NOT!!! ;-)

Just south of Reno is Carson City where my uncle has a ranch, big spread and beautiful home (10,000 sq. ft.) once owned by the Scripps family (as in publishing, hospitals, everything). Doris’ mother used to say, when they would drive by a posh house, “Oh, but they’re not happy.” Two things: My uncle is very happy and, if this is unhappiness, let me suffer through it for awhile, thank you. We did, two days to be exact. And let me share with you some of the misery we suffered during the interim.

The view from our bedroom, which opened onto a deck the size of Wrigley Field (Cricket Field on the other side of the pond), was spectacular, the East facing slopes of the Sierras with Lake Tahoe Basin on the other side of the rim. A masseuse comes twice a week and my aunt/uncle graciously allowed us to take their turn, a two-hour, deep-tissue, undulating, unbelievably, regenerative full-body message – 120 minutes of unhappy bliss. This followed by a fresh “melt-in-your-mouth” salmon dinner to die for, oh the suffering.

They had also arranged VIP tickets for a “70’s Musical Spectacular” at one of the elegant hotel casinos nearby. It was a high energy, high tech, multimedia production featuring music from the 1970’s. It was fast-paced and enjoyable, but I noticed that most of the people present were “fiftyish.” The music was unfamiliar to me, but everyone else seemed to be mouthing the words, standing, bouncing and waving their hands like a bunch of immature, hyped-up teenagers.

And then it dawned on me! They were regressing for a moment in time back to those teen years. If it had been 40’s swing, my 89 year-old uncle would have been up dancing the jig; 50’s and I’d of been rockin and a rollin, twisting and a boppin, with a bit of an arthritic limp, mind you (Oh, picture it now!).

Since then it has occurred to me that on many Sundays we attend a “Pre-1900’s Musical Spectacle.” Flipping through most hymnals one finds museum pieces such as, “A Mighty Fortress is our God” (1483-1546), sung last Sunday in the service we attended by the way. Or “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name (1726-1792) and “Rock of Ages (1740-1778). Peruse any hymnal, look at the dates and you will understand what I’m saying.

Can you imagine a “Pre 1900’s Musical Spectacular” in one of the casinos, or on Broadway? One wouldn’t have to worry about long lines and poor seats. It would, however, be a great draw if held in one of the Forest Lawn mausoleums, right? Now there’s a thought (picture the spirits dancing, bouncing and waving). Thank goodness I attend a church that features brass band music.

Hallelujah! Yes, praise the Lord! Sing him a new song. Sing his praises, all his people (Ps 149:1 TLB).

Alas, back to the subject at hand. I could get use to all of this unhappiness (my uncle’s lifestyle), nonetheless, reality sets in and we start thinking about leaving it all behind, going back to our humble 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage (with 2 cars in it) located in a modest, gated community, swimming pools, tennis courts, health club and all. The thinking continues further into the future, contemplating two months in Hawaii and the cruise to follow soon thereafter. Ah, but time heals all wounds and we will eventually get over it. I mean, are they really happy anyway? “NOT!” My mother-in-law would say.

And the disciples were amazed at His words. But Jesus answered again and said to them, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God (Mark 10:24-25 NAS).

Thus after two, miserable, glorious days, our little Miata points itself South through Mammoth Lakes, past Mt. Whitney, highest peak in the lower 48 (14,505 ft – 4421 meters), and back toward our simple, impoverished lifestyle on the desert. Flipping through the radio dial, we search for some soul music pleasing to the ear: Rock N Roll… Golden Oldies… Hard Rock… Soft Rock… Rap… Country…, finally settling on a Christian station featuring “Hymns for Inspiration” (can’t help it, we’re old). It must have been a sight to see, though, this little, old, retiring couple cruising down the highway, top down, Boze speakers blaring, singing good old pre-1900 Gospel hymns at the top of our lungs. Hey, but what do we care, this is “slightly irreverent” California and we love it!

NOT!!!