Friday, September 29, 2006
...And Away We Go!
Well, this will be my last post before the Feast, blogheads. We leave on Sunday to fly out to Prescott, Arizona for Atonement, and then we'll make our trip back across the Southwest to Colorado visiting various sites along the way. So we'll have plenty of pictures when we get to the Feast... That is, unless Marshall, Rachel and I all forget our cameras everywhere we go. Oh well, we're not good at that sort of stuff, anyway. We're even taking a train ride in the mountains, so that should be fun. Everyone drive or fly safely and be sure to annoy the person next to you on the plane. I sure will, but that will be my wife... Take care, all!
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
The Air Up There
Well, kiddies... I just checked the Weather Channel online for the temps for Copper Mountain over the next 10 days. It's averaging about 51 degrees for a high and about 28 for a low. There's snow showers predicted for 2 out of the next 10 days, too. For those going to warmer locales, stop laughing. For those of us braving the high altitudes, remember that the Rockies still rock. For those of you going to Paducah, well... Enjoy the quilting hall of fame. :) Kidding, of course. Those going to Scotland, all I have to say on Talk Like a Pirate Day (today) is Ayrrrrr! There's also the new Scotland... Nova Scotia for the monolinguals among us. And New Zealand. So anybody from there, are you really that zealous or iz eet a land for zee zlippery zea creaturez zealz? Okay, no more dumb puns... for now. And yes, I realize that was more of a French accent, not Kiwi. I would do a shout-out to the rest of the Feast sites, but I can't remember them all right now. But you know where you're going, so enjoy. It's less than 2-1/2 weeks away! Have a great Feast of Trumpets and Atonement while you're at it, too.
Friday, September 08, 2006
Feasts A-Plenty
Ahhh... The Fall Festival season is getting closer and in Missouri, it sure does feel like it. I can just walk outside in the morning and smell fall in the air.
So how am I going to keep the Feasts this year? Well, for those who know me, I'll be in Colorado this year. For those who don't know me, I'll be in Colorado this year. So I look forward to meeting up with new and old friends. Come out to the disc golf course by the Eagle lift and hang with us nerds. For those of you who are headed elsewhere, take care and we'll look to spend time together next year.
As for this year, I have a few goals that I'd like to stick to, if possible (silly comments and reasons in parentheses):
1) Stay away from mob mentality (a term I've used a lot lately after watching the inner moron come out of my friends and me when we get around a large group of people we haven't seen in a while).
2) Eat out with less than 30 people at dinner thus keeping waiting times below 3+ hours (so I can HAVE a Feast).
3) Forgo buying ridiculous gifts for myself and take some little old ladies or less blessed families out to dinner (the Bible focuses on serving and spending money on whatever food or drink I desire, not a new stereo or car).
4) Get enough sleep so I can pay attention in services (the real reason I'm there).
5) Serve others every day (there are plenty of self-service churches I can attend to if I'm not up for that).
6) Have one-on-one, in depth spiritual conversations rather than small talk in a crowded condo (I think that's pretty self-explanatory).
7) Remember the sick folks who aren't able to attend this year (send them a post card, even).
8) Enjoy nature rather than the mall (although Cinnabon does smell good, God's Creation is soooo much better).
9) Get to know a lot of new people (if I'm spending eternity with you people, I'd better get to know you).
10) Pray and study (this one can be tough, but it can be done and it's far more important than drinking with friends well into the morning hours - see #4).
11) Thank God every day for where I am, what I've been given and what I'm becoming (there's no silly comment for that).
I probably won't be able to do them all, but it's slowly becoming something I'm trying to do a little better each year. This is the first time I've written them down, so maybe I'll hold myself more accountable. Feel free to borrow any or all of them for yourself. Just remember, some people out there actually think that God's Holy Days are a burden! My job is to make sure I'm not making it one for myself and especially for others... Rather, let's make them true feasts.
Ahhh, that's the smell of the Kingdom coming...
So how am I going to keep the Feasts this year? Well, for those who know me, I'll be in Colorado this year. For those who don't know me, I'll be in Colorado this year. So I look forward to meeting up with new and old friends. Come out to the disc golf course by the Eagle lift and hang with us nerds. For those of you who are headed elsewhere, take care and we'll look to spend time together next year.
As for this year, I have a few goals that I'd like to stick to, if possible (silly comments and reasons in parentheses):
1) Stay away from mob mentality (a term I've used a lot lately after watching the inner moron come out of my friends and me when we get around a large group of people we haven't seen in a while).
2) Eat out with less than 30 people at dinner thus keeping waiting times below 3+ hours (so I can HAVE a Feast).
3) Forgo buying ridiculous gifts for myself and take some little old ladies or less blessed families out to dinner (the Bible focuses on serving and spending money on whatever food or drink I desire, not a new stereo or car).
