor to a better location, then shut it down.  I guess I stuck a nail or something in it this time, because it went down fast.  What I did get done does look better now.

I guess you noticed that I changed the name of this blog?   YES! I did notice.

God is truly good and blesses beyond measure.

-Tim

 

Flat Creek

If you notice the background picture of this blog you will see Flat Creek as it flows along toward the bluff the road is on toward our house.  You will also notice the name change of this blog.  It seems to be a bit more fitting than the name of this contributor to the blog.

I grew up on a farm along the banks of Flat Creek.  That farm is part of the piece of land which my wife and I have ownership of; and have been given to care for for a while.  We enjoy living where we live.  We can hear the creek as it flows; and at times we can see it as we sit at our dining room table through the patio door.

I think the name change is a positive thing.

Enjoy, be blessed as we write of living along the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim

A Colorful Drive

I was out early this morning going to our church’s Men’s Breakfast.  In the early morning hour before sunrise you could not see the colors of the season.  However, as I was coming home I noticed how the leaves on the trees are changing. My they are colorful.

Our Creator has done a mighty good work of art in this creation He has made.  The trees with their colors of green, red, yellow, orange, and even brown make a beautiful landscape to behold.

Yet, we all need to realize the beauty He has put in the crowning work of His creation.  His crowning achievement is the finished work of His Son Jesus Christ and what He can do for  you and me.  Even though we are marred by the dark, blackness of sin; yet, there is  that Light that can be seen, because of the death, burial and  resurrection of our Creator.  He died, yet He lives and lives forevermore.

Look out today and see this glorious thing that God has wrought.  Look within your heart and see what He wants, what He desires to do in you.

-Tim

Starting a New Week

Last week was full of surprise and activity.  That makes for an interesting time and keeps things moving; though sometimes it would be nice for things to slow down a bit.

One thing I like about Monday is that it is a new beginning.  The start of a new week.  It is a time for reflection for me, and I pray for others as well.  Of course I get up early almost every morning, and by early I do not mean 6:00 a.m.  I mean more like 3:30 a.m.  I enjoy that time of day.  There are no interruptions while I read, pray and write.  It is probably one of the most productive times of my day.

I know that everyone cannot enjoy a 3:30 a.m. getting up time; but you miss so much if you are not up, at least before the sun starts to rise over the horizon.  It is a beautiful sight to behold.  The glory of the creation of our God and Savior.

Enjoy the day whatever time your getting up time is.  I pray you will meet God somewhere within the day.  A time when you know you have encountered Him, and enjoy Him, and love Him forever; because He first loved us.

-Tim

Being blessed with more Rain

Today is the last day of Summer.  At least according to the calendar hanging on my wall.  Friday the 23rd is the first day of Autumn.  That seems to be a little later than usual to me.  It seems to usually fall on the 21st or so; but not in 2011 I guess.

It is raining again.  Thank the Lord of all grace and mercy and love.  It is wonderful how He loves us all.  It seems to me that rain is a reminder of His love, grace and mercy and our need.

It will not be long and we will all be longing for those warm, even hot Summer days; at least I know I will.  I must admit some of these past Summer days were extremely hot; but that is Summer.

It is great to be alive.  It is great to have family and friends whom I love and who loves me.  It is even greater still to know that there is a God in Heaven who also lives within me, because He loves me and cares for every need.  All because of the gift of His Son Jesus – His death on the cross, burial and resurrection; and knowing that one day soon He will return.  O,  What a day that will be…

Thanks for the rain.

-Tim

George Washington Carver National Monument

Yesterday, two other bus drivers and myself took three buses of children to the George Washington Carver National Monument in Diamond, MO..  There are probably a lot of people who do not know about George Washington Carver.

He was a generous man.  He cared for people.  He was a man of faith, and used his faith in his life.  He worked with peanuts and discovered many things and many products have come from peanuts because of his work.

The park is on the West side of Diamond, and is a beautiful park.  If you ever get a chance to go there it would be worth the visit.

That is it from the banks of Flat Creek today.

-Tim

We Got Rain

On Friday the 16th I bought some grass seed to sow on my dirt I had moved and filled holes around the yard and fixed in front of the house where water would be more likely to roll around the house rather than under it.  When I got home from driving the bus that morning I sowed the seed, just broadcasting it onto the soil.   Then, it started to rain.  And it rained, and rained and it kept on raining with short periods of no rain, but cloudy skies, and cooler air.

In all we had over 5 inches at our house by the time the rain had stopped.  Some people were giving reports of 6 inches and more, even 8 or more inches.  Looking at Flat Creek you would not know it had rained that much.  It just soaked into the ground, and I thought would have done my grass seed really good; but I was wrong about that.

I have found some of the seeds washed together, and bunched up in low spots.  So much for that.  I pray some of it will take at least.

At least now when the grass does start growing in these bare places it will look nicer and have something to mow, and care for.  Holes are still filled in, and that by itself looks pretty good.

Thank YOU Lord Jesus, Creator of all things, for caring for us and providing the rain.

-Tim

Eli

Let me tell you about my grandson Eli.  I was playing with him last evening after I returned home from driving the school bus, and called him “Little boy”.  Without even saying anything else he said, “My name is Eli”.  Just to see what he would do I called him “Little boy” again, and he said, “My name is Eli” again.

I do not know about the rest of you, but I think that is cute.  A feisty two year old, who knows who he is.

