This going to be a short post. Lisa and I signed the papers on our new house yesterday and we signed the papers selling this house. So we are very busy packing, and getting ready to move. We will be moving this weekend.
We have been able to throw away a bunch of junk. Morgan and Lisa are working on a putting together a garage sale. I don’t want any part of that.
Well, I need to go pack some more stuff.

Kenith

Today is the Lord’s Day. I did not make it to church because I had to work. I work twelve hour shifts that go from six to six. Today I happened to be on days. I finish my last twelve hours on days tomorrow and will be off until Friday night.

Working Sundays, except for missing Worship services (which is a big deal) are not bad at the refinery where I work, because there are no generally maintenance people and view supervisors. Things are usually relaxed on the weekends.

I just finished saying our evening prayers with the little boys before I came to write for the blog. The boys were getting to bed late so I was going to cut or prayer time short. After we pray our regular prayers we then recite together either the Lord’s Prayer or the Apostles Creed. I was going to skip this last part of our prayer routine, but they would have none of that and wanted to recite the Lord’s Prayer. I was very pleased at this. I then gave them a very short (2 minute) lecture on what we meant when we say “hallowed be thy name” and then we recited the prayer together.

Lisa and I are supposed to sign all the papers to sell our house and buy the new house on the twenty-seventh of this month and we plan to start moving in the new (for us) house on the 28th. The new house is very close to some of my co-workers and to a few of my friends who attend Covenant Presbyterian Church in Sulphur, including the pastor Bill Smith.

I am making large strides in the correspondence of Cyprian (pronounced See-Pree-yan in Cajun), the Martyred Bishop of Carthage (258 AD). I am enjoying it very much and have found it quite interesting. I took a small break from Cyprian this weekend and read Imitation of Christ (book 1) by Thomas à Kempis . This is an absolute goldmine. Kempis lived from 1380-1471 and was a member of the Brothers of the Common Life. Which was a pre-Reformation spiritual renewal movement within the Medieval Church, that was centered in the Netherlands.

The book is written for Religious (i.e. Monks) so I do have points of disagreement with à Kempis, but it is clear that he loves the Lord and almost all that he says here needs to be heard by Christians today. His promotion of asceticism is (I believe) off base, but even this aspect of his book should be read and heeded to some extent to check the rabid materialism and “ME-ism” that has infested much of the Church and so many Christians in our own Culture.

The introduction, which was written in the late 19th century, to the copy of Imitation of Christ that I read pointed out that this book was then second only to the Bible as the most popular book of the day. I believe this book, which is well over 500 years old needs to be read by more Christians today.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

It’s been a while since I’ve posted. The unit shutdown kept me tide up for a couple of weeks. I was putting in some long, 13 ½ hour, hot, sweaty South Louisiana July days. All I did when I got home was take a bath, eat supper, kiss the wife and kids and go to bed. It was a rough two weeks.

All my family is well. Lisa is working a lot because a lady she works with was in a traffic accident a while back and she has not returned to work yet, so Lisa is taking care of her friend's clients as well as her own.

Terry’s daughters came in for the summer from Oregon. Brain (Shannon’s husband) is finally back from Iraq and the two of them are visiting his family in California. Brian (Sandy’s husband) is working on a pipeline in Oregon. Paul Soileau and company are in Canada, and have nearly finished the bike ride from Texas to Alaska.

It looks like Lisa and I may be moving to Sulphur. The business next door to our house would like to buy our place. Lisa found a house she likes in Sulphur, and we may be moving there soon. The new house is near a number of people I work with, and it is also right down the road from my good friend Rev. Bill Smith’s family.

Mike Seep is blogging again, so check his stuff out.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Today is July 6th and it is the 1st anniversary of my dear brother Gerry’s death. Over the past year I have cried many times as I’ve thought of Gerry. I loved him so very much and miss him dearly. Gerry was a great brother, a wonderful friend and always good to talk to.

A couple of years ago I brought a couple of friends, Damone and Izzy, to Gerry’s place to shoot some guns. Gerry had forty acres and I often went there to shoot with him. Anyway, Damone, Izzy and I went there to do some shooting. When I told Gerry I wanted to bring these fellas to his place, he was happy to let me bringing these young men to shoot their weapons (which they had never shot out of doors before).

