They don't make garbage like they used to. Do you remember the good old days when you could throw away everything when you were done with it? Actually, those were not the good old days, because we were also trashing our environment. We now have the privilege of sorting through what used to be just garbage. Bottles, newspapers, cans, and glass are now called recyclables. It is amazing how garbage can be taken and then recycled into something useful again.

Our youngest son was asleep upstairs, and his dog, Missy, was confined to the kitchen. Our daughter, who was visiting, thought it would be fun to play with Missy, so she removed the gate on the kitchen and let her out. She did not get to play with Missy because that dog took off like a rocket with a guidance system. Missy made a mad dash down the hall and up the stairs, somehow managed to get our son's door opened, and jumped into his bed. We didn't even know that she knew where he was. Somebody said, "Boy, she's a smart dog." Well, she is. She knows exactly where her master is. She goes straight there.

Our family has had the privilege to spend some unforgettable ministry days on the Navajo reservation in New Mexico and Arizona. When you are there, you do a lot of driving because that one reservation is the size of West Virginia. The vehicle of choice there is not a car. No, you want a truck. Many places are only accessible by roads that are steep, bumpy, and full of craters. Driving is a major challenge to the durability of any vehicle - or passenger. You'll hear many radio advertisements using this one phrase to promote the quality of their truck. This macho voice says, "It's reservation tested."

Have you seen the game show Jeopardy? What an appropriate title for a show that comes on right after the world news!

Three contestants are given several categories, ranging from U.S. presidents to cat food. First, a contestant picks a dollar value in a given category and the host provides the answer. Then the three contestants vie to see who can be first to phrase the question that fits the answer. Some of them do very well and win lots of money, but others fold. Some of these people wind up in a hole with their money. How do they get on the show? It's hard to come up with right answers when you have all that pressure on you.

Happiness can be a sailboat. Some people work in high-stress environments all week long, and they let it all go on their sailboats on their day off.

When we are in a hurry, we don't want to see certain signs on the highway such as "Reduce Speed" and "Construction Ahead." Slowing down for big construction areas can be a pain. It's an inconvenience, but things will be so much better when they're finished.

A city I visited missed the hurricane that hit the South, but we did get two days of the wet weather leftovers. We had drenching rain. Compared to the hurricane we had it easy, but the rain really soaked us.

There used to be an amusement park with a ride called the Rotor. It was like a giant washing machine tub, except they didn't put clothes in it. People would step into this big, round cylinder and stand on a ledge. It would start to spin, getting faster and faster, and then the floor would drop out from underneath them. You could hear the screams halfway across the city as riders were thrown against the outer edges. Centrifugal force is amazing! The faster things are spinning, the more things are spun to the edge.

A lot of memories are made on family vacations, and they're great once you get going. The problem is that getting ready is such a production.

Once on an airplane flight from Chicago to Newark, I was busily working when suddenly the pilot put on the brakes. We were not really near Newark yet, so I tried to figure out what was going on.