Atomic Monster Cafe: A Late November Sunrise...

...a week before Thanksgiving...and in spite of the current - and constant - political turmoil swirling around us, we have much for which to be thankful.

The Apostle Paul said "having food and raiment, let us be therewith content." (I Timothy 6:8).

Note he didn't even include shelter in his abbreviated list!

Be honest...could you be content if the sum total of your earthly possessions consisted of the clothes you wore and your daily bread?

No home, no car, no cell phone, no big screen TV, no <insert favorite vice here> ?

Well not to worry...by God's grace most of us have far more than just food and clothing.

And while I certainly do not take those for granted, above all I'm thankful for loved ones...the people who bring joy and kindness and happiness into my daily life.

Karen and I plan to gather with a few of them this coming Thursday to break bread and share some laughter and love for a few hours.

I hope you do, too.

But speaking of political turmoil, the election drama continues...

ah, the good ol' days...

...and like most folks I really only want a couple of things:

1) count EVERY legal and legitimate vote -and-

2) count ONLY legal and legitimate votes.

In other words, if there's Fraud, expose it; where there's Truth, reveal it; and let Justice be done, whatever that may mean.

That's it.

By doing so my faith in our electoral process will be restored.

Doesn't sound like too much to ask, but the more I learn, the more cynical I become.

Our journey through all 13 seasons of Heartland has finally come to a sad end...

...and I have to admit I'm truly going to miss our visits to Jack Bartlett's ranch up in Hudson, Canada.

What we raced through in a few weeks took up 13 years of their lives.

The actor on the far right is Chris Potter who plays "Tim" in the series...he was 47 when it began and is 60 now.

"Amy" (Amber Marshall, 3rd from the right) was 19 when Heartland began; she's 32 now.

There's a real sense where folks who watched from the beginning grew along with the cast as they experienced life on the Heartland Ranch.

Makes me think Toby Keith got it right when he sang "I shoulda been a cowboy...shoulda learned to rope and ride..."

And hey, as a native Texan I at least had a shot at it back in the day.

But in the good news department, Amazon Prime just picked up the 6th season of our favorite Danish TV series...

...and most of the cast is back, with the notable exceptions of Fie (Rosalinde Mynster) and Morten (Morten Enevoldsen).

Definitely going to miss them.

But thankfully Herr Weyse (Jens Jacob Tychsen) is still on board...

...and still treating the other guests to his piano playing and singing (in English, no less) of American jazz classics.

The story has jumped ahead a few years to 1939, when Germany was cranking up its war machine...

...and their beloved Denmark is only a year away from being invaded by their aggressive neighbor to the south.

More drama right around the corner, and so far the 1st 2 shows of season 6 have been peppered with ominous historical references (e.g., kristallnacht).

So...our nightly routine of sitting on our backsides while staring at the TV screen for a couple of hours remains intact...for now...