Goodbye Chuckie Boy

I wasn't able to say goodbye to Chuck today. Baby Rocket Dog & I went to the dog park and Patrick picked him up while we were gone and took him to the Humane Society. He had to fill in a form that told about who Chuck is. He said the ladies who waited on him were very nice and didn't act judgemental. I couldn't say goodbye to him, because I tried for several days in a row and got myself all upset. Yesterday was going to be the day, but by the time Pat got home from work I had worked myself into a tizzy. I was crying all day long because even though Chuck has been horrible lately....[Peed several times on bath mats. Defecated in the bath tubs. Bit my wrist when I was petting him. Etc, etc.]....I still love him and hoped upon hope he would straighten up. He is already on Prescriptive c/d food that we could only purchase from the vet and the last 2 times we had his urine tested it was clean with no crystals, stones or infections. It was obviously behavioral and just was not getting any better. We had discussed the problem over and over and knew that the best thing for us to do was to give him up. It was a really hard decision. This is no normal Persian cat. He knows how to beg, sit and lay (all for treats of course). He is very smart and absolutely beautiful to look at. I hope that someone adopts him quickly. He hates to be in those cages that they have at the vets. They make him become more surly than usual. He hisses and acts like a wild cat. That won't endear him to any perspective adopter. Well, it is done and I just hope he gets a nice home that makes him happy. A lady I spoke to at the dog park works at the shelter Pat left him at and she said if he isn't gone by next weekend she will feature him on Pets On Parade, the local Saturday TV show for the Humane Society. We'll be up in N. Idaho by then, so will miss his TV debut. I actually felt like a load was off my shoulders for a time today, but once again I'm feeling very sad. To you who read this, please say a little prayer for Chuck the cat, and for me too. Thank you in advance. May the Lord of heaven and earth bless you and keep you. Because He lives, Cassie

Using Gas = Good Times = Empty Pockets!

The past few days have been busy & fun. Friday night was Pastor Manny's Bible study (we are in Joel) and as usual we were challenged. Steve V. was the guest leader of the worship team and did a terrific job. He and his wife, Carey, actually met at this Bible study 10 years ago, so he said it was like a sweet reunion. We sure miss our Phx. church when up in N. Idaho. Saturday we awoke quite early & Patrick & I attended our Credit Union annual meeting. We got to sit with some friends we hadn't seen in several years & it was great catching up with Sylvia & John. It was held at a Marriott and the breakfast buffet was very yummy. Pat and Sylvia each won a door prize too.....Very cool! I'm always surprised more folks don't attend these things. After that I drove to Casa Grande to meet with my dear friend, Cathi and her 8 yr old daughter, Mandy Sue who were driving up from Tucson. The trip to Casa Grande should have taken about 45 minutes but due to road work (freeway finally dwindling down to a single lane) ended up being almost 2 hours. Yikes. The trip was worth it when I finally got there. We ate at Macayo's Mexican Restaurant and gabbed. Then, we did a little shopping before parting ways. It was the last time we'll get to see each other until Patrick and I return from Idaho in December. Luckily we both have AT&T cell phones so can talk every day even when thousands of miles away. I was exhausted when I finally got back to Phx. & really dislike driving in that kind of traffic. This afternoon Patrick and I went out to Red Lobster and chowed down. After that we went to a few stores and I found some of my treasured Polish pottery. Got 2 more steins and 2 mugs. I really need more dinner plates, but haven't had much luck with that. I am flabbergasted at the price they command on line, so will continue to look at department stores. Blessings to you, my friends, Cassie

