June 16, 2002: Seeing-eye dog

Hi,

Last week, one of Melissa's bridesmaids, Flora, visited Cleveland from Hong
Kong. We took her to visit the Amish area in Ohio, in the town of
Middlefield. It was quite interesting. Here are some pictures.

Amish Trip
http://cards.webshots.com/cp-27582562-XbxW-album/40902131CKAhyO

Before we got to Middlefield, we stopped at the town of Burton. We walked
around several antique stores, and at a log cabin that makes and sells
maple syrup and apple butter. In Middlefield, we went to the major cheese
factory. They hung up a big sign outside from Matthew 4:4 "Man does not
live on bread alone." The cheese factory gave out a lot of samples, and it
was quite delicious.

We then drove around the whole area. There were quite a large number of
farms, and Amish folks driving their horse and buggy. What surprised me
was how many non-Amish folks live in that area. There were electric poles
and lines running down the streets, and you can tell that a house belongs
to an Amish family if there are no electric lines from the house to the
pole.

We ate dinner at a large Amish restaurant, where the servings were large,
and it was all you can eat. The desserts, especially the pies, were
amazing. Outside the restaurant we saw some horse and buggies. We stop to
take some pictures, and the Amish families that owned them happened to come
out of the restaurant. We chatted with them for quite a while about their
lifestyles and how it contrasted with ours.

The Amish do not use electricity in their houses. They don't watch TV or
listen to the radio. They spend a great deal of time with their family
members, talking to each other, fellowshipping, worshipping God, doing
woodcraft, sewing quilts, etc. I really do admire them for how they spend
their time. I don't know if I can live in a house with no electricity.
Afterall, how would I check or send email?

This week's thought provoking question: "If you could live among the Amish,
would you want to do so?"

This week's humor piece was forwarded from Anna Man.

Enjoy!

-Josh.
_________________________________

Seeing-eye dog

A man goes to a bar with his dog. He goes up to the bar and asks for a
drink.
The bartender says "You can't bring that dog in here!"
The guy, without missing a beat, says "This is my seeing-eye dog."

"Oh man, " the bartender says, "I'm sorry, here, the first one's on me."
The man takes his drink and goes to a table near the door.

Another guy walks in the bar with a Chihuahua.
The first guys sees him, stops him and says "You can't bring that dog in
here unless you tell him it's a seeing-eye dog."
The second man graciously thanks the first man and continues to the bar. He
asks for a drink.

The bartender says "Hey, you can't bring that dog in here!"
The second man replies "This is my seeing-eye dog."
The bartender says, "No, I don't think so. They do not have Chihuahua as
seeing-eye dogs."
The man pauses for a half-second and replies "What?!?! They gave me a
Chihuahua?!?"