Buzzing Into Spring

http://capturinglifecapturingmemories.blogspot.com/2011/03/buzzing-into-spring_31.html

Snapdragon Day

It's snapdragon day all day in the greenhouse ... Transplanting snapdragon seedlings from seed trays to 48's.

Summer is coming...

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Surrounded By Windmills

While my son, Andrew, and I were driving to BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) at East White Oak Bible Church, we drove through the newest "windmill farm" northwest of Bloomington/Normal...



I'm always fascinated by the windmills... I could watch them for hours. Simple things for a simple mind :-)

Mission Oak Inn Get-Away #2

This is possibly my favorite "fun" photo I've ever shot of Laurie... It was taken while we were on a walk around the lake at Mission Oak Inn where we stayed this past Sunday through Tuesday.

This was our second visit to Mission Oak Inn and... we love it!!! The owners, Denny and Jan, are two of the most hospitable and gracious hosts we've ever met. They see their bed and breakfast as a ministry, and it definitely shows in every little thing they do.

And the food... oh my... Delicious!!! Denny is an unbelievable chef. We enjoyed, yes enjoyed, the best grilled salmon we've ever had (and we eat a lot of salmon).

Yes, once again it was a very relaxing and fun time for Laurie and I - time for just the two of us to enjoy each other, laugh together, take a long slow walk around the lake, watch basketball and cable channels we don't get at home :-)

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My Week In Pictures

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Getting Busy...

It's that time again... spring gardening season has begun and I'm spending time working at BCC (Bloomington Country Club) and client's houses. At BCC I'm doing a lot of greenhouse work... seeding, planting, transplanting, separating, transplanting seedlings, throwing out plants I killed over winter :-) At client's houses I'm mostly cleaning beds, cutting back perennials I never got to in the fall, weeding, planning containers and annual beds, separating/transplanting perennials, ordering annuals/tropicals from suppliers... It's all fun :-)

But, when I can... I'm still finding time to snap a few images here and there (but never enough). When I returned home from work today I had to capture the crocuses that are blooming by our driveway... They always make me smile when they start their performance.

http://capturinglifecapturingmemories.blogspot.com/2011/03/capturing-spring.html

I hope everyone's spring is starting off as nice as ours... Busy, but nice. I'll try to keep up with the blogging as much as I can, but can't guarantee as frequent of postings. I'm still reading/studying the book of Colossians daily and will post thoughts as I can, even if the thoughts are simple and short. The book of Colossians is challenging and strengthening me in many ways during 2011 and getting me on a better path in life. 

Colossians 3:2 continues as my 2011 mission statement... "Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth." I read it and say it daily (usually multiple times daily). I thank God for directing me this book on January 1st... It came along at just the right time.

Japan earthquake: 10,000 people missing in Minamisanriku

With all of the stories about the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan in print and in broadcast, few are mentioning the city of Minamisanriku. Please read the following article to learn more about this city... and pray.

Japan earthquake: 10,000 people missing in Minamisanriku | Metro.co.uk

Colossians 3:14

"Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony."

What if we could bottle love? Not romantic love... but, ἀγάπη (agape) love... in a super glue-like mixture.

Use it to help bring people together that normally would never step foot in the same room.

Use it to bring a committee together to do productive work rather than just argue, disagree, and argue about what they disagree about. (Did that make sense?)

Use it to mend relationships broken by hurtful words and actions.

Or, better yet... Use it to bring Christians together in harmony... helping us realize that people are not the same. We all have different backgrounds, different experiences, different maturities, different personalities, different political thoughts, different trust levels, different expectations.

Yes, we can have harmony, even though we're all different... by allowing love to bind us together.

Father, help me live harmoniously with others... no matter our opinions, disagreements, skin color, personalities, backgrounds, agendas, economics, geography, nationalities. Bind us together with ἀγάπη (love).

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Christianity ... More Than "Just A Crutch"

Some people say Christianity is "just a crutch to lean on" ... I say, Christianity is...

• a firm foundation to build my life
• level flooring to walk confidently and straight
• sturdy walls to withstand changing winds
• a thick roof to protect me from powerful storms
• secure railings to help me through up and down times
• a screened porch to enjoy life's blessings

Yes, Christianity is more than just a crutch to me. But, if it is just a crutch to you, at least that's better than the alternative of falling on your face with NOTHING to hold you up.

Photo Drive 3-2-2011

Just one of those days today... I went on a drive... to find something to shoot.

I happened across an old farmstead ... house, barn, equipment shed, chicken coop, storage shed, corn bin ... all deserted, quiet, and still.