Gerry had gone some where that morning and was not home when we got there. Later that day, after a lot of ammunition had been spent, Damone and Izzy got to meet Gerry and my dad. Later at work Damone was telling some of the guys at work about our outing. I remember he could not get over how nice Gerry and my dad were. Any time that event has come up he always makes a big deal of their kindness to himself and Izzy. (That means a lot to me when I hear things like that.)

The good news is Gerry is now with the Lord. I would not have been assured of that before he got cancer. He knew the truth before, but it was not evident in much of his life. The Lord was gracious to him even in this terrible sickness. We will meet again.

Now onto other matters.

Morgan and Jac made it to Virginia with no problems, though I was a basket case until they called safe and sound from the conference. They did get a good laugh when I showed up the night before they left with a new hand held GPS. They thought it was a “sweet” gesture, but they said they did not need it and that I should return it. So that’s what I did, and they made it to Virginia with out the GBS.

The children here at home are well. My eight year old and I meet with the session (i.e. Elders at Church). He was examined, and will be admitted to the Lord’s Table (Communion) next Sunday. Before we went to the session the little boys wanted to swing, so I pushed them on our rope swing that we have hanging from the oak tree in the front yard.

Tonight after we got home and they bathed they read to me, which is our normal routine. We then said our prayers (Lisa, the little boys and me) and I read them a chapter from Of Skies and Seas by Joanne E. DeJonge. I read Mrs DeJonge’s stuff to Morgan and Christian when they were young. It is great stuff.

This morning when I stepped out the front door to go to work, I heard a mocking bird (which is my favourite bird). I looked and saw a very brave, but foolhardy mocking bird standing about three feet from Christian’s cat fussing at it. The all black cat, Voodoo, just sat there paying the bird no mind at all. Mocking birds are brave and I’ve seen them fuss at and attack cats before, but I have never seen one standing so near a cat fussing at it like this one was. (He/she may be not be long for this world if it keeps that up.)

The bird flew off when I walked to my vehicle. It really tickled me to see that sight.

Our God is a great God,
Coram Deo,
Kenith

My daughter and niece left this morning on a road trip to Virginia. They are heading to the Christian Worldview Student Conference which is held every year at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Virginia.

The girls are very excited about this trip. This will be their third time to attend the conference. It is a very good conference put on by Calvary Reformed Presbyterian Church which is located in Hampton Virginia. Two years ago Mike and I drove a group of young people to the conference and were able to attend it ourselves. Last year the girls flew to the conference.

This year they decided on driving to Virginia. They are old enough to make the trip, but I am really nervous about letting them go. I know it will very likely turn out to be good for them. They are testing their wings. I wanted to not let them do it, but I know that that would not have been the right thing to do. So I have done what I can to make sure the trip goes well.

This has been a busy week and much has been going on. Emotionally this was a rough week. I have been worried about the girls making this trip. Also this week we came on Gerry’s first birthday since he passed away last year. That was hard. I did tear up on June 30th when I thought of Gerry on his birthday.

In my reading, I’m still reading Cyprian’s epistles. I have also been reading in the Apostolic Fathers, and I have even picked up the Iliad and continued it as well.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

I was extremely busy at work yesterday and today, but they have been good days. Yesterday I was working to get a hydrogen compressor ready for machinists to work on. I one point we had to shut down the work because of a thunderstorm. Everyone left the job site, but I stayed and watched an awesome lightening show. For an hour or so I as watched the storm pass just to the north of our plant. It was beautiful.

After a 10 hour work day, I came home and swung my youngest son on the swing that hangs from an oak tree in the front yard. While I was swinging my youngest, Christian, Ryan and our teenage across the street neighbour read the first three chapters of Acts. I joined them latter as they were having a discussion about biblical “stuff.” Later we went for a walk around the neighbourhood (2 ½ miles) and talked.

Today was busy at work again. We were working with the hydrogen compressor again. I was able to leave after just 8 ½ hours today. When I got home it was time to swing both the little boys on the oak tree swing.