4) Get enough sleep so I can pay attention in services (the real reason I'm there).
5) Serve others every day (there are plenty of self-service churches I can attend to if I'm not up for that).
6) Have one-on-one, in depth spiritual conversations rather than small talk in a crowded condo (I think that's pretty self-explanatory).
7) Remember the sick folks who aren't able to attend this year (send them a post card, even).
8) Enjoy nature rather than the mall (although Cinnabon does smell good, God's Creation is soooo much better).
9) Get to know a lot of new people (if I'm spending eternity with you people, I'd better get to know you).
10) Pray and study (this one can be tough, but it can be done and it's far more important than drinking with friends well into the morning hours - see #4).
11) Thank God every day for where I am, what I've been given and what I'm becoming (there's no silly comment for that).
I probably won't be able to do them all, but it's slowly becoming something I'm trying to do a little better each year. This is the first time I've written them down, so maybe I'll hold myself more accountable. Feel free to borrow any or all of them for yourself. Just remember, some people out there actually think that God's Holy Days are a burden! My job is to make sure I'm not making it one for myself and especially for others... Rather, let's make them true feasts.
Ahhh, that's the smell of the Kingdom coming...
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Happy Hall Hunting
For anybody who's ever tried planning a large activity and finding ideal locations, you know it can be pretty tough. Such is the case with the annual Kansas City Family Fun weekend that's usually held in December around the Saturnalia weekend (or Christmas and New Year's weekend for those of you who are not schooled in ancient paganism). Anywho, finding a single location for 500+ people that will support a Bible study, church, dinner, dance and sporting activities over three days in KC that the church can actually afford is quite a challenge, to say the least. That said, we're well on our way and hopefully will have something before the Feast this year. So start thinking about that weekend even though nothing official is ready yet. And pray that a hall comes available for the most convenience and accessibility (and one that's cheap!).
Monday, August 14, 2006
Fun Pix
Well, life is running smoothly and I don't feel like ranting today, so I figured I'd share some pictures I've collected.
How can we solve terrorism with him in charge???
Nerds... What are you going to do with them?
Ah yes, my new-found hobby of disc golf. Check out that amazing form...
...And see the results! "I think it's back there by that huge poison ivy plant."
How can we solve terrorism with him in charge???
Nerds... What are you going to do with them?
That has got to hurt...
Why is it that pictures of Bigfoot are always so blurry??
Ah yes, my new-found hobby of disc golf. Check out that amazing form...
...And see the results! "I think it's back there by that huge poison ivy plant."
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Outside the Box
I heard a Dilbert-esque joke once about a guy who worked in a large corporate office... The kind with the small cubicles. Well, I guess one day in a one-on-one meeting, his boss told him that he should become more of an abstract thinker. "You know, Bob, think outside the box," he told him.
Bob infatically replied, "But Jim, I spend all day IN a box, for cryin' out loud!"
One thing that I've noticed as I talk to various people or drive around town is that most of us are definitely in our own little box. I will overhear some conversation about "what I deserve" or "my idea". I'll be driving and some maniac on their cell phone tries to change lanes at the same time I'm occupying it and drive on like I don't exist, which is probably true in their little piece of reality. I catch myself only thinking about me a lot, too, how "I don't talk or drive like that."
I mean, technically, that shouldn't come as a surprise seeing as how we're all stuck inside our bodies. Our brains only process things from our point of view. There are ancient philosophies from Plato and others stating that life is just our perspective, a mere shadow or one side of the totality of reality. Later philosophers slightly changed that to the "brain in a jar" ideology that electrodes could be triggering senses, thoughts and emotions to where we aren't really controlling our lives physically, but being driven by some sort of puppet master, a la The Matrix. This led to the ever insightful statement by Descartes: Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am... Why is Latin always in italics?). In other words, I may be a brain in a jar or a real human being, but the fact is, I must exist because they're my thoughts, not someone else's.
But I digress to make one simple point: we are a very self-centered creature. So how do we overcome this in order to be more peaceable, loving, humble humans? Well, my thought on this (pun intended) is that all of our senses may give feedback to our central nervous system, but they are mostly pointed outward away from us. This is by design. You wouldn't want to have your eyes pointing back inside your nasal cavity... That would be gross. But you'd probably blow your nose a lot more. I digress again. These senses are are made so we can understand the world around us better by interacting with God's creation.
