"Praise the bridge that carried you over. " ~~George Colman
Hi all,
Well, normally I'd feel bad about Adam's birthday issue being so short.  But considering I spent most of the weekend doing this and this, I think I'll cut myself some slack.  ;-)  But, yeah, October 10th is Adam's Observed Birthday so his friends will be sharing some wishes.  If you'd like to add on, please lemme know. 

Also in this issue, we'll poke a little fun at the government shutdown those of us in the U.S. are dealing with.  Let's just say Dyeland would handle things differently...
Have a good week, everyone!
God bless,
 Jenni
A Glimpse at a Very Different "Government"

Well in "honor" of the U.S. government shutdown, I was thinking that now would be a nice time to live in Dyeland.  Sure, they may not have much of a government.  But I have a feeling they'd get things done...

Instead of a Department of Roads, they'd have Andrew and Adam wandering around the very few roads they actually have with a bucket of wet cement and a couple spades fixing potholes.  This would probably be more effective than you find in most cities including my own...
 
JenniAnn would be the Department of the Interior.  She would, of course, interpret this as "Department of Interior Decorating."  I hope everyone likes flannel print couches because that is what they're getting.
 
Monica would head up their version of the FDA.  This just in... no one is getting enough caffeine in their diet and must proceed to the Cafe pronto for supplements aka mocha lattes.
 
Tess is in charge of the Department of Education.  Because she said so and no one wants to argue.  Musical education will NEVER be defunded.
 
Instead of the FBI, they have Ronald, Gloria, Logan, and Mick.  Now there's an interesting group...  The first two will track wrongdoers down, the latter two will freak them out with their fangs and super human speed... and awesome gaming skills.  Andrew will tag along at times because who doesn't like seeing Andrew be tough and no-nonsense with do-badders?
 
You've heard of Obamacare?  Well, they have FatherCare.  That's right.  Just wander on over to the Tunnels and Father will fix you right on up.  And then you can have tea and hear Vincent read Shakespeare.

Kemara would run the newspaper office and never once would the words/phrases "shutdown," "stalemate," or "refusal to compromise" have to appear in her articles about life in Dyeland.  The following most likely would appear: "The meeting came to a halt when Andrew entered the room wearing his tool belt and everyone gawked for fifteen minutes straight" and "After amicably agreeing to a new yard waste pick-up schedule, everyone sojourned to Monica's Cafe to gulp down lattes and enjoy each other's company."  Sigh...  If only...

If you lose power, don't worry about the lack of a Department of Energy.  One of the angels will be right over to glow and give ya some light!  If you're lucky, maybe it'll be Adam or Andrew and they can glow while utilizing their handyman skills to get those lamps, lights, and electronics functioning again.

Who needs the U.S. Mint when you have Joshua?  Why is Joshua running their banking?  Well, he's not really.  But Joshua saves.  ;-)

If those health and fitness initiatives the U.S. government's promoting go belly-up, no worries!  Just come on over to Dyeland and Rose and Max will get you right into shape!  Just don't be surprised if their idea of a workout involves bicep curls while holding The Goblet of Fire or engaging in an aerobics routine set to music by the Weird Sisters.

You may not feel inclined to have anything to do with the Library of Congress currently so check in with Vincent who will be happy to help you find a great book to enjoy.  Of course, you may end up distracted and listening for hours as he recites poetry but, really, is that such a bad thing?  It's at least better than listening to a filibuster!

Disappointed because the shutdown has cut you off from your local wildlife refuges?  Stop by Tourkia where Adam will regale you with tales about his noble turkeys.  Just watch out for Alexander III.  He's been in a mood ever since he overheard Tess referring to him as "a third generation Thanksgiving table escapee."

Just because you can't get into Yosemite or the Grand Canyon doesn't mean you can't enjoy the grandeur of nature.  Join Andrew on a tour of Dyeland's wild beauty.  Hike up and down the hills of the Glen of Goodness.  Run through the kudzu forest on Serensylvana.  Explore the Crystalline Caverns.  Bask in the beauty of the sea life in the Indigo Ocean.  Or, ya know, just admire your tour guide.  He's pretty beautiful, too.  :-)


And now to celebrate Adam!
Birthday Wishes for Adam



Dear Adam,

I hope you have a truly wonderful birthday!  Thank you for all the humor, caring, and wisdom you've brought to all of us.  Oh and the TLS, too.  ;-)  Dyeland just wouldn't be the same without you.  Your friendship has meant a great deal to me, especially in this last year.  I'm so glad that you'll be here for Halloween.  You deserve a fun, yummy, and relaxing one after last year.  But even at dark times like that, your spirit has always shone through.  I'm gonna steal Andrew's line but I figure ya can never hear it too often: I'm glad you were born!

Love,
JenniAnn


Hullo, Adam!

I'm so looking forward to celebrating with you on Thursday!  Dyeland certainly knows how to party and your birthday is a wonderful occasion for celebration.  I'll bring you more chocolate covered coffee beans.  I was so sorry to hear the turkeys mistook the last batch for feed.  I do hope that Alexanders III and IV eventually stopped frantically trying to fly...  I guess now we know how caffeine impacts turkeys!

See you soon, my friend!

With love,
Monica


Dear Adam,

You don't look a day over fifty five, baby!  If only those girls knew how old you really are!  Don't you worry.  I have no intention of telling.

Happy birthday, Adam!  I love you and am so looking forward to spending time with you on Thursday.  I've got a song saved up just for you!

Tess


Dear Adam,

I'm totally psyched that you get a birthday, too!  Thanks for being a great friend and especially for all your help after Andrew and I got back home and during my first days in Dyeland.  During those long, lonely days; Andrew told me stories about you.  Don't worry!  All good!  But even they couldn't measure up to who you really are which is a great guy and a great angel.  Happy birthday!

All the best,
Max


Adam,

You're my buddy, my mentor, and the orange juice to my ginger ale.  I don't know what life would be like without you and I'm grateful to God that I never have to know.  You've seen me at my worst (and dustiest) and never stopped being my friend.  I'm not quite sure what these next years will bring but knowing you'll be around to face them with me means more than I can say.  I'm glad you were born, that's for sure.  I'm also glad we met, glad we became friends, glad you believed me when I told you about Dyeland, glad you could be there for Violeta (and everyone it seems) when I couldn't be, and I'm glad that you were my voice of reason and calmness last year.  Thank you.

I hope you have a really great birthday (wait til you see what we have planned!) but I hope even more that you know that every day that goes by that you're thought about with appreciation and love. 

Your friend always,
Andrew


This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye and Charles Rocket for so lovingly portraying Andrew and Adam in "The Sign of the Dove" which, as I wrote above, I spent A LOT of time with this weekend.  I've always loved the episode but this time I was struck by the depth of friendship the two portrayed among characters who in actuality we never saw together too much.  However, I think they drew attention to two of the most important aspects of friendship: forgiveness and understanding.  True, Andrew acts like a snot.  Also true, Adam probably went a lil too heavy with the jealousy.  But you could tell they really cared about each other and weren't gonna hold their faults over each other.  I think we can all learn from that!

JABB TOC

JABB 395

(Photo Credits: The photographs used on this page are from Touched by an Angel and owned by CBS Productions, Caroline Productions, and Moon Water Productions. They are not being used to seek profit.)