Now I am typing and watching the Brit Hume’s news program on Fox News and typing this. I will soon (when Brit Hume is over) get back with the children.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Ps. It is still raining every day.
PPS. Lisa's friend Kim is doing much better. She is out of ICU and is recovering.

Today is the third day of nearly constant rain here in South Louisiana, though we did get to see the sun for a little while yesterday evening. I'm home today and out of the rain, but yesterday I had to work in the rain for much of the day (though I was not in the rain as much as the other guys with whom I was working.

Lisa’s very good friend, and her children were in a very bad accident early yesterday morning. Thankfully the children, while badly shaken, came through it unscathed. Lisa’s friend, Kim, is at the hospital in intensive care. She’s banged up pretty badly. Last night, when conscious for a short while she said that she swerved to miss an on coming car in her lane. Thank the Lord; none of Kim’s injuries seem life threatening, so we are hoping for a slow but full recovery.

I took the day off because I was tired and I wanted to be available for Kim and her family if they are in need of any help.

I finished reading Tertullian’s Apologeticum a few nights ago. It was a good read and there were insights there that I found useful. I plan to read more of Tertullian latter, but for know I would like to read some works from other church fathers. This morning I read The Life and Passion of Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr by Pontius the Deacon, who was a disciple of Cyprian in Carthage and not long after writing this short biographical sketch of Cyprian also became a martyr of the Faith of Jesus Christ.
I now plan to begin reading some of Cyprian’s own writings. Cyprian is an important man of the early Church. He, like Tertullian and Augustine was a native of Romanized North Africa.

Lisa and I had a good time at the Turner’s the other night. The other couple were friends of the Turner’s though I had meet the gentleman a number of years ago. All three of us men are members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans and so the South and the Late War of Northern Aggression was a fair part of our conversation.
It was good that Lisa and I brought a fifth of Rebel Yell Bourbon (this is Mr. Turner’s preferred whiskey) because they had run dry of the stuff. It was a time of good friends, good conversation, good food, good wine, good dessert, good bourbon and good coffee. That’s hard to beat.

Let me get to other things.
Coram Deo,
Kenith

I'm still working straight days. This week I am working 10 hour days, instead of the eight hours a day I worked last week. Lisa and I have a dinner date this evening, at the Turner’s. There is another couple invited as well, but I don’t think I know them. All three of us men, who are going to be there tonight, are (from what I have been told) Confederate types. So after supper we will have to sit around, sip bourbon (I think I’ll pick up a 5th of Rebel Yell for the occasion) and reminisce about the Lost Cause.

Things have been going well at home. Ryan is still with us, and he is welcome for as long as he likes. He’s started reading some works that I’ve suggested. He should have finished Francis Schaeffer’s How Should We Then Live. He also recently completed the Gospel of Luke and has started the Book of Acts. Christian too recently finished reading Luke and has also started in Acts. He is also reading my old Western Civ. book from college.

The other night the three of us (Christian, Ryan and I) went for a 2 mile walk. During our walk we saw a satellite (space station?). We were trying to figure out what planets we could see, but we were only able to make guesses. We need to look some sky charts.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

It has been over week since I have been able to sit down and write on any of my three blogs. I was taken off shift this week and worked 8 hour days, from 7-3. I am working on the operations plan of an upcoming turn-a-round (i.e. shutdown, catalyst change and maintenance). I think a lot was done, but there is still more that I need to do and will have next week off shift to complete that work.

Wednesday of this week we had a feast at work. Mat brought ten cleaned squirrels someone else brought some deer sausage other folks brought more items. Bud cooked the squirrels and deer sausage in a wonderful gravy. This was a feast when placed over the South Louisiana /Cajun staple- rice. Marlin (Big Dog) provided pecan pie and Blue Bell ice-cream for dessert.

After a feast like that we were kind of useless after our dinner, and luckily it was a mostly quiet afternoon at work that day. The guys had cooked up rabbit and deer sausage the day before, but sadly I missed that meal.

It has been nice to get home early every afternoon this week. The little boys and I were able to go for a number of afternoon walks. I get to point out certain birds and trees for them. We also did our evening readings (them to me and me to them) and of course we pray together every night.