But more specifically, the Bible spends a lot of real estate on how we treat our neighbor. Those five senses (six, if you're Haley Joel Osment) can be directed towards other people we come into contact with every day or once in a blue moon. God wants us to get to know one another and see how they think, feel, understand the world around them. We need to get outside of our own little world more often and try to see things from other people's perspective. This goes especially when we're angry, as was stated in a recent Living Church News article, "Watch Out, I'm Angry!" So how do we do this? Communication for starters... Be willing to put aside the anger long enough to humble yourself in order to talk to the individual. See where they're coming from. If repeated, you'll eventually start seeing that people rarely go out of their way to make you mad. Most likely, they're either completely ignorant of the fact they offended you, they had a different outcome in mind, or they made a terrible mistake and are ashamed. Talking to them will clear the air on one or both sides and help your relationship to go back to a more normal one, maybe even a friendlier one.
When we are able to put ourselves in other people's shoes, in their box, we may better see why they've made the decisions they have. Then we may very well see how God is using that person's personality, thoughts and actions to lead them down the path toward His Kingdom... It just happens to be different than the way we would do it.
The more I try to look at the world through other people's eyes, I can see what's motivating a person's thoughts and it removes the instinctive "THEY WERE TRYING TO ANGER/HURT/KILL ME!!!!" reaction that initially gets us mad. Perhaps when that so-and-so cuts you off in traffic, he was avoiding a dog in the road and didn't see you in their blind spot. When someone makes a rude comment to you, they may have been cut off by a dog-avoiding driver earlier in the day and are still tense from it. And every once in a while, I see someone going out of their way to help someone else, but they just happen to get in my way in the process. I've had to change my internal monologue from "Jerk..." to "Oh, that was nice" more than a few times. However, a lot of times, I just see that people are just living in their own little worlds just like I am. I guess that makes it easier for me to understand where they're coming from. It makes me pray that God will open up our minds to the way He sees all situations and help us to think more about our neighbor so we can be more courteous, hospitable, loving and forgiving... Like He is.
Bob infatically replied, "But Jim, I spend all day IN a box, for cryin' out loud!"
One thing that I've noticed as I talk to various people or drive around town is that most of us are definitely in our own little box. I will overhear some conversation about "what I deserve" or "my idea". I'll be driving and some maniac on their cell phone tries to change lanes at the same time I'm occupying it and drive on like I don't exist, which is probably true in their little piece of reality. I catch myself only thinking about me a lot, too, how "I don't talk or drive like that."
I mean, technically, that shouldn't come as a surprise seeing as how we're all stuck inside our bodies. Our brains only process things from our point of view. There are ancient philosophies from Plato and others stating that life is just our perspective, a mere shadow or one side of the totality of reality. Later philosophers slightly changed that to the "brain in a jar" ideology that electrodes could be triggering senses, thoughts and emotions to where we aren't really controlling our lives physically, but being driven by some sort of puppet master, a la The Matrix. This led to the ever insightful statement by Descartes: Cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am... Why is Latin always in italics?). In other words, I may be a brain in a jar or a real human being, but the fact is, I must exist because they're my thoughts, not someone else's.
But I digress to make one simple point: we are a very self-centered creature. So how do we overcome this in order to be more peaceable, loving, humble humans? Well, my thought on this (pun intended) is that all of our senses may give feedback to our central nervous system, but they are mostly pointed outward away from us. This is by design. You wouldn't want to have your eyes pointing back inside your nasal cavity... That would be gross. But you'd probably blow your nose a lot more. I digress again. These senses are are made so we can understand the world around us better by interacting with God's creation.
But more specifically, the Bible spends a lot of real estate on how we treat our neighbor. Those five senses (six, if you're Haley Joel Osment) can be directed towards other people we come into contact with every day or once in a blue moon. God wants us to get to know one another and see how they think, feel, understand the world around them. We need to get outside of our own little world more often and try to see things from other people's perspective. This goes especially when we're angry, as was stated in a recent Living Church News article, "Watch Out, I'm Angry!" So how do we do this? Communication for starters... Be willing to put aside the anger long enough to humble yourself in order to talk to the individual. See where they're coming from. If repeated, you'll eventually start seeing that people rarely go out of their way to make you mad. Most likely, they're either completely ignorant of the fact they offended you, they had a different outcome in mind, or they made a terrible mistake and are ashamed. Talking to them will clear the air on one or both sides and help your relationship to go back to a more normal one, maybe even a friendlier one.
When we are able to put ourselves in other people's shoes, in their box, we may better see why they've made the decisions they have. Then we may very well see how God is using that person's personality, thoughts and actions to lead them down the path toward His Kingdom... It just happens to be different than the way we would do it.
