Today I was awakened by lightning, not thunder, but lightning. And it's raining. It didn't rain hard all day yesterday, but it did rain a lot. There were a few hours when it looked like it might clear. But today there is a 90% chance of rain and tomorrow 60%.

The service was fun; it was the kickoff to the pledge drive and featured some upbeat music and even dancing by the members of the search committee. The choir sang a gospel song (I've Got Joy in my Heart), with Amber doing the solo since Marti was sick.

Art joined us at the Fellowship and did well. He also made his bed neatly when he got up and cleared the table. We took Ruthie and MaryJean home and then went to the Botanical Gardens for lunch. Unfortunately, the cafe there was closed. It has apparently been under renovation for about a year and due to open in October, but Trumps is not managing it. Then we tried Square One, a new restaurant we thought served brunch, but they appeared to be closed as well. so we went to Porterhouse for brunch. It was very good and not too expensive. The waiters and other staff greeted my parents by name and they didn't have to pay for their meal. The waitress spilled my drink all over where Ray would have been sitting, but fortunately he was at the buffet at the time. Then we took Art back to Colbert to his host family and came home. After that, i worked some on my nightmare piles of old paper. I did make some progress, but there is much much more.

We had leftovers for supper and watched a movie on TV until 11. Also a few peeks at the Emmys, fun but too many commercials.