I’m now going to finish this blog and go grab a book and read for a while. I recently started reading Tertullian. Tertullian was born about 160 AD and lived as a pagan before he converted to the Christian faith in the mid to late 190's. He was an educated man of his day and was literate in both Greek and Latin. I’ve read a little of Tertullian’s stuff in the past. Right now I am about half way through his Apologeticum.

I am still working my way through the Iliad and of course I am still reading lots of other stuff. Today I read Peter Leithart’s review of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. I found Leithart’s review to be very insightful and interesting.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

After working last night, I finished this series of graveyards, though the rest of my shift has to work again tonight. Upon leaving the plant Gary J and I stopped at the Circle K for a beer and fellowship before we headed to our respective homes. I got to bed about 6:30 and drifted immediately to sleep.

I awoke this afternoon about one. I was alone and took some time to prayer. After a season of prayer I went outside, sat under the oak in the front of our yard, and began to read. It was warm out, but the grass under the shade of the tree was nice and cool.

I lay on my back with my head leaning on the tree and the monkey grass we planted around the trunk. It was nice laying there reading. There were doves cooing in the trees around me, occasionally a mocking bird would sing or a bluejay let out his hoarse call, and in the ditch at the end of the road, which always has waterin it, a bullfrog joined his voice in with the birds.

I was reading the last of Keith Mathison’s book The Shape of Sola Scriptura. I have read a number of Mathison’s books, and respect him as both a scholar and a writer, but this book was far better and (to my mind) more important than I could have imagined before I read it.

This is the most important book that I have read in at least five years, and maybe as many as ten years. I can not recommend this book to highly.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

My shift finished up on Wednesday evening. I had worked 96 hours in the previous 7 days and had started those seven days work nights and then flip flopped to daylights after a couple of days. On the first two days on daylights I worked 16 hours, starting at 2 AM. In all that my sleep pattern was seriously messed up, because of switching from night shift to day shift, and I did not sleep well. When I fell asleep last Wednesday night I slept for about 13 hours straight.

Yesterday, after my long sleep, I got up and worked around the house. And spent time with Lisa and the kids. The little boys read to me from our McGuffey’s Readers. They are both improving nicely in their ability to read aloud. After they each read to me, I then read to them from a book that we have started. We then had a time of prayer before they were put to bed.

Some weeks back, after our reading and prayer time, I picked up one of them by his hands and feet and placed him in his bed. The other immediately insisted that I do the same for him. They both find this to be a great way of going to bed, so now it has become the routine when I am home. I pick each one up by grabbing both hands and ankles and place them in their beds. They then beg for me to do it again and I usually succumb to their pleas and do it twice.

With all the hours I worked and the trouble we were having at work, I have not been able to read a lot. I am still reading Mathison’s book The Shape of Sola Scriptura. I detoured off of this book again to check out another quote. The Quote was from St. Thomas so read a good bit in St. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica. I am also reading The Iliad. I have read parts of it in high school but have never read the whole thing. I am also continuing with Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Brothers Karamazov on tape. One of the tapes was garbled, this equals 1 ½ hours of reading, so I had to read that section for myself.

I am enjoying all three books, though they are very different from one another.

At this moment Lisa is at work, Christian and Ryan have gone to run a few errands and Morgan has taken the little boys to see the new Harry Potter movie. The were supposed to meeting their cousins at the theatre.

I would like to go to Longville this afternoon to visit and do a little fishing. I hope we can go but it will depend on how things play out.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

The guys and I are spending our memorial day out here at the refinery. Thankfully I’m working my regular 12 hour day instead of the 16 hour days that I worked Saturday and Sunday. This has been a busy holiday weekend for those of us working out here at the plant.

Everyone pitched in for a big meal today. Young Mr. Trahan (pronounced Trah-Hahn [short on the n]) cooked crawfish étouffée for us, and it was very good.

Lisa and I are supposed to go to the Kleinman’s for supper this evening. Folks are supposed to arrive at six, but I will be just getting home from work then, so we will have to be fashionably late.

I have a top operators meeting to go to, so I have to go.