The more I try to look at the world through other people's eyes, I can see what's motivating a person's thoughts and it removes the instinctive "THEY WERE TRYING TO ANGER/HURT/KILL ME!!!!" reaction that initially gets us mad. Perhaps when that so-and-so cuts you off in traffic, he was avoiding a dog in the road and didn't see you in their blind spot. When someone makes a rude comment to you, they may have been cut off by a dog-avoiding driver earlier in the day and are still tense from it. And every once in a while, I see someone going out of their way to help someone else, but they just happen to get in my way in the process. I've had to change my internal monologue from "Jerk..." to "Oh, that was nice" more than a few times. However, a lot of times, I just see that people are just living in their own little worlds just like I am. I guess that makes it easier for me to understand where they're coming from. It makes me pray that God will open up our minds to the way He sees all situations and help us to think more about our neighbor so we can be more courteous, hospitable, loving and forgiving... Like He is.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Ahhhhhhh...
For those of you sports fans in big baseball cities with teams in the pennant race, I can only say this: I've endured the worst team in baseball for far too long. Yes, the Kansas City Royals, once again, are living in the MLB basement, apparently accustomed to the darkness and moldy smell. Change is certainly not a part of the dank air down there, either.
But alas, there is hope for us Kansas City fans... A time of year that brings a smile to our faces and a smell of tailgating barbecue to our noses. Yes, the Chiefs football season is merely a few short weeks away. And with New York newcomers Herm Edwards and Ty Law on board along with most of the same players that brought us a winning season last year, we in Cowtown are ready for another one. Bring it on!
But alas, there is hope for us Kansas City fans... A time of year that brings a smile to our faces and a smell of tailgating barbecue to our noses. Yes, the Chiefs football season is merely a few short weeks away. And with New York newcomers Herm Edwards and Ty Law on board along with most of the same players that brought us a winning season last year, we in Cowtown are ready for another one. Bring it on!
Friday, July 21, 2006
Missouri Weather
Mark Twain once said that if you don't like the weather in Missouri, wait 5 minutes. Well, the last 5 days were 100+ degrees with all the humidity that we in Missouri have come to love. Wednesday and Thursday were particularly fun with temps around 105 and a heat index of 120. I now know what a rotisserie chicken feels like. Today, however, is a high of 71 degrees. The low temperatures of the last 5 days didn't even get that low. Gotta love it...
Monday, July 17, 2006
Global Warming and Disc Golf
So I'm sitting here with my legs itching all day. I got poison ivy while looking for a disc in a patch of vines and trees after a terrible throw on the hardest hole on our hardest local disc golf course here in KC. This is only my second major infection with poison ivy, so I'm not as psychologically annoyed or worried about it as my first one in March (also due to disc golf). I read somewhere that global warming is causing the poison ivy to be really bad this year, but I also heard that on MSNBC... The average article there reads something to the effect of "Bush Rejects Global Warming Caused By Bush".
In the news lately, global warming is taking the blame for all sorts of things: melting ice caps, rising seas, flooding, disease, hurricanes, and now poison ivy. Global warming is something that I thought was made up by scientists trying to get more money from the government. But with each new report supported by more leading experts, the data seems to suggest otherwise. I wonder now about how much of these trends are a natural occurrence that's cyclical and how much is caused by man. My guess is somewhat of both, but I have a theory. (DISCLAIMER: my theories are thought experiments in my head. I may or may not believe them fully, but I don't necessarily hold on to them as definite, as I'm somewhat willing to be proven wrong. Some of you are laughing hysterically.)
Since most of you reading this blog believe that God made the universe, created the laws and balance within it, and even foretold of a time of complete disorder and chaos near the end of the existence due to man's sins, why would He not make the cause of our own destruction our sins? So when we act selfishly and stupidly, things get out of balance in the world. The more we screw up, the more things get worse. So every selfish act is counter-balanced not only by some quick or eventual punishment to ourselves, but to others, to other creatures, plants, trees, soil, and finally the sky, oceans and weather. This makes sense as we become more industrialized so we can be less dependent on the soil, animals and weather for our needs. We make artificial versions of everything natural so they are less biodegradable. We put the waste from making these products in the air and water or bury it. God's design in nature makes everything break down nicely, yet another incredible feature of His work. Ours just slowly destroys everything. Wow, 10 years ago, I would have called myself a tree-hugger for writing this.
The cyclical side could be just as interesting... Scientists note all sorts of cycles, including cycles for El Niño, 11-year cycles of solar activity, 17- and 13-year cicada and locust spawnings, the Atlantic Heat Conveyer (see the movie Day After Tomorrow), ice ages, etc. They have statistical data supporting average time frames between volcanic eruptions, meteor strikes, earthquakes, tsunamis and on and on. Wouldn't it be interesting if a lot of these cycles, some every few years, some every few centuries or millennia, all managed to converge in, say, a time period of less than 3-10 years?
This would be a very natural means to explain a very dramatic turn of events in the near future. Worldly thinkers would still try to blame nature and avoid any need to obey some god. Some will know better and turn to the Creator.
