You're invited

Here is the ad that will be running in WhatzUp magazine. Man, they do fantastic work; and they're great to work with. If you're anywhere near Fort Wayne I hope to see you at this awesome show.

Decisions, decisions

Several relatively unimportant things that are juggling for time in my memory space:

• Whether or not to get Alan Hirsch's book The Forgotten Ways. I picked it up the other night, but then put it back down. If it didn't have such small print I would probably already have it.
• A Weedeater. I can't use mine anymore. It barely runs, and it shakes so bad I can't use my arms for a day after I've weedeated (?). Of course, I've probably had it almost 20 years. I don't really use one a lot (I spray), but it would still be nice to have one. I had kinda decided I would just buy the cheapest one I could find, but then I thought about getting an electric/rechargeable. That would be better for the enviro, you know, and lighter, and quieter, but it probably wouldn't last as long. And now I see that they have 4-cycle weedeaters, and... while they're a little more expensive, it would probably last longer, and be better. Hmmm...
  
• A Blower. This is not as important as a weedeater, but it would sure come in handy now and then. Again, do I go with an electric or a gas? I don't want a cord to deal with, but gas ones are a lot more expensive and a lot heavier.
• An MP3 Player. Ugh... I have been around the block and back on these. I am currently thinking I will just bite the bullet and get an Ipod Nano. But I really like the 4 gig Zune's better; and I also like the 4 gig Sony Walkman, but I'm worried I'll have to subscribe to a music service or something and I don't think I'll buy enough music to warrant that. Plus, my kids both have Ipod's and they would better be able to teach this old dog new tricks on something they're familiar with (I would think). And, I don't know if the Zune's and such will work on all the ipod docking boomboxes and things. Does anybody know if they're interchangeable? I also don't know how good Zune's are. The Best Buy salesman didn't like them, but... I don't know if I really want to base anything on what he said. So... I dunno.

I'm kinda notorious for taking a long time to decide on purchases like this. You know, things that I can't spend a great deal of time thinking about, so I spend little bits of time for a long time. I've probably went into stores and on the internet and looked at these things ten or more times already. That's how I am. While some people think - "just buy the stupid thing" - I figure it's better to take my time on something I don't really need, and hope that I will then make a decision that will pay off for a long, long time to come. I mean, when I buy tennis shoes I may go into a store and look at them 5 or 6 times before finally buying the first pair I looked at. But then I'll have them for quite a few years. So... why I am telling anyone this? I don't know. It's Friday when I'm writing this, and I don't really want to do anything else at the moment. I'll probably schedule this to run for Saturday morning though. I've been doing that a lot lately. I'll write a bunch of posts, but I've been trying to limit how many I put up each day. Although I'll still occasionally get on a real roll, but... whatever.

Peace out; and in.

My APEST assessment

So, I forked over the cash and took Alan Hirsch's APEST test. There's a nice little article HERE that gives some explanation and definitions, and also a pdf from his book The Forgotten Ways that goes a little more in-depth. The letters represent the five-fold ministry structure from Ephesians 4: Apostolic, prophetic, evangelist, shepherd, and teacher. My scores were:

Apostolic: 34
Prophetic: 30
Teaching: 19
Evangelistic: 16
Shepherding: 14

Not quite sure what to make of this exactly, as I wasn't expecting Apostolic to be the highest and Shepherding to be the lowest. Hmm. I did always like that movie with Robert Duvall in it.

On their way

Here is a picture of where daughter Carrie and the boyfriend Drew (who we now refer to as simply "Drew Carrie") are at this very moment. They spent the night with son Isaac at his new place, and then he took them to the airport this morning. Now they're on their way to Austin, TX to visit Carrie's cousins that live there. Our kids basically grew up with Joe & Laura (the cousins) - at least until their parents split, and then we moved to Ohio. Lots of memories.

Anyway, I'm glad to see the weather is good, and hope they have a good time. I've heard Austin is a nice town but I've never been there.

