Life According to James

My oldest son that lives in Nevada has posted a blog. I hope you all check it out. It is the sweetest thing that he has ever done. I love you James. Here is the link:http://lilray52.blogspot.com/

Promise to Myself and to God...and the Dead Sea Scrolls

This year when the new year hit I found myself reading the Bible. I am not really sure why, but I have noticed that I have been feeling better since I started. I have realized that as I read I am reading between the lines. I am understanding what is really being said. That feels good in so many ways. I have always been in tune with life and spiritually but now that I am reading the bible it puts a face to what I feel to a point. I still believe that the Bible is just part of the whole story.

The Catholic Church has admitting to leaving many books out of the Bible to get followers to believe what they wanted. You also have the Dead Sea Scrolls. The scrolls were discovered by young Bedouin shepherds searching for a stray goat in the Judean Desert, entered a long-untouched cave and found jars filled with ancient scrolls.

That initial discovery by the Bedouins yielded seven scrolls and began a search that lasted nearly a decade and eventually produced thousands of scroll fragments from eleven caves. During those same years, archaeologists searching for a habitation close to the caves that might help identify the people who deposited the scrolls, excavated the Qumran ruin, a complex of structures located on a barren terrace between the cliffs where the caves are found and the Dead Sea. Within a fairly short time after their discovery, historical, paleographic, and linguistic evidence, as well as carbon-14 dating, established that the scrolls and the Qumran ruin dated from the third century B.C.E. to 68 C.E. They were indeed ancient! Coming from the late Second Temple Period, a time when Jesus of Nazareth lived, they are older than any other surviving biblical manuscripts by almost one thousand years.

Since their discovery nearly half a century ago, the scrolls and the identity of the nearby settlement have been the object of great scholarly and public interest, as well as heated debate and controversy. Why were the scrolls hidden in the caves? Who placed them there? Who lived in Qumran? Were its inhabitants responsible for the scrolls and their presence in the caves? Of what significance are the scrolls to Judaism and Christianity?

This exhibition presents twelve Dead Sea Scroll fragments and archaeological artifacts courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority as well as supplementary materials from the Library of Congress. It is designed to retell the story of the scrolls' discovery; explore their archaeological and historical context; introduce the scrolls themselves; explore the various theories concerning the nature of the Qumran community; and examine some of the challenges facing modern researchers as they struggle to reconstruct the scrolls from the tens of thousands of fragments that remain.

THE YEAR 1987

In a previous post I spoke about my reunion. It got me thinking about my life during that time. I wish I could go back. Alas, I can't, all I can do is to remember it and cherish it with all of my heart. My Mother, Barbara, was still alive. My Dad, James was working at Champion Papers in Pasadena and not sitting in a nursing home. I was in High School at Sam Rayburn in Pasadena having the best years of my life and did not even realize it. The following posts are a time line of those years, this paragraph will be at the beginning of each:

You remember 1987. Glenn Close refused to be ignored, the Stock Market bubble burst, and the Beastie Boys fought to keep the party going. It was the year we realized what the 80's were all about - and we reveled in the excess, extravagance and bigness of it all!

Bands like Poison, Cinderella, and Motley Crue - took bad boy excess and hair styles to new heights; Oliver Stone showed us the dark side of yuppie avarice on Wall Street; and a new, upstart network called Fox introduced viewers to the hugely dysfunctional family known as the Bundy's.

In `87 sex was on our minds like never before. We flocked to the box office to see Michael Douglas learn the dangers of his Fatal Attraction; we tuned into MTV to watch Salt N' Pepa teach us how to push it (real good); and three scandalous women, Jessica Hahn, Donna Rice, and Fawn Hall, turned the worlds of news, politics, and religion on their &%!#es. And FINALLY, after two years of foreplay - Cybil Shepherd and Bruce Willis did the deed on Moonlighting.

