If you don't see it, zoom in, and look closely... yeah, that's a 3 to 4 foot long, inch-diameter snake, just a few feet from where I'd just been walking around. (No, I didn't panic; I pulled out the camera and took this pic, and a few more, slowly inching the mower closer and closer... which the snake didn't like, and eventually slithered its way off into the woods.) Oh, yeah, that's our fence in the picture (I'm on the outside of the fence here). Nearest I can tell (by my post-picture sleuthing) it's a grey rat snake (I'm not much on identifying critters, so I had to wait until the internet could help me figure out what it was). Non-venomous. And, based on the recent present one of our dogs left on our back porch (a dead, slightly disemboweled rat), probably a good friend to have around.
Speaking of friends, if you're a friend (or even if you're not), check out what some of my kids are doing this summer: my youngest two boys (Ronnie & Alex) are going to be working at summer camps sponsored by the Child Evangelism Fellowship, while our daughter Lydia (our oldest child) will be working at a summer arts camp... in Madrid, Spain! Both opportunities are very exciting (and we're very proud of our kids for volunteering in these ministries), albeit somewhat costly; each boy has to attend a training session (at a cost of $435 each), and Lydia's trip will require roughly $2500 in various expenses. If you'd like to contribute to the expenses, you can visit the info and donation page I set up to find out more (each kid has written a letter about the ministry which are available at the site) and donate to help with the expenses through PayPal (and thanks in advance for any donations, and even more for prayer - both for the kids, and the ones they'll be ministering to, and for mom to keep her cool while her baby girl is on another continent).
My other boy, Justin, has also been busy recently with his "daily" YouTube show, "The Daily Chicken" - even though it really only comes out weekly. I've also been helping out a little by getting a website set up for them: chickenforth.com. There's not much out there on the website yet (I'm working on a "Virtual Chicken Challenge Chest" - and if you wonder what that is, you'll have to watch the videos at The Daily Chicken YouTube Channel to find out!). Oh, and a concussion he suffered a few weeks back (at the hands of his younger brother, Ronnie).
Speaking of videos... do you remember Hee Haw or The Carol Burnett Show? Do you miss that kind of fun, mainly clean entertainment? Well, then, have I got a show for you: The Mythical Show. Featuring Rhett and Link (well, not just featuring them... it's their concept!), it's a half hour of entertainment that's safe for the family to watch along with you. And a real half hour, not twenty-two minutes and eight minutes of commercials (although the first episode was really only 29:03, not a full 30:00). I recommend putting it on your living room TV (via the Wii or PS3 or just hooking up your laptop's HDMI output to your TV) and watching with your family. A new episode will come out every Thursday (at least for a dozen weeks), although once out, it's available for instant streaming at any time, so you don't have to sit down and watch it exactly when it comes out. Try it, and hopefully you'll like it.
OK, that's enough for this edition of LBD... until next time...
...a topato!