All the time

Another pastor recently asked me: "Do you ever worry - what if I'm wrong and am leading these people astray?"

I answered, "All the time."

We both looked at our coffee, and neither one of us said anything more about it.

I've been thinking about that, and I still don't know what to say. I remember several years ago listening to an old pastor explain how he has stayed in ministry for so long. He said, "I just get up every day, put on my clothes, and go to work."

I suppose I should get dressed...

J.G. freedom

One of my favorite songs by Josh Garrels. I don't think I'm going to have much luck getting him to play here this summer. Bummed about that. If anyone reading here has any pull with the man... a good word would be kindly appreciated. :)

Pastor's wisdom

Scot McKnight is doing a nice series I'm enjoying where he asked some seasoned pastors: "If you knew then what you know now, what would you have focused on? Or, in light of what you now know, what would you advise young pastors to focus on?"

It's kind of odd, because I *feel* like I've been pastoring for a million years; I feel like I've got a lot of miles on me and the compression's not so good anymore. But the truth is I've only been doing this occupationally not yet a full 9 years. So I'm still pretty wet behind the ears. I hope to be able to do it at least one more day.

Anyway, there has been a lot of good advice shared by a variety of respectable pastors, but two that have especially clicked with me - by two pastors I have always had a HUGE amount of respect for - are these:

• John Ortberg shared how he would seek to become a healthier person, emotionally and spiritually. His struggles with fitting in and needing people's approval hit close to home.

• Jim Martin has been one of my favorite bloggers for a long time. He shared how he would be more concerned with "self-care" - in areas of the mind, soul, emotions, and physical body. As he said, "Such self-care is not a luxury but is a God honoring investment in long-term ministry."

I really need to read some positive, encouraging stuff like this right now. So I appreciate Scot for doing the series, and all the pastors who have taken the time to respond.

Workin' it

You would think this had been Labor Day weekend instead of Memorial Day. It was loaded with manual labor for me. It started Saturday - we enclosed the S.W. corner of the pavilion. It's roughly 10'x13'. We can store tables and chairs in there, plus we're planning to put in a window through which we can serve food and drinks. We're currently in the market for a refrigerator. I thought we could put the 40-year-old fridge from the parsonage out there, and maybe the church would be kind enough to update ours to a regular-size one, but that was shot down pretty quickly at a council meeting. At any rate, it went pretty well and we got the room built. I worked that day from about 8 am until 6 pm. I was a little sore, and slept like a rock that night. I think I carried every piece of the 4x8 siding from the cut table to the spot it was screwed to. And I'll just say this... it really kinda irritates me when people say things like, "Gee, it's good to see the pastor actually doing some work for a change." Ha ha ha ha. I'll refrain from saying what I'm thinking in those instances, because it's not very "pastor-like."

Yesterday - Memorial Day - we were going to sleep in, but I was wide awake at like 5:30 for some reason. We decided to finally get some new red mulch for along the front of the house - since the other night I overheard some people talking about how poorly it looked. They were secretly devising a plan to have someone put mulch not only in front of the house, but also around all the trees in the yard (which don't presently have mulch around them). I'm glad I overheard them talking about it, because as the person who lives there, and who mows the lawn, I don't really care to have mulch around the trees. So... anyway, we got some mulch in the old truck, and now they should be happy.

After doing some office work we headed to Lowe's and bought some trim boards for the pavilion enclosure. That's the thing about having a "work day" - we got the majority of the thing done, but it's not finished entirely. And there was never any mention of when to do the trim, or put the window in, or wiring, or staining, etc. We've got a bad system for getting things done, because no one ever wants to be "in charge" of things like this, and so they sometimes just linger on forever. But I was actually looking forward to spending an hour or so doing some more measuring, marking, cutting, and nailing. It's nice to do something now and then where you can actually see that you did something. And I'm no stranger to tape measures and power tools, so I was having a good ole' time by myself just tinkering around. Until... the neighbor guy saw me. I mean, no offense, and he's a super guy and all, and I know that as a "pastor" I am supposed to do things "with" people and all that, but... so sue me because I like to do things like this without someone yacking at me and telling me how they would do it different and whatnot. It wasn't that bad, but... anyway... I got the boards all cut. I didn't put them up because I would prefer the siding be stained underneath the trim boards first, and the trim boards can actually be stained before putting them up - that way the ceiling might stay stain-free.

