Every morning I wake up to Santa passed out on my neighbor’s lawn. Andrew Sullivan posted my picture of the situation on his very popular blog.

After finishing the shed project, I still had the urge to make something, so I built this birdhouse. To spruce it up, I went with a door motif. I used a glass door knob, some old keys and a draw pull that looks like a door knocker to decorate the front. I used an old tin ceiling tile for the roof, which was much easier than trying to make a roof out of wood. With tin you just cut, bend, and nail into place.

I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. I may make some more.

I finally got around to posting the pictures from our Las Vegas trip to Flickr. It was nice to look back over them and remember the great trip, largely made possible by Sharyl’s cousins Amy and Brandon. They let us stay at their home near Vegas, chauffeured us around town, and let us get to know their wonderful children, Taylor and Ethan.

Anyway it’s all posted now; Vegas, the kids, the Grand Canyon, San Diego. Just click the picture of the Flamingo Hotel and Casino.

Rae Hart Anderson wasn’t able to defeat incumbent Minnesota State Senator Satveer Chaudhary in the recent elections.  But in his concession e-mail, he couldn’t resist representin’ for J.C. to his Hindu opponent.

I’ve enjoyed much of this race, especially the people I’ve met…even you! I see your deficits–not all of them, and your potential–but not all of it. Only your Creator knows the real potential He’s put in you. Get to know Him and know yourself…you’ll be more interesting even to you!

The race of your life is more important than this one–and it is my sincere wish that you’ll get to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He died for the sins of the world, yours and mine–and especially for those who accept His forgiveness. His kingdom will come and His will be done–on earth as it is in heaven. There’s more….I love belonging to the family of God. Jesus is the way, the truth and offers His life to you and each human being. Pay attention…this is very important, Satveer. Have you noticed Jesus for yourself…at some moment in time, yet???

Ken “Cakewalk” Adelman, member of the Defense Policy Board, describes one of his last conversations with Donald Rumsfeld:

“I suggested that we were losing the war,” Adelman said. “What was astonishing to me was the number of Iraqi professional people who were leaving the country. People were voting with their feet, and I said that it looked like we needed a Plan B. I said, ‘What’s the alternative? Because what we’re doing now is just losing.’”

Adelman said that Rumsfeld didn’t take to the message well. “He was in deep denial—deep, deep denial. And then he did a strange thing. He did fifteen or twenty minutes of posing questions to himself, and then answering them. He made the statement that we can only lose the war in America, that we can’t lose it in Iraq. And I tried to interrupt this interrogatory soliloquy to say, ‘Yes, we are actually losing the war in Iraq.’ He got upset and cut me off. He said, ‘Excuse me,’ and went right on with it.”