Subie dies again!

Well, Subie may have finally gone to the Great Garage in the sky.

This morning, my daughter started it and drove one block down before it died.

I tried starting it up, but after two attempts, the battery surrendered.

I thought the return of my son might solve my problems. He could push it, and I would pop the clutch.

We walked the block to Subie, I tried to start it with a key, but after two attempts, the familiar white flag rose like a shroud from the battery.

Huston, that’s a no-go.

So I turned the key on. I released the parking brake. I pushed in the clutch and put my foot on the brake. I put the car into first and hollered at my son to push.

He did.

I released the brake before he realized my mistake.

We built up a little speed, I popped out the clutch, and we stopped. We tried again, only this time I left my foot off the brake.

Nothing.

Now I sat in the middle of a side street intersection. I flipped it around, with the help of more pushing, and we pushed uphill. I nestled into a parking spot, set the emergency brake, and walked away.

The funny thing is that God’s timing is always very good. A couple weeks ago, a family member offered to loan one of their vehicles that could make the trip between Spokane and Cheney. We recently accepted their offer, and I’m picking it up tomorrow.
So what’s to become of Subie?

I don’t know. I’ll keep you posted. ; )
If this really is the end, does the blog die too?

"I just can't believe in a god that..."

Everyone has heard the guy on campus, griping about God, complaining about people who believe and whining about what he thinks God should be doing, if he truly exists.

It's true that the world is going to Hades in a handbasket, but I wonder: Why is it God's fault?

Yes, he's omnipotent and all, but when did it become God's job to save everybody and all the time?

Does being omnipotent come with a job description? "I'm sorry, God, but you're just not acting as was as we unwise people think you should act, therefore we won't acknowledge your existence or pray, let alone worship, you. Sorry."

What if our expectation of God translated to others in our lives.

Take mom, for example: just because your mommy can clean, sew, and is a fabulous cook, does that mean she should always do these things for everybody, all the time?

"Well Amy," you say, "that's different."

How? Just because God can be the hero, does it mean he always should?

Not following me? Let's try another angle. If God was always there hero, there would be no illness, poverty, war or death. What kind of world would that be?

Oh, uh-- heaven. Yeah. Didn't God say he was making a home for you there?

But if God solved problems on earth, all the time--feeding the hungry, healing the sick-- after a while, we would take our perfect little world for granted. We would have no consequences for our actions. ("I can kill someone, but it doesn't matter because God will just raise them up again.")

Don't believe me?

Every morning, my husband wakes to a tiny alarm on his watch, makes breakfast and coffee for me and wakes me and the kids to guarantee we all get to the places we need to be on time.

Do I thank him? Rarely.

But what do I think when he sleeps in on a Saturday, or lies around watching TV before church on a Sunday? I whine, inwardly.

And this is what we do to God everyday for the things he DOES do. Remember that close call? That promotion? That sunset?

Besides, if God was always saving the day, wouldn't we get tired of it? Wouldn't we say, "When is it my turn?" Isn't there something within most rational people that needs to do something good for humanity? Or the planet?

So quit griping, get off your butt and take your opportunity to save the day. God has the rest of eternity covered.

Movie review: Ghost Writer

If you’re looking for a movie with a hitchcockian style hearkening back to a different era, “Ghost Writer” will keep you busy looking for the next clue.

Director Roman Polanski may identify with “Ghost Writer” character Adam Lang, the ex-prime minister whose memoirs require a final edit from a ghostwriter before publishing. Polanski is currently under house arrest in Switzerland for a crime he committed 32 years ago. Fictional character Lang cannot leave the United States after an international court charges him with war crimes. Eventually, the ex-prime minister cannot sit in his living room without the prying eyes of the media upon him. This is not unlike Polanski’s victim, now 45, who has moved on and wishes the courts would drop the case rather than revisit it in the media every time Polanski earns an award or releases a movie, says Telegraph.co.uk.

The confident ghostwriter, played by Ewan McGregor, has one month to make something of the bland memoirs of Pierce Brosnan’s character, Adam Lang. His predecessor, who died under suspicious circumstances, left behind 600-some pages of hard copy. The drab memoirs put The Ghost to sleep, but Lang’s protective assistant, Kim Cattrall as Amelia Bly, keeps them locked up when they are not under construction. Ruth Lang, played by Olivia Williams, wants The Ghost to write her out of her husband’s memoirs altogether. As The Ghost digs deeper, he finds stranger and more complicated details of not only Lang’s past but also the previous writer’s death. It doesn’t take much digging for The Ghost to see the crosshairs of danger now lie upon him.

Depicting a man passionate about his work, his politics and his sense of right and wrong, Pierce Brosnan was authentic as a prime minister. McGregor has always done cocky well, looking back at his role as Frank Churchill in “Emma”, and he transitions his character from self-assured to overwhelmed with ease. Kim Cattrall should consider her performance as cool and professional Amelia Bly as a triumph. She played the role so well that it took me several scenes to recognize her as a “Sex in the City” actress. However, the show-stealer was Olivia Williams playing the moody Ruth Lang. Weeping one moment and seductive the next, Williams embodies a woman in constant competition with all of her husband’s distractions.

Aside from the all-star cast, the movie can boast of other well-known actors. Jim Belushi, Timothy Hutton, Tom Wilkinson, Eli Wallach and Robert Pugh were among the familiar faces gracing the screen.

The film begins quickly and doesn’t waste a single moment. Every scene is relevant, interesting and fast paced. The details require the viewer to pay attention and decipher quickly to discover the mastermind behind this who-done-it mystery. Polanski’s problems may not be resolving quickly but Lang’s come to a head with an ending that is difficult to foresee.

Life with an oil addict.

I am happy to report that I am not the woman whose car caught fire on April 5 on Interstate-90. My Subaru has a bad smoking habit, but we're no longer enabling her oil addiction. We'll keep her lubed, but after our last rehab, we're not visiting the mechanic anymore. Subie must give way to The Beast, the truck we're paying on. It seats all six of us.

My husband, Tim, drove Subie to work for the last time on March 30. She hit bottom, barely pulling up Sunset Hill. He shifted down, revving the rotations per minute upwards of 4000. After the Medical Lake exit, he shifted back up, and the universe righted itself-- somewhat.

I couldn't accept Subie for her faults, and during a trip to Spokane on April 2, I lost power on a slight incline on the Michael P. Anderson Highway. I had to turn around and return to Cheney. So now, Subie's retiring to live out the rest of her days in Cheney, shuttling between home, school, friends' homes and the grocery store.

I guess it's time to accept Subie's limitations and inability to grow. Tim now carpools with a dear friend from church. I have asked a friend for a ride to see my doctor on April 8. I could take The Beast, but this has forced me to realize I don't want to be alone when I hear the cancer-test results from my spring break surgery.

We are transitioning from oil-dependence to interdependence.