Townhall Forum on April 8th

Patrick & I went on a date to the Townhall Forum at the Maricopa County Event Center on Tuesday, April 8th. It was sponsored by KKNT 960am radio-The Patriot, YourWestValley.com and Daily News-Sun and was terrific. Three of my favorite talk radio hosts (Dennis Prager, Michael Medved & Hugh Hewitt) were on the three man panel which was moderated by Dean Martin, the AZ State Treasurer. If you are not familiar with these gentlemen I highly recommend googling each one and perusing their websites. Brilliant minds and upstanding people.I have loved Dennis Prager for years...used to stay up to watch him when he had a TV show at 2:00am some years ago. It was pretty cool being amongst this large crowd of conservative folks, not to mention the stimulating Q & A with the panel. Pat & I were in the front row, so had some of the best seats in the hall. The only drawback to our great seats was that they had a BBQ dinner (which we did not attend) prior to the main event and the yummy smell of barbecue sauce was wafting through the air the whole time we were there. By the time we finally left I was ready to go home and swill down a bottle of BBQ sauce like a bottle of soda pop! We purchased 3 books and waited in line to have Dennis and Michael sign them. While in line we chatted with a nice fellow named Dean who was there with his teenage son. Dean was kind enough to email us some pics from the night. Thanks Dean. To summarize, it was a good time and well worth the cost of the tickets. Signing off for now. Blessings to all who read this. Because of Him,Cassie

April Showers?

Here it is April already and I haven't written a thing on my blog. No showers here in Phoenix. Actually it has been in the 90's already. Ugh. Even our pup, Baby Rocket Dog, runs out of energy soon after arriving at the dog park. We took her there this morning, then to Smelly Dog where we gave her a bath. She smells like lavender from the cream rinse. Patrick and I have been taking her to Smelly Dog together the last few times because her bath goes much quicker with the two of us working together. It's such a great way to give the dog a bath---they have everything there for you: shampoo,rinse,ear stuff,brushes,blow dryers,aprons. And best of all the tubs are waist high so there is no bending over. Important for us old codgers! Love that dog. Now Chuck, my Persian cat, is another story. We've had him for almost 13 years now and he seems to get more obnoxious with age. He has no patience for kids or Baby. And he has some "behavioral issues" that are becoming harder for us to handle. Namely, he has 'marked' my (large)bath rug with his urine. Not nice. Since getting Baby Chuck really seems nasty by comparison. He had his "issues" prior to getting the dog, so we can't blame his bad behavior on the pooch. With our luck he'll live to be 25. Any suggestions on what we should do with him would be appreciated. FYI: he has been checked out & does not have a bladder or u.t.i....he's just a stinker. On to another subject. Bible study Friday night was very cool. We always look forward to that day of the week because of it. I'll miss the great teaching and fellowship when we go up north. For those of you out there that pray, would you lift up my cousin Ivy's friends Susan and Drew? Susan is expecting her 1st child (at age 42) and her husband of 3 years, Drew, is in the last stages of lymphoma. They are believers and really need our prayers at this time. Thanks. May the Lord of the universe bless you and keep you. Remember, Jesus never fails. love to all, Cassie

Quick Friday Night Post

Got back from Bible Study a few hours ago. Tonight we had a pot luck so Pastor Manny didn't have his usual amount of time to bring us the lesson. Short or long, he is a very great minister of God's word. After eating we had praise and worship through music. Then Jesse,a young man from our group,told us about a wedding he attended with Pastor Manny today.It was a wedding of 2 believers from our church,but the majority of folks who attended were Hispanic,Catholics,relatives of the bride and groom. Jesse told how as Pastor Manny began to give a salvation message several people looked skeptical and hardened. As he told of God's love & spoke of Heaven & Hell the people's faces changed...softened. Long story short,as part of his message Pastor Manny said a sinner's prayer and 26 people accepted Christ as their Lord & Saviour.As Jesse said, it was quite a fishing trip! The Lord calls on us to be fishers of men and each of us should take every opportunity to present the gospel to the unsaved. Our Lord is so awesome. Well, that's it for now. Better get some sleep. I need to work on our taxes tomorrow. God bless all who read this blog. Because of Him, Cassie

