The eternal God is your refuge,
and his everlasting arms are under you.

Deuteronomy 33:27 (New Living Translation)

This is especially for our friends, the Leatherman family on the sudden death of Ruth - wife of Mark Leatherman and mother of three small children ages 5, 3, and 9 months. She got up early to make a sandwich for Mark before he went trucking, kissed him goodbye, went back to bed and woke up in Heaven.

October 22 - Mark Leatherman just posted this on his Facebook page. Ruth Leatherman's cause of death..... "Mitral Valve Prolapse." Genetic heart condition. 

 

 

 

 

Sparks Steak House

New York City

 

 

After visiting the 9/11 Memorial we got a cab to Sparks.

 

 

 

 

Cerwin, Roy, and Deb ordered filet mignon, and were surprised by the size.

 

 

I think the three of them could have shared one and had enough meat.

 

 

They also shared a dish of potatoes...

 

 

...and asparagus.

 

 

Me. I ordered an appetizer of shrimp and clams for my entree.

Delicious!

 

 

 

 

It was a delightful dining experience.

~~~

The not so delightful happened after this when we got back to our motel room (we shared one to keep the expense down) and discovered that our room door was hanging open.

Cerwin noticed that it didn't close quite right when we left the room at noon, so gave it an extra tug to pull it shut. The conclusion from the hotel staff person who came to our room was that the cleaning person didn't close it properly when she checked our linens between 4 and 5 pm.

The only thing missing was Cerwin's small laptop - the one we sometimes take with us on trips so we have internet for emails, etc. Thankfully we don't store anything on it, and it was old and getting rather slow.

The hotel staff person expects that we will be reimbursed.

Cerwin ordered a new one after we got home, and is pleased to have Windows 7 and one that is much faster.

~~~

We each slept well after a day that was filled with new experiences.

 

 

 

He will be the foundation of your future.
The riches of salvation are wisdom and knowledge.
The fear of the Lord is your treasure.

Isaiah 33:6 (GOD’S WORD Translation)

 

 

 

Ground Zero

 

After visiting Intrepid and Enterprise, we hailed a cab and headed to Ground Zero - and getting a cab in the early evening was not an easy job.

 

 

It was a beautiful evening - and difficult to realize that this was the area where so much heartache and devastation happened.

 

 

I liked the reflections on one of the new buildings.

 

 

The huge fountains are beautiful and relaxing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's also an area where there is beautiful scenery when you look up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the atrium of the museum there are two steel tridents - forked columns from the original facade of the North Tower.

 

 

 

 

Inside the museum - that is still under construction - is a beautiful motorcycle made and donated by Paul Teutul, Jr. of Paul Jr Designs.

 

 

It was built in memory of the people who perished on 9/11 and in honor of their families.

 

 

 

I’m thanking you, God, out in the streets,
singing your praises in town and country.
The deeper your love, the higher it goes;
every cloud’s a flag to your faithfulness.

Psalm 108:3-4 (The Message)

 

 

 

USS Michael Murphy & Intrepid

 

As we were walking around the flight deck of Intrepid, we noticed that something was happening on the ship next to us.

Because the containers are blue, Roy thought the barge in front was loading water onto it.

 

 

I think it was Roy who said it looks like they are beginning or ending a ceremony. While still there we heard that it was the USS Michael Murphy, and they had just finished commissioning it.

 

 

USS Michael Murphy is named for Medal of Honor recipient Michael P. Murphy (1976–2005). It was interesting to hear that the ship had been built at Bath Iron Works, which is not far from where our daughter Diane and her family live.

~~~

Our next stop was the inside decks of Intrepid.

 

The ship is huge and there is almost too much to see in one afternoon. This deck was used to repair planes when it was in service.

 

 

Built in 1943, this aircraft carrier served tours of duty through World War II and Vietnam, making seven trips around the globe and surviving five kamikaze attacks and one torpedo strike.

 

 

It then served as a NASA astronaut recovery vessel before being retired in 1974.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I enjoyed a tour of the Gallery and Third Deck with Roy. Cerwin and Deb decided to sit that out as we had done a lot of walking.

 

 

 

 

If was fun learning about things related to the ship from Roy as he is retired from the Navy.

 

 

A bedroom

 

 

A section that was kept original.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cerwin and Roy are standing above a glass area where visitors can see to the bottom of the ship. Can you tell that Roy is explaining something to Cerwin.

 

 

 

 

Look at the chains that are used to drop anchor!

 

 

These large "spools" are used to pull up anchor.

 

 

Going outside.

 

 

After we had seen all that we had time for, we went back to the flight deck.

 

 

I couldn't help but remember our cruise as I took a last look at the area we had just visited.

 

 

 

 If you grasp and cling to life on your terms, you’ll lose it,

but if you let that life go, you’ll get life on God’s terms.

Luke 17:33 (The Message)

 

 

Happy Birthday

To Our Favorite Hannah

We Love You!

Grandpa & Grandma

 

 

 

Intrepid & Enterprise

World War II Battle Ship & Space Shuttle

As we approached the Intrepid, I noticed a cruise ship in the background and remembered seeing the airplanes on the flight deck of this vessel when we left on our cruise in January. Back then I didn't realize it was the Intrepid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I suppose there are much larger ships, but it looked huge to me.

 

 

The flight deck of the ship holds many airplanes and the space shuttle.

 

 

Lockheed A-12 Blackbird

These performed sensitive intelligence gathering missions beginning in 1962 with a maximum speed of 2,210 mph at 75,000 ft. (that's three times the speed of sound).

 

 

If was fun seeing one of these up close.

 

 

Intrepid Museum is proud to be one of the few places in the world to provide the opportunity for visitors to get an up close view of a space shuttle - inside the balloon-shaped pavilion.

 

 

 

 

My first words were, "Oh, wow!" as I saw how huge it was.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flying over Central Park as the Enterprise arrived in New York City in early June.

This is one of the pictures I saw on TV that day, causing me to want to see it up close. 

I was not disappointed.

 

 

 

The Lord is around His people like the mountains are around Jerusalem, now and forever.

Psalm 125:2 (New Life Version)