All of this from a poison ivy allergy...
Stupid itching.
In the news lately, global warming is taking the blame for all sorts of things: melting ice caps, rising seas, flooding, disease, hurricanes, and now poison ivy. Global warming is something that I thought was made up by scientists trying to get more money from the government. But with each new report supported by more leading experts, the data seems to suggest otherwise. I wonder now about how much of these trends are a natural occurrence that's cyclical and how much is caused by man. My guess is somewhat of both, but I have a theory. (DISCLAIMER: my theories are thought experiments in my head. I may or may not believe them fully, but I don't necessarily hold on to them as definite, as I'm somewhat willing to be proven wrong. Some of you are laughing hysterically.)
Since most of you reading this blog believe that God made the universe, created the laws and balance within it, and even foretold of a time of complete disorder and chaos near the end of the existence due to man's sins, why would He not make the cause of our own destruction our sins? So when we act selfishly and stupidly, things get out of balance in the world. The more we screw up, the more things get worse. So every selfish act is counter-balanced not only by some quick or eventual punishment to ourselves, but to others, to other creatures, plants, trees, soil, and finally the sky, oceans and weather. This makes sense as we become more industrialized so we can be less dependent on the soil, animals and weather for our needs. We make artificial versions of everything natural so they are less biodegradable. We put the waste from making these products in the air and water or bury it. God's design in nature makes everything break down nicely, yet another incredible feature of His work. Ours just slowly destroys everything. Wow, 10 years ago, I would have called myself a tree-hugger for writing this.
The cyclical side could be just as interesting... Scientists note all sorts of cycles, including cycles for El Niño, 11-year cycles of solar activity, 17- and 13-year cicada and locust spawnings, the Atlantic Heat Conveyer (see the movie Day After Tomorrow), ice ages, etc. They have statistical data supporting average time frames between volcanic eruptions, meteor strikes, earthquakes, tsunamis and on and on. Wouldn't it be interesting if a lot of these cycles, some every few years, some every few centuries or millennia, all managed to converge in, say, a time period of less than 3-10 years?
This would be a very natural means to explain a very dramatic turn of events in the near future. Worldly thinkers would still try to blame nature and avoid any need to obey some god. Some will know better and turn to the Creator.
All of this from a poison ivy allergy...
Stupid itching.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Thanks Karl!
For those of you who were referred from Karl's Korner, welcome! Take a look around, make yourself at home. Thanks, Karl! You'll notice that so far, I tend to split time between writing goofy entries and the occasional rant based on trends that I see. Karl noted that I'm halfway interesting, but I'm only feeling about an eighth interesting lately. So enjoy and I look forward hearing from you if/when you feel like commenting. (And no, I'm not French...)
Mike
Mike
Friday, July 07, 2006
One Down, One to Go
It was on the way home from Dallas on Wednesday afternoon, somewhere around Joplin, MO ("God's country", according to Mr. Meredith, Mr. Smith, not Texas) that Peder asked when we were planning on leaving on our camping trip Friday. Yikes... One long, and good, weekend followed immediately by another. So Rachel and I didn't feel the need to unpack, we just shuffled some clothes around and kept most everything in the car for our next trip. That said, let's dive into the previous weekend's activities...
So we took the "short route" to Dallas, which took roughly 7 hours, much better than the usual 8-1/2 going I-35 through Oklahoma City. And this way, we get to drive through Chekotah, Oklahoma, home to Carrie Underwear, or whatever her name was that won American Idol (Jesus didn't take MY wheel). Of course, every town in southern Missouri or Oklahoma has a "Home of..." sign for some astronaut, country singer or founder of some Follies thingy. Not that anybody but me was paying any attention to that in the car...
So we get down to Marshall's expanse around midnightish and the female-deprived boys came out and gave us what I called "explosive hugging". The first round of explosive hugging only cost Charlie a toenail, which naturally went unnoticed as he bled all over the carpet. This was some few seconds after Rachel uttered something to the effect of: "So how long do you think you'll be able to keep this carpet clean?" This was the beginning of the calamity that befell (befalled? befulled???) us.
Fortunately for us, church is now at 2:00 in the afternoon which allowed us to sleep in a bit. The boys made breakfast for the girls and afterwards we all took off to church. Emily and Myra sang for us just after Mr. Chrisman got ordained as an elder, and Mr. Bryce topped off the services with a sermon on "Personalities in Prophecy". Here's an excerpt from my notes: Beast, Anti-Christ, King of the North and King of the South, bad; two witnesses and Jesus Christ, good. It was excellent insight to the end-times, I'm not trying to be a smart aleck. That night, there was much card-, board game- and video game-playing, something that would be a major theme throughout the weekend. Marshall and I went to pick up Leigh from the airport and got back close to 1am. Apparently, there was another round of explosive hugging that caused one of Marshall's Hard Rock cafe glasses to gloriously explode on the floor. But wait, there's more...