Kenith

This has been a rough day for me, but my work day is almost over. I plan to head straight home, take a long bath (while sipping on a little Bourbon) and then read until I fall asleep, which should not take very long at all.

I had to work the graveyard shift on what should have been my last to days off, but Peter twisted his ankle and I was on call to cover him. That was not to bad, but we had a problem, on the last of the two nights. On that last shift, the potential problem did not happen and I went home and went to bed.

I got up at about 2 PM. (this is Friday afternoon). Lisa, soon after I got up, left for New Orleans; She and a couple of lady friends are going shopping. The big kids took off to Longville and I stayed home with the little boys. We did our thing for a few hours, then I fed them, got them cleaned up and brought them to spend the night with Lisa’s sister (Their dear Reaux-Reaux).

When I got home, I noticed that the refinery had called and they wanted me to come to work at two in the morning. I did what I needed to do and then went back to bed. Of course I had slept until 2PM, so I could not fall asleep. I tossed and turned, read some Dostoevsky, hoping that would put me to sleep, but nothing worked. At 1:10 AM I got up, got dressed and came to work.

I am now coming to the end of a very long work day, and all I want to to do is get cleaned up and go to bed.

Later,
Kenith

Today is a very sad day for me. I am off today so I’ve been working around the house. I cut the grass in the backyard this afternoon. After I finished I came in to get cleaned up. (Now here’s the sad part) I opened my very last bottle of my home brewed beer, then I filled the tub with water, got my copy of the Iliad off the shelf and settled into the tube. Sipping on home brewed beer, reading a classical work, while relaxing in the tub is a wonderful way to end working in the yard.

It's time to get the little boys reading and math work started so this blog must be short.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

After my shift relief arrived on Saturday morning, a few of my buddies and I went to a nearby Circle K for an after graveyard shift beer. We sat on a tailgate, drank our beer, conversed for a while before we headed out for our separate homes.

I had to go by Kroger’s and buy some groceries before I went home. I crawled into bed at about 7:00. Normally I would have snuggled with Lisa, but she is in Houston this weekend. I fell asleep immediately. Our youngest son woke me at about 7:20. He was coughing, so I gave him some medicine and put him back in bed and fell back into my bed and sleep to about 3 pm. That was an unusually good day of sleep.

After I got up, I vegetated in the house for a while before joining the little boys in the backyard. They were playing on their “clubhouse.” I went to check on the blackberry’s that we have planted and found it had a number of ripe berries, so I called one of the boys over to help pick the berries. He and I were steadily picking and eating the big luscious berries, when I looked down and saw a snake coiled up right in front of me.

I was startled and jumped away. I got a rake and picked the snake up and moved him to where I could see him better. It was a hognose snake.

I love hognose snakes. I called my non-berry eating young son over and gave the two boys a demonstration of how this snake acts when he encounters a person. The snake, true to his nature, flared his neck and opened his mouth trying to look as menacing as he could. I then struck the ground next to the snake, and he convulsed a bit and rolled over on his back to play dead.

Next I rolled him over on his belly a few times, so the boys could watch him immediately switch back to laying on his back. Hognose snakes seem to think that they must be on their back in order to play dead. I picked the snake up so the boys could touch him. I then let him go in a rose bush so neither of our cats would get him.

By the time I let the snake go, it was time to head for work again. We were very busy trouble shooting a couple of items early in the shift but things have now slowed down.

When I went to the central control room for our top-operators meeting with the shift supervisors, I found a gecko by the door and caught it. I was hoping to bring it home to show the boys but it got away.

Lisa should be home before I leave for work tomorrow.
Dieu bénissent notre famille! Amen.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

This is my second night on graveyard shift. Last night was a good shift, and we are hoping for the same tonight. My old friend LaCasse is working to with us this evening. He and I are both working as top operators (something like a working foreman) this evening.

LaCassse brought a some Cajun CD’s and I have a few with me, so we are looking forward to hearing Cajun Music tonight.

Lacasse's CD’s include Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, Richard LeBouef and Two Step , Moe-D , Wayne Toups and I have The Lost Bayou Ramblers, the great Alphonse “Bois Sec” Ardoin and Les Frère Michot.

