The Land of Orange would be this lovely metro-area I live in. Finster and I wrote an Ode to MDOT once - I wish I could find it now. (MDOT for those not from the area is the Michigan Department of Transportation. I contend it should be MDOLT - 'cause the transportation has been plain ol' Lousy!)

It seems we cannot get from here to there without an orange barrel surfacing. If they were truly working on a whole stretch of road, I would be somewhat understanding (though I still maintain that they do not need to be working on multiple major thoroughfares at once - but what do I know?). Unfortunately, as you drive down the orange barrel lined roads, the sight of burly men at work is ... well ... few and far between. I say that with disappointment not because I enjoy the sight of construction workers, but rather because I dislike the inconvenience of closed lanes where no work is being done.

I am sure my friends in construction could give me multiple reasons why such closures are necessary. To them, I say "Poppycock!" I, of course, am not 100% sure what that means.

Amidst this sea of orange, it seems too that lately all I hear is more bad news. More people losing jobs, sick parents and grandparents, losing loved ones, troubled pregnancies, yadda yadda yadda... Even in the excitement of an impending wedding, all this news can cast a gloomy shadow on things - it can even drain my energy and has from time to time. No worries, though, every shadow has the sun behind it, and I know that all this too shall pass. With so many blessings in my life, the evil one is sure to try to muck it up with a little darkness in the shadows, but I know who's on my side. To all those with the cares of the world on their shoulders, myself included some days - I say give it all up to the only one who has conquered the world. Jesus - it's all yours!