Sunday was frisbee day. We played a giant round of disc golf in the early afternoon after eating burgers and dogs on the grill. Well, not on the grill. That would take a real man. Disc golf was followed by more card playing at Marshall's somewhat emptied apartment, the lone source of internetiness (I'm creating all sorts of new terminology with this post... Quote me, Mr. Bush!). This allowed Marshall to research the float trip the next day. It really started to present all sorts of logistical issues, but we pushed through. We had our short bus reserved and had to get up at 6am to head to the airport in morning Dallas rush hour to get it. That wore us out just thinking about it, so naturally, we went and played ultimate frisbee. I, being the fat, winded slob that I am, was traded from Marshall's team for David so the other team "could be more athletic". This, naturally, led to many long throws from David to Marshall, Marshall to David, Dashall to Marvid, etc. In essence, they won, but only by one or two goals. Yes, Karl, Peder and I stayed winded on "defense" while Lacey and Emily ran the field trying to score. Later that night, after a perfect 10 dive (on the Scale of Hilarity) from Peder onto the couch, which made an eerie cracking sound, we avidly discussed the next day's road trip after Marshall declared that the estimated distance to New Braunfels was approximately eleventy billion miles away. Some didn't care about the distance, others preferred renting a pontoon boat on a nearby lake. So that night, after much fanfare, it was decided to stay nearby... Until Marshall declared we were floating. So I went to bed hoping to get 4+ hours of sleep, after which, the "awake ones" decided to stay put. I was awake at 5:45am wondering why nobody was as ready to go as I was.
Monday was a lazy day in the morning and afternoon. Cards were again dealt and controller buttons clicked furiously while color marbles were shot at other colored marbles which were destroyed as tiny gear-turning dragons cheered and a small chick tried to fly. I'll never understand the Japanese... We got around to reserving a pontoon boat in the early afternoon. After leaving, we noticed that all of Dallas appeared to be heading toward the same lake we were. So it took roughly an hour to drive 20 miles or so. But boating was fun after we kicked off Lacey, Diana and Jessica. Apparently, boats have this silly Max Persons Allowed law. So we drove over to a nearby sandy area and swam around the boat. Bets were jokingly hedged on what part of the boat would be damaged first. I had 10-to-one odds and came out on top when the ladder mysteriously disappeared on our second swimming session. That was one competition I wish I hadn't won (there was no grand prize, let me tell you). But we had an enjoyable time on the lake and finally departed for home around 9:00 for pizza and margaritas.
Tuesday was recovery day. A small group went and played disc golf (frolf) again. Then the afternoon came and we ate at Chili's while the stage-3 drought that was affecting the Dallas area was swept over by an impressive downpour. After that, Leigh had to leave us (sniff). That afternoon is when the random singing of the Star Mangled Banner began, but I'll leave that story to Karl's blog. That evening's theme was Cards and Casablanca. Old movies are strange to us modern folk. See, they have this thing called "dialogue" and it generally extends well into periods longer than, say, 20 seconds. This may bore some people (see my post two down), but it certainly takes some getting used to when you're expecting an explosion or some sex scene to come out of nowhere. Overall, I thought it was a good movie. I loved Humphrey Bogart's repeated line to Ingrid Bergman: "Here's looking at you, kid." What exactly does that mean, anyway? I mean, I guess he WAS looking right at her when he said it. That crazy 40s lingo, I tell ya.
Overall, it was a great weekend. We enjoyed staying at the Marshall Mansion, and I highly recommend the rooms and service if you are traveling through the Dallas metropolis in the near future.
So we took the "short route" to Dallas, which took roughly 7 hours, much better than the usual 8-1/2 going I-35 through Oklahoma City. And this way, we get to drive through Chekotah, Oklahoma, home to Carrie Underwear, or whatever her name was that won American Idol (Jesus didn't take MY wheel). Of course, every town in southern Missouri or Oklahoma has a "Home of..." sign for some astronaut, country singer or founder of some Follies thingy. Not that anybody but me was paying any attention to that in the car...
So we get down to Marshall's expanse around midnightish and the female-deprived boys came out and gave us what I called "explosive hugging". The first round of explosive hugging only cost Charlie a toenail, which naturally went unnoticed as he bled all over the carpet. This was some few seconds after Rachel uttered something to the effect of: "So how long do you think you'll be able to keep this carpet clean?" This was the beginning of the calamity that befell (befalled? befulled???) us.