There are fewer and fewer adults who know who they are.  O,  yeah, they know their name; but do not know who they really are.

It may take a while for that to sink in with a some, if they read this.

Flat Creek is still flowing beautifully over the rocks and through the valleys.

-Tim

Motorcycles and Mustangs

When I was 24 years of age I bought a brand new Honda Hawk 400 motorcycle.  That was almost 33 years ago.  I loved riding that bike.  I rode it to Little Rock, AR. several times attending Boyce Bible School down there in the old Baptist Hospital.  The last time I rode down there it rained on me all the way back;  205 miles in the drizzling rain.  I nearly froze.  I  had no rain gear for riding.  Like I said that was my last time riding down to Little Rock.

I also rode it to Tulsa, OK. for a Bible Conference one time; and with a brother in law.  We had a wonderful time.  My cycle got 68 miles per gallon on that trip.  Now would that not be nice today?

Anyway on to why I am writing this.  I got rid of that bike, trading it for a car for my family; which I think turned out to be a bad deal; a bad car.  It was an old 1967 Ford Thunderbird four door.  It had the “suicide doors” for the back doors.  It would have been a great car, if money was no problem.

I rode Timothy’s [our eldest son] Honda VTX 1300 to the Bus Garage yesterday.  After arriving home I was worn out physically.  I realized something as I was coming home.  I was not handling that bike as well as it ought to be handled.  I have decided not that I no longer want to get one.  If I cannot handle it properly and safely; I sure do not need to be riding one.

Instead I will dream of a Mustang GT convertible. 🙂  That will not be too high on the priority scale; probably at the bottom of the list.  Oh yeah, and that is with a manual transmission.

There is nothing comfortable about a Mustang, but it sure would be fun to drive, and the top down would still give me that out in the air feeling, that comes from riding a motorcycle.

Craziness on the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim

 

A Smart Boy

I think you will like this story.

STRATEGY, MISTAKES

A young boy enters a barber shop and the barber whispers to his customer, “This kid is not so bright. Watch while I prove it to you.”

The barber puts a dollar bill in one hand and two quarters in the other, then calls the boy over and asks, “Which do you want, son?”

The boy takes the quarters and leaves the dollar.

“What did I tell you?” said the barber. “That kid never learns!”

Later, when the customer leaves, he sees the same young boy coming out of the ice cream store and says, “Hey, son! May I ask you a question? Why did you take the quarters instead of the dollar bill?”

The boy licked his cone and replied, “Because the day I take the dollar, the game’s over!”

Hopefully thinking ahead on the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

“When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of glory died, My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ my God; All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.

See, from His head, His hands, His feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled down; Did e’er such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown.

Were the whole realm of nature mine, That were a present far to small; Love so amazing, so divine, Demands my soul, my life, my all.”

by Isaac Watts 1674-1748

and still a wonderful hymn of praise to our God and Savior Jesus Christ.

Always praising God along the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim

Hazard on the Highway

My wife and I were coming home from church last night when we came up behind a couple of vehicles.  The one directly in front of us was a small pickup truck; and in front of them was a Ford Taurus [Though I did not know that until later.  We were too far in the back to tell].  The lady in the Taurus was driving slowly; about 40, maybe less; and she was driving into the Southbound lane of Highway 39 (we were headed North).  At times there was on coming traffic and there were several near misses.

The lady in the Taurus nearly ran in the ditch at one point, and my thought was that that was a good place for her before someone was seriously hurt.  The people in the small truck was afraid to get too close and kept putting on their hazard lights.  We got into Barry County, and about a mile into the county she actually hit the ditch on the West side of the road, did some pretty lively bouncing, veered back onto the road into the correct lane, and just shortly pulled into a driveway.

The small truck and us stopped.  The passenger [a woman] of the small truck got out and she was a bit shaken from seeing what all happened.  I was more angry than shaken.  I was almost sure that this individual was drunk.  I went over to the car, and the woman driving got out wondering what had happened.  “This is a friends car.” She said.  “Is it badly damaged?”  I was talking to her, and noticed that I was the only one standing there with her.  All the others had left the scene.

She did not have any smell of alcohol on her. I found out later that she had taken some kind of sleep medication, taken her friends car without permission, and now the car is damaged.  This woman did not even know where she was.

After I wrote out a statement for the Sheriff’s department I left the scene, and she was taken away in a patrol car.

You could say that was an eventful evening.  I am glad and thankful that the woman was not hurt or injured and that no one else was either.

I was not on the banks of Flat Creek when this happened, but fairly near.

-Tim

Just a Few Words

I have just a few words for today.  Probably not life changing; and maybe not thought provoking; maybe just rambling.  I can.  It’s my blog.  Right?

I wrote in my journal again today.  I wrote of a verse in Proverbs.  It was in chapter 4 and verse 23.  It reads,

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

Just thinking of that causes me to realize it is the heart or inner being of individuals which determines our treasures.  Jesus did say, “Where your treasure is; there will your heart be also”. (Matthew 6:21)  Guard your heart it is the seat of what drives your thoughts and actions.

Now I don’t want to get this into being a preachy blog.  I have one of those already.  Nothing wrong with preaching; but it  is not my intention to do that here.

I am just a simple country boy with very little education; High School graduate, and two years of Bible “College” without graduating.  Still just a simple country boy with an Ozark twang.  That I am not ashamed of.

Thanks for coming and reading my few words from along the banks of Flat Creek.

-Tim