So I'm getting ready for my families vacation to Disney and Siesta Key and I get a call from IRS Special Agent Scot Schnieder...
I thought it was a prank and I basically ignored what he was saying for the first few minutes of the conversation. Then he started reciting letters that I had written to Kent Hovind. I perked up and realized that this was not a prank. Kent Hovind aka "Dr. Dino," I am embarrassed to say, spoke at MCC a few years ago on the topic of Creation vs. Evolution. He and I argued for a year (almost to the day) on the fact that we withheld taxes from money collected at his speaking engagement. In order to get this guy, and his cronies posing as attorneys, off of my back I went ahead and paid the $865 he felt that we owed him. Special Agent Schnieder said that I was being subpoenaed to appear in Pensacola Federal Court and testify on behalf of the prosectution. Hovind has over 50 counts of tax fraud, evasion, etc against him.
But here's the beautiful part of this ordeal...
The date set for me to appear in court was the day before I was to DRIVE to Florida from Indiana with my wife and kids, mother and father in law and my brother and sister in law and their 3 year old. So, I missed out on a 2 day car ride with my in-laws and 3 kids. My heart was broken...yeah right. Seriously, I have the best in-laws a guy could ask for and we have a lot of fun together, but that long of a car ride with ANYONE is going to test the relationship.
So I testified earlier this week and things went very well. I basically read letters that were sent back and forth between Hovind and myself and answered yes and no questions. The defense was pretty week and was asking me irrelevant questions. Oh and did I tell you that the judge looked like a supermodel? That was weird. I was expecting a Wilford Brimly type. Oh well I was not complaining.
Disney was Disney, a bunch of stressed out parents trying to cram 3 weeks worth of activities into 3 days while we all watched "the mouse" ride our wallets off into the sunset. All of this in the hope of creating some type of great memory for our kids. We did have fun, but there always seemed to be an undercurrent of stress involved. It all made me realized how blessed I am. My life is so good on a daily basis that it makes the Magic Kingdom, not so magical. I love this life that I have been given. My friends, my community, it's all good. Later Mickey.
So now I am sitting in Siesta Key, FL sipping on some fresh coffee, waiting for the sun to come up. The family is still sleeping. 15 mo Chloe will be the first up, she's the rooster announcing the morning with a plea for her milky.
It's a beatiful new day and God is so very good.
Find some beauty in your day today,
tell a friend what they mean to you,
thank God for what you have and don't have.
Much love,
Jack
Here's some good news! I will have a show at the Open Door Bookstore on Saturday, November 4th from 6-9pm. They will also be selling some of my artwork there. I hope you all can make it.