Fortunately for us, church is now at 2:00 in the afternoon which allowed us to sleep in a bit. The boys made breakfast for the girls and afterwards we all took off to church. Emily and Myra sang for us just after Mr. Chrisman got ordained as an elder, and Mr. Bryce topped off the services with a sermon on "Personalities in Prophecy". Here's an excerpt from my notes: Beast, Anti-Christ, King of the North and King of the South, bad; two witnesses and Jesus Christ, good. It was excellent insight to the end-times, I'm not trying to be a smart aleck. That night, there was much card-, board game- and video game-playing, something that would be a major theme throughout the weekend. Marshall and I went to pick up Leigh from the airport and got back close to 1am. Apparently, there was another round of explosive hugging that caused one of Marshall's Hard Rock cafe glasses to gloriously explode on the floor. But wait, there's more...
Sunday was frisbee day. We played a giant round of disc golf in the early afternoon after eating burgers and dogs on the grill. Well, not on the grill. That would take a real man. Disc golf was followed by more card playing at Marshall's somewhat emptied apartment, the lone source of internetiness (I'm creating all sorts of new terminology with this post... Quote me, Mr. Bush!). This allowed Marshall to research the float trip the next day. It really started to present all sorts of logistical issues, but we pushed through. We had our short bus reserved and had to get up at 6am to head to the airport in morning Dallas rush hour to get it. That wore us out just thinking about it, so naturally, we went and played ultimate frisbee. I, being the fat, winded slob that I am, was traded from Marshall's team for David so the other team "could be more athletic". This, naturally, led to many long throws from David to Marshall, Marshall to David, Dashall to Marvid, etc. In essence, they won, but only by one or two goals. Yes, Karl, Peder and I stayed winded on "defense" while Lacey and Emily ran the field trying to score. Later that night, after a perfect 10 dive (on the Scale of Hilarity) from Peder onto the couch, which made an eerie cracking sound, we avidly discussed the next day's road trip after Marshall declared that the estimated distance to New Braunfels was approximately eleventy billion miles away. Some didn't care about the distance, others preferred renting a pontoon boat on a nearby lake. So that night, after much fanfare, it was decided to stay nearby... Until Marshall declared we were floating. So I went to bed hoping to get 4+ hours of sleep, after which, the "awake ones" decided to stay put. I was awake at 5:45am wondering why nobody was as ready to go as I was.
Monday was a lazy day in the morning and afternoon. Cards were again dealt and controller buttons clicked furiously while color marbles were shot at other colored marbles which were destroyed as tiny gear-turning dragons cheered and a small chick tried to fly. I'll never understand the Japanese... We got around to reserving a pontoon boat in the early afternoon. After leaving, we noticed that all of Dallas appeared to be heading toward the same lake we were. So it took roughly an hour to drive 20 miles or so. But boating was fun after we kicked off Lacey, Diana and Jessica. Apparently, boats have this silly Max Persons Allowed law. So we drove over to a nearby sandy area and swam around the boat. Bets were jokingly hedged on what part of the boat would be damaged first. I had 10-to-one odds and came out on top when the ladder mysteriously disappeared on our second swimming session. That was one competition I wish I hadn't won (there was no grand prize, let me tell you). But we had an enjoyable time on the lake and finally departed for home around 9:00 for pizza and margaritas.
Tuesday was recovery day. A small group went and played disc golf (frolf) again. Then the afternoon came and we ate at Chili's while the stage-3 drought that was affecting the Dallas area was swept over by an impressive downpour. After that, Leigh had to leave us (sniff). That afternoon is when the random singing of the Star Mangled Banner began, but I'll leave that story to Karl's blog. That evening's theme was Cards and Casablanca. Old movies are strange to us modern folk. See, they have this thing called "dialogue" and it generally extends well into periods longer than, say, 20 seconds. This may bore some people (see my post two down), but it certainly takes some getting used to when you're expecting an explosion or some sex scene to come out of nowhere. Overall, I thought it was a good movie. I loved Humphrey Bogart's repeated line to Ingrid Bergman: "Here's looking at you, kid." What exactly does that mean, anyway? I mean, I guess he WAS looking right at her when he said it. That crazy 40s lingo, I tell ya.
Overall, it was a great weekend. We enjoyed staying at the Marshall Mansion, and I highly recommend the rooms and service if you are traveling through the Dallas metropolis in the near future.
Friday, June 30, 2006
Road Trip!