Getting Closer

Time is sure flying. This month it is 2 years since my Auntie Vi died. Next month,April,is 9 years since her husband,Uncle Bill died and 14 years since my father,Leslie W. Miller,Sr. died. I miss all of them. It really seems like only yesterday when we were having conversations together. I called my father Daddy and sure do treasure the talks he & I had the last few years of his life. He was raised in the Lutheran church and after I was born again,had a lot of questions for me. His only sibling, Auntie Vi,was the same way. They both knew Jesus,but seemed very childlike in their grasp of the Bible. I bought Auntie Vi a living Bible translation and she really liked the readability. Right after I was saved I brought Dad a copy of Chuck Colson's book "Born Again". (I'd underline it, but can't figure out how to do it in this setting!) Daddy was very interested in politics so I thought it would hold his interest. Not sure if he ever read it though. All 3 folks I mention here were in Pennsylvania while I live out West. Sooooo,any witnessing was done on the telephone or on visits back east. Now,speaking of all this reminds me that time is brief on this earth and Heaven is getting closer. I really look forward to our Lord face to face! Wow! Resurrection Sunday/Easter is my favorite time of the year. What Jesus did for us is beyond my comprehension, but I am SO grateful. Praise His name. He is risen! He is risen indeed! Blessings in His glorious, holy name, Cassie

Busy Weekend

Wow, what a weekend. Took in a Suns game & an Oakland A's game, went to a splashy,new dog park,had an interesting church service and drove around in Apache Junction looking for Old West Iron Arts. The Suns lost to the Jazz. The A's beat Chicago Cubs. Baby Rocket Dog wouldn't jump in the lake at the Cosmo dog park...but did let the other dogs fetch her ball for her from the lake. Pastor Mark is in Israel with a group and delivered our sermon Saturday night from a boat on the Sea of Galilee. Wow, that was so cool. Found a small flock of quail (iron) at Old West Iron Arts. It's for our driveway in Idaho. A good weekend. Accomplished a lot & got to do it all with my sweetie pie and doggie pie too. Blessings to all who read this blog. love, Cassie

My First Day Blogging

Well, here I am trying something new. Like there aren't enough things left undone each day by yours truly. Decided it is a good idea to keep a type of diary of my thoughts, etc. in case anyone is ever interested in these "deep" thoughts. hmmmm. Perhaps this will help my grandchildren know who Grammy is. (Haven't seen the little sweeties in over a year now. A topic I might cover in the future.) Okay, first off I'll let you know where I got the name for my blog. July 13,1988 I was "touched by grace" and have been living in amazing graceland ever since. The Holy Spirit spoke to me telling me God is real. He told me Jesus would never leave me or desert me. And last but not least He told me the Bible is true--ALL OF IT---Read it! All of these things came to me simultaneously. Boom, boom, boom. It was about 2am & I was alone at work when this happened. The previous two weeks I had been sad and miserable (for reasons too lengthy to go into). I was not a religious person, and didn't know the terms "born again" or "saved" (other than hearing who I considered wackos using them). All I knew was that I had been touched by grace and I was filled with joy...happier than I had ever been. As the Spirit spoke to me all the bad, crumby, rotten stuff that had been held inside my heart for the 37 years of my life went pouring completely out and was replaced with a calm, warm assurance of God's love and faithfulness. An amazing morn indeed. I would later try to describe this happening and the best I could do was compare it to a cartoon of my heart breaking open (with the jagged line through the middle) with all the garbage being released to the sky and a swooshing, swirling, vacuum-type feeling of joy replacing it. Get the picture? This isn't quite as easy to write as it is to explain in person, so I'm hardly doing the greatest experience in my life justice. Anyway, from that day to this I love Jesus and have a personal relationship with Him. Not saying I'm anywhere close to perfect on my own, but with His help I'm not as much of a wretch as I used to be. Like the bumper sticker says: I'm a work in progress! So, that's the story of my blog's name. More later. Love in Christ Jesus, My Lord and Saviour, Cassie