I have picked up The Shape of Sola Scriptura by Keith Mathison. I’m 100 pages into the book and all I can say so far is wow!!

I’ve gotta go. There is work to do.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Today was another Lord’s day. Lisa, the little boys and I all worshipped at Bethel this morning. Our niece, Lauren, worshipped with us today. Another niece, Jac, invited her to join us. Lauren was raised in the United Methodist Church. She and her parents are conservative Christian people.

Our older children were not in town and did not worship with us. Morgan just got back to town and Christian, and his cousin Ryan, are spending the night in Longville.

Mike and I were going to get together this evening, but I didn’t here from him. So it ain’t gonna happen tonight. I think I will open a bottle of wine and have a glass or two on my own.

I have a little work to do before going to bed so good night.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

There has been almost constant rain this week. I worked Days at the refinery from Tuesday thru Friday, which is a busy time for us. When our shift got to work Tuesday morning we found that one of our Reformer units was down and the powers that be were trying to decide what to do. The unit came down because the CCR was in trouble. That shutdown kept us busy all week, especially my buddy Craig Cudd.

I assigned him to take care of the shut downed CCR, when I thought it was not such a major task. I has turned into a near full blown turnaround and he is having to work today and perhaps tomorrow (on our days off).

I promised him that I would sign up for overtime next time we are on call so he will be not be on call.

Christian, Morgan and Lisa are at work and I am home with the little boys and my nephew Ryan, who has been staying with us for about a week now. They are all playing with the Game Cube. I’m going to read to them as soon as they finish the next game then they will both have to read to me.

I am going to encourage Ryan to read the Bible while I do read with the little boys.

I’ve finished A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving. It is the first novel that I’ve read in a long time. The man is certainly a talented writer and I though a lot of much of his style, but some of his sexual stuff was, though there is not a lot of it in the 545 page book, still I thought it to be out of place and superfluous to the story. The basic story was pretty good, but I feel the climax was somewhat anticlimactic.

I think Mr. Irving’s religious and political views that appear in his book are certainly on the liberal end of the spectrum (which is not unusual). He is able to express those views through the main character in the book. Irving’s knowledge of recent history is clearly shown in the work. Much of the book was entertaining, but over all I would give it a “just ok” rating.

I am currently listening to Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. I was hesitant to get this book, because of my past experience with Russian authors. I wanted to read this book because I have heard a good bit about it. So far it is good on tape.

I plan to turn back to non-fiction in my personal reading, which is my preferred type of reading. I may read a biography, a theological work or perhaps both.

Coram Deo,
Kenith

Saturday was a work in the yard and around the house day for Lisa and me. We had to get things ready for today. Lisa’s family came over for mothers day, my paw-in-law birthday and, since the family was here, our sons upcoming birthday.

Sunday morning I got up and made breakfast for the family. I made some pain perdu (lost bread). That’s the Cajun name for what the rest of the country calls French Toast. Lisa requested this meal for Mother’s Day.

After breakfast we got dressed and went to church. The worship service was good. I was assigned to say the offertory prayer. After church we came home. After changing into shorts and flip-flops, I went to the back porch and got the BBQ pits going. We had burgers and hotdogs, along with all kinds of other good stuff.

It was a nice time with the family. Some folks were playing pitch and catch, others were sitting around talking about everyday stuff. We had a good mothers day.

Saturday was a work in the yard and around the house day for Lisa and me. We had to get things ready for today. Lisa’s family came over for mothers day, my paw-in-law birthday and, since the family was here, our sons upcoming birthday.

Sunday morning I got up and made breakfast for the family. I made some pain perdu (lost bread). That’s the Cajun name for what the rest of the country calls French Toast. Lisa requested this meal for Mother’s Day.

After breakfast we got dressed and went to church. The worship service was good. I was assigned to say the offertory prayer. After church we came home. After changing into shorts and flip-flops, I went to the back porch and got the BBQ pits going. We had burgers and hotdogs, along with all kinds of other good stuff.

It was a nice time with the family. Some folks were playing pitch and catch, others were sitting around talking about everyday stuff. We had a good mothers day.