Well, it's about time to go on my annual summer vacation over the 4th of July. Just as we have many years previously, we will be sojourning to Dallas to visit Marshall and crew. It appears that there will be a decent-sized crowd consisting of Rachel and I, Peder, Diana, Der Karl, Das David (pronounced Dah-veed), Ben Nelson, Leigh Seddon, the Dallas Gang and our lovely host, Marshall. Marshall will be sporting his new house just off of Memory Lane on the wonderful street of 'Rain Fern'. I just want to say that in a soft, soothing voice while advertising some sort of lotion you'd buy in one of those stinky girl stores in the mall. You just want to shoot the urban planner who came up with that kind of crap. Of course, I live on 'Sunrise Meadow', so I can no longer talk.
Anyway, we'll finally get to try tubing down the Guadalupe River. Marshall is going to try and rent a short bus for all of us to take down there. Of course, the trip down will likely be 15 people all simultaneously chanting "Are we there yet?Arewethereyet?Arewethereyet?" while the trip home will probably be 15 passed-out people... Which is a scary thought considering one of those tuckered-out tubers will be the driver. But with Texas roads being what they are, you can go off-roading, no problem. Eventually, we'll slam into one of Dallas' 15-gazillion restaurants, wake up, then stop and eat.
I'll try to write about anything of note after I get back. So enjoy the incredible blessings of this great country we live in by blowing something up and have a great extended weekend!
Anyway, we'll finally get to try tubing down the Guadalupe River. Marshall is going to try and rent a short bus for all of us to take down there. Of course, the trip down will likely be 15 people all simultaneously chanting "Are we there yet?Arewethereyet?Arewethereyet?" while the trip home will probably be 15 passed-out people... Which is a scary thought considering one of those tuckered-out tubers will be the driver. But with Texas roads being what they are, you can go off-roading, no problem. Eventually, we'll slam into one of Dallas' 15-gazillion restaurants, wake up, then stop and eat.
I'll try to write about anything of note after I get back. So enjoy the incredible blessings of this great country we live in by blowing something up and have a great extended weekend!
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Interesting...
Here is an article that kind of interested me. So many of my friends have told me that the "30s are the new 20s." Well, in today's society, with college education lasting well into people's 30s, people still looking for real work past that age, and marketing that was once for teens is now the same for adults, it's not surprising that we are a more immature society. As a nation, we seem to make decisions off-the-cuff, our news is presented to us in small doses and we subscribe to sound-bites for most things on TV. When the average adult can barely pay attention to something for more than 30-seconds without getting bored, what chance do the children have (did someone say ADHD)? ADULT ADHD?!? As ADHD was commonly referred to several years ago, ADD, can we now SUBTRACT this sort of thinking from our world? I really hope so. Most of you probably haven't even read this far. Kidding. :)
That said, it really is time for us to grow up. Get that job. Get a man or woman in your life and/or be content with what you have materialistically. Never be content with what you are character-wise. Get serious, and I mean really serious about God. Let's stop fooling ourselves into believing we haven't bought into this world's short-cut, youth-centric, sound-bite (that many hyphens will do, Mike), gimme gimme gimme world. Some are more resilient than others, but probably not nearly as resilient as we need to be.
I Cor. 13:11 - "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I thought as a child, I reasoned as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things."
So the next time you catch yourself saying, "Nuh-uuuuuuh" to someone who doesn't share your opinion, or stick your tongue out, or flip someone off who crosses you, refer back to that scripture. Quit worrying about the latest fashion or what everyone thinks of you, worry about what you can do for others. And don't pick on people... That's so Junior High. :) (Author notes that he is highly guilty of that trespass.)
So let's grow up and maybe one day our Father will give us the keys to His car...
That said, it really is time for us to grow up. Get that job. Get a man or woman in your life and/or be content with what you have materialistically. Never be content with what you are character-wise. Get serious, and I mean really serious about God. Let's stop fooling ourselves into believing we haven't bought into this world's short-cut, youth-centric, sound-bite (that many hyphens will do, Mike), gimme gimme gimme world. Some are more resilient than others, but probably not nearly as resilient as we need to be.
I Cor. 13:11 - "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I thought as a child, I reasoned as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things."
So the next time you catch yourself saying, "Nuh-uuuuuuh" to someone who doesn't share your opinion, or stick your tongue out, or flip someone off who crosses you, refer back to that scripture. Quit worrying about the latest fashion or what everyone thinks of you, worry about what you can do for others. And don't pick on people... That's so Junior High. :) (Author notes that he is highly guilty of that trespass.)
So let's grow up and maybe one day our Father will give us the keys to His car...
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Newbie
Hey everyone,
I got tired of posting anonymously, so here's a new blog site dedicated to all things Keesee and my musings. Feel free to leave a message or just hang out. It's cool. My mind's a complete blank today, so I will try to inform you when that changes...
Mike
I got tired of posting anonymously, so here's a new blog site dedicated to all things Keesee and my musings. Feel free to leave a message or just hang out. It's cool. My mind's a complete blank today, so I will try to inform you when that changes...
Mike
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