Shepherd and Willis weren't the only dynamic duo in '87. Following in the footsteps of such cinematic greats as Redford & Newman and Martin & Lewis, The Coreys (Haim and Feldman) began their legendary film collaboration by battling vampires in The Lost Boys. Little did we know that the duo who would bring us such classics as The Lost Boys, Dream a Little Dream and License to Drive would also bring us tabloid headlines about drug addiction, rehab, and general career immolation. Ann and Nancy Wilson proved that all they needed to stage a major comeback were a couple of leather corsets, a few catchy power ballads, and a tanker full of aquanet. And on Cheers, Sam Malone said good-bye to Diane and hello to Rebecca.

Years before the Spice Girls - girl power ruled in 1987. Tiffany and Debbie Gibson dominated America's malls and pop radio. And on the big screen in Dirty Dancing, Jennifer Grey went to the Catskills, fell in love with Patrick Swayze, learned the Mambo, and discovered that no one could put her in a corner!

Ah, if only you could go back to 87 - the smell of bleach from your newly acid washed jeans was in the air, U2, Lisa Lisa, and R.E.M. were playing on your disc-man, and the year's biggest sex symbol was a bull-terrier who had a drinking problem and a way with the ladies. Good times.

THE YEAR 1986

In a previous post I spoke about my reunion. It got me thinking about my life during that time. I wish I could go back. Alas, I can't, all I can do is to remember it and cherish it with all of my heart. My Mother, Barbara, was still alive. My Dad, James was working at Champion Papers in Pasadena and not sitting in a nursing home. I was in High School at Sam Rayburn in Pasadena having the best years of my life and did not even realize it. The following posts are a time line of those years, this paragraph will be at the beginning of each:

1986 was a year of breaking out, and breaking the rules. From a triumvirate of rebellious teens taking a day off to a hairy cat-eating alien taking over a family's garage, there were plenty of rules that were broken in `86. And as far as break-outs go, there was a wheel-spinning game show hottie, an Australian with a rather large knife, and - of course - a teddy bear with a tape deck for a stomach. How futuristic!

When Ferris Bueller took his now-infamous day off, we all followed, and spent it at the local movie theater. Bueller became a huge hit, and helped launch Matthew Broderick into the land of superstardom. Another star who broke out was a beautiful blonde named Vanna White, who could turn letters on Wheel of Fortune like nobody's business.

Another breakout of '86 was the unusual collaboration between rock and rap stars, as Aerosmith and Run DMC knocked down walls - literally and figuratively - in their hit Walk This Way. And while Steven Tyler was gyrating with Run, a whole new craze began across the country. The Bangles - along with thousands of music listeners - walked like Egyptians.

The Mets broke out of the shadow of their cross-town rivals as they won their first championship since the 60s, in one of the most memorable World Series of all time. Robert Palmer broke just about every feminist rule in the book, as he placed a group of sexy, similar-looking women behind him in his famous video Addicted to Love. Swatch Watches also broke out in '86, and would eventually become a true 80s icon.

Paul Hogan broke out as an international star with Crocodile Dundee, and the rules of politics were broken when Clint Eastwood brought his scowl to Carmel, CA, where he was elected Mayor. Our hearts were broken when the Challenger exploded on live TV, bringing a nation to tears. And lest we forget Oprah Winfrey, breaking out as a superstar and breaking the mold of television forever.

ALF broke the rules on more than one occasion in the Tanners' garage, and broke out as a huge star. And while he wasn't as funny or mobile, Teddy Ruxpin broke out as a teddy bear with a heart of gold and a stomach of tape decks. The Cosby Show broke into a gigantic hit, and Janet Jackson broke from the label of "Michael's little sister" to become a mega-star in her own right.

A group of kids broke the rules when they went looking for a dead body in Stand By Me while Tom Cruise's Maverick had the need for speed and broke out of his father's shadow in Top Gun. Cruise, Anthony Edwards, and Val Kilmer also broke women's hearts across the globe with a shirtless volleyball game for the ages.

