In my former life I was a married-stay-at-home-mom, who rarely worried about our family’s finances. To be honest, money talk bored me silly. I was quite content to let Mike, who was a Tax CPA, manage our finances, worry about legalities, and to purchase our vehicles. Repo Man Land was not a place I ever thought I would visit.
Just In Case You Missed It
May 5, 2010 — JA BensonA natural disaster, in the form of a 500 year flood, occurred last weekend in Nashville/Davidson County and the surrounding counties of Benton, Carroll, Cheatham, Crockett, Decatur, Dickson, Dyer, Fayette, Gibson, Hardeman, Haywood, Henderson, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Madison, Maury, McNairy, Montgomery, Obion, Perry, Rutherford, Shelby, Sumner, Tipton and Williamson Tennessee. Perhaps the costliest non-hurricane disaster in the US, national news coverage has given little attention to this event. At this time, it is known that 29 people have died, and thousands of homes and businesses are underwater. Nashville’s tourism industry has been severely crippled as Grand Ole Opry Hotel is 10 feet underwater along with nearby Opry Mills Mall. The touristy honky-tonks and restaurants on Broadway, the Schermerhorm Symphony Center, the Tennessee Titans’ field, and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum are all flood damaged. This article sums the spirit of cooperation and charity demonstrated by the Tennessee citizens. Tennessee is nicknamed the “Volunteer State”, and it truly is, in word and in deed.
Creeks and rivers quickly rose, to overflow into nearby homes and businesses.
A Tale of Two Wards: What Is Zion?
March 7, 2010 — JA BensonIt was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way. . . . Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities
In 2009 the full-time missionaries were pulled from our large ward and sent to a small ward, recently split, in a neighboring stake. This “other ward” has four sets of missionaries. Our ward could be described as a typical transplanted Utah/Arizona/Idaho ward with a few true southerners. Pious yet worldly, are the words to describe most of us. The news we no longer had full-time missionaries, was not well received by the members of our ward. After all, our ward is upwardly mobile middle class, and we are accustomed to achieving success. In all aspects of mormondom, we consider ourselves to be well above average. Our proselytizing failures are a blight on our wealth= righteousness checklist. In contrast, the ward our missionaries were re-assigned to, can best be described as predominantly native Tennessee country folks plus single/married university students; with a few professionals such as a country doctor, a small town lawyer, and a handful of college professors. This other ward is definitely not suburban upwardly mobile middle class. Humble and genuine would be the words to describe this other ward.
Squirrels in the Engine or Adventures of a Redneck Woman
January 28, 2010 — JA Benson
The car technician called to tell me an “act of God” had been visited upon my vehicle. Apparently the “wrath of the Almighty” would not be covered by warranty. He inquired as to whether I had homeowners insurance? I sank against the wall with the phone frozen to my ear.
“What?” I squeaked at the technician.
“Ma’am, you got squirrels in your engine.”
“Pardon?”
“Ma’am. It’s the biggest darn squirrel’s nest the boys and I have ever seen. Buckets of acorns too. The company don’t cover squirrels Ma’am. Anything a squirrel does is an act of God.”
Vote Now for 2009 Niblet Awards at Mormon Matters
January 25, 2010 — JA BensonVoting for 2009 Niblet Awards at Mormon Matters has begun. Polls will close at midnight on January 31st.