An Email Reply From Mark DeSantis About WEEK & WHOI

[Below is an email response I received from Mark DeSantis, president and general manager of Peoria operations for Granite Broadcasting... Take from this what you want, but please go to WJBC  and listen to a March 2nd interview with WEEK staff members Lee Ranson and Mike Dimmick about the situation.]

Thanks for your thoughts regarding the discussions we are currently having with the AFTRA unit in our newsroom.  I understand your points and I am frustrated as well since information now being disseminated on a facebook page,  and a video on it,  is false.  These emotional kinds of things often occur in labor negotiations with unions often presenting conjecture,  rumor or making false statements to help garner support.

 

While we have proposed modifications to the labor agreement that reflect the current industry and technological reality,  there is no current plan and we have made no proposal to move our local news operation out of Central Illinois.  In fact over the last two years we have added positions to our news operation to better serve Central Illinois,  the only local news operation to increase staff in that same time frame. All WEEK and WHOI newscasts will continue to be produced and aired from the East Peoria facilities as they always have. The union representatives are not reporting the facts.

As you may know,  no station in this area has the rich history of local community support and service as WEEK.  In addition to the 11 hours of local news we produce each day,  for almost 40 years we have produced and aired the St. Jude Telethon,  we continue to produce and air The Children’s Miracle Network Telethon,  support the Race For The Cure,  Buddy Check 25, Steamboat,  Easter Seals,  The Center for the Prevention of Abuse,  and many more local community organizations.  I have run this operation for 14 years and we have been,  remain and will continue to be THE local news,  information and community resource for Central Illinois.

We also continue to produce and air The Children’s Miracle Network Telethon,  support the Race For The Cure,  Steamboat,  Easter Seals,  The Center for the Prevention of Abuse,  and many more local community organizations.  WEEK will remain and continue to be THE local news,  information and community resource for Central Illinois.

For our part,  please know that we are committed to working amicably and professionally with the union to reach a mutual agreement. Our goal is a successful resolution for both WEEK and our employees, which is the outcome that will best serve you as well as the community.

In the meantime,  below is my direct number.  Feel free to contact me directly with any concerns you might have. 

All the best and thanks for watching WEEK-TV.

       MarkDeSantis

       Pres./General Manager

    

    309 698-3850    markd@week.com

    SP Granite Broadcasting Corp.

      WAOE Owned by Four Seasons LLC

      WHOI Owned by Barrington Broadcasting Corp.

Help Keep Local News LOCAL to Peoria & Bloomington/Normal

Granite Broadcasting, the owners of WEEK TV & WHOI TV in Peoria, Illinois want to move all "local" news broadcasting to Fort Wayne, Indiana... PLEASE read the news story in the Peoria Journal Star, and watch the following video:



What I do find very humorous is Granite Broadcasting's main website...

Ok... so I manipulated the website just a little...

Below is the email that I sent to the following individuals:

• Mr. Peter Markham, Chairman of Granite Broadcasting, p.markham@granitetv.com
• Mr. Duane Lammers, Chief Operating Officer of Granite Broadcasting, at d.lammers@granitetv.com
• Mr. Mark DeSantis, general manager of WEEK/WHOI TV at mdesantis@week.com \

The email I sent reads as follows:

Dear Mr. Markham, Mr. DeSantis, and Mr. Lammers:

Please DO NOT remove local news broadcasting for WEEK and WHOI in Peoria, Illinois. What does Fort Wayne, Indiana know about Peoria and Bloomington/Normal, Illinois? If you’re going to move the central Illinois broadcast location, why move it to Fort Wayne, Indiana? Why not Detroit, Michigan? Or Duluth, Minnesota? Or Fresno, California? Or Syracuse, New York? Any of those locations are just as “local” as Fort Wayne, Indiana. What are you thinking???

You can try to make it appear as local as you would like, but it WON’T WORK. You WILL LOSE advertising dollars if this happens. You WILL LOSE viewers. You WILL LOSE local business partnerships. Sometimes, what looks like a smart financial decision ends up a financial disaster in the long run. We have already seen a decrease in the quality of production … NOT the personalities, but the technical production of the broadcasts … over the past couple of years on WEEK news at 6 and 10… If you move everything to Fort Wayne, Indiana it will only get worse.

When I want national/world news I watch Brian Williams or MSNBC. But for LOCAL news, I want to watch a LOCAL station like WEEK. DO NOT TAKE THIS LOCAL OPTION AWAY FROM US.

On your main website, www.granitetv.com, you say you are “A LEADING INNOVATOR IN LOCAL MEDIa” – Please remove the word “local” from that. Because you obviously have no understanding of what the term really means… Fort Wayne, Indiana is NOT “local” for central Illinois.

Mark Sexton

309-838-2252

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