From films to television to the news, 1986 broke through with an attitude. From unforgettable breakouts to rebellious rule-breakers, it is a year that is not easily forgotten.

THE YEAR 1985

In a previous post I spoke about my reunion. It got me thinking about my life during that time. I wish I could go back. Alas, I can't, all I can do is to remember it and cherish it with all of my heart. My Mother, Barbara, was still alive. My Dad, James was working at Champion Papers in Pasadena and not sitting in a nursing home. I was in High School at Sam Rayburn in Pasadena having the best years of my life and did not even realize it. The following posts are a time line of those years, this paragraph will be at the beginning of each:

You really can't even begin to discuss the year 1985 without the Brat Pack. Demi, Andrew, Rob, Emilio, Judd, Anthony Michael, Molly, Ally. I could go on all day. Oh wait, there's one more brat packer, the chick from St Elmo's Fire who ate the PB&J with Rob Lowe. and then he bangs her. Don't you remember? She loved it! It must have been the saxophone that got her all worked up.

1985 single handedly put a hole in the ozone layer. Hair was big- the bigger the better.and men were wearing makeup. Thanks to Vince Neil & Nikki Sixx, Aquanet & black eyeliner were a grocery list staple. Speaking of Motley Crue, their video "Home Sweet Home" paid tribute to wild groupies way before Kid Rock did. You can almost see that one girl's boobs before they cut away. Damn.

"You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have, the facts of life." Too bad George Clooney never showed Tootie the facts of life. That I'd like to see. And was I the only one that realized Jo wasn't a tomboy, she was a lesbian! Groundbreaking television, people. Also on TV back in 1985, everyone's favorite secret agent: McGyver. Every week McGyver saved the world from some maniacal tyrant, but he took the high road and refused to carry a gun. However, he could make an atom bomb out of a post-it note and two paperclips. Richard Dean Anderson was hot, too. Wasn't he? Oh wait, that's Pam Anderson. You'll have to watch 1989 for her.

Dr. Rosenpenis himself, Chevy Chase, had a hit on his hands with "Fletch." "Can I borrow your towel? My car just hit a water buffalo." He was actually kinda sexy back then. Way before that whole talk show debacle. I mean it. Come on, throw me a freakin' bone here.

You think Beanie Babies are cute? They've got nothing on Pound Puppies. Pound Puppies were the #1 selling toy of the year, thanks to all that yuppie cash. "Pound puppies, you're my one and only puppy love..." We also spent our money on a little doll for boys, named "My Buddy." Very un-pc. But the commercial you just couldn't get out of your head. Walking down the street singing "My Bud-dy, My Bud-dy..." you see, the inflection kinda goes down on the second "Buddy" - oh, whatever.

What was Eddie Murphy thinking when he sang "Party All The Time"? Was he trying to follow in Don Johnson's footsteps? You know that whole tv-star-turned-singer thing? Who knows, but it was silly. Not as silly as Pluto Nash, but hey, you know what else was silly? "The Superbowl Shuffle" with The Bears. Excuse me, Mr. "Punky QB"? What the hell are you doing? You can't sing. Please, grab The Fridge and hit the showers.

What if you could go Back To The Future like Marty McFly? Would you date your mom like he did? Maybe if your mom was as hot as Lea Thompson. Time travel never looked so good as that Delorean going 88 miles an hour. Don't even get me started on the flux capacitor. That thing was freakin' awesome. And long before he kicked David Letterman in the face, Crispin Glover made his movie debut. What a freak.

Finally, everybody's favorite everyman, John Cusack. Sigh. Now this guy didn't just land on the scene with a boombox blaring "In Your Eyes." He started off slowly, and somewhat awkwardly, with "Better Off Dead," and my all time personal favorite movie, "The Sure Thing." You got Anthony Edwards, Daphne Zuniga, and that woman who does the voiceovers for Hidden Valley Ranch dressing as a college professor. What's bad? Oh, and who didn't shotgun a beer or two way back when? Good times, people. Good times.