I finished off the day with a 3-mile run, a nice visit with Drew Carrie, and during the first half of the Celtics/Pistons game Jane and I watched the Tony Campolo dvd of his famous "It's Friday But Sunday's Coming" sermon. It's an hour long, but man... what an awesome sermon. I wish I could preach like that. And I'm sure there are plenty of people I know who would say it was too simplistic, and too evangelical, and too whatever else. But... you know... I think some people just plain think they're too smart for God to do anything in their life. Not that they need to dumb down, but they need to quit relying on their own wisdom. At any rate, I look forward to showing this at my church on a Sunday morning. They need to hear some good preachin' for a change. I would like to show it this coming Sunday, but I'll probably save it for a Sunday when I'm going to be gone or something. Geez, I wish I could listen to somebody preach like that once in awhile...

Well, today is Tuesday. Yep. Peace out; and in.

New mic batteries

Changed batteries today in the Sure lapel mic: 5/26/08. Yesterday they died right after my sermon. The last time they were changed was 3/9/08. So, a little over two months.

On an unrelated note: I also switched back to my acoustic guitar - and played it through the amp again. I like the sound better through the amp - lots of chorus; and I seem to have more confidence in playing the acoustic - even though my hand did get sore yesterday. Lots of bar chords are a problem, but my hand was already sore from putting up the storage building Saturday.

Also... I changed the monitors around up front. I took the one from behind the tree and made it my own personal monitor, and have it on a separate channel (PRE-2). I tied Jane's and Robin's together on their own (PRE-1). It seemed to work out nice. It's the best it's sounded from my spot in a long time.

Indiana jones & the legendary shack shakers

Yesterday was the Friday that comes twice a month where Jane and I have the same day off. It started out nice. We slept in a bit and then she made us breakfast: 2 eggs o/e, bacon and toast. A nice change from the usual oatmeal.

For lunch we had movie popcorn. She talked me into seeing the new Indiana Jones (and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) movie. I had actually just read some blurbs from WP, but... to be honest... I'm not a real IJ fan. Not that there's anything wrong with any of it, but... he kinda reminds me of somebody I don't really care for, and... whatever else... I'm just not a big fan. But it was alright. Jane thought it was great. And, actually, I LOVE going to matinees. You leave the middle of the day and it's like you're transported to another time and place. But the movie, popcorn and 2 pops cost us $29! I didn't like that so much.

After that I finally took my phone in to see what's wrong with it. They said it needed the software upgraded, and might need a new battery. The upgrade was free but the battery would cost me. When we went back to pick it up I also found out I could get a new phone. But they don't just give those things away anymore like they used to. And the tech was trying so hard to get me to notice her cleavage. She did everything short of putting my phone in there.

Anyway... after supper at Logan's, my idea for the day was to catch the Legendary Shack Shakers. I had read awhile ago that they were actually going to be in Fort Wayne. I've heard plenty about them - another band heavily influenced by JATS - but have never seen them. So I'd been quietly looking forward to this for awhile. Of course, the opening band didn't start until 9 pm - which more than likely means 9:30 at least. And they were playing in what appeared to be this smallish, dive type of place in maybe not the best part of town, and I'd never been there before, and... the fact that the Shack Shakers are of the Southern Gothic/Blues Punk genre... my 45-year-old bones suddenly began to feel a little feeble. We did a drive-by around 9:30 and it was looking fairly dead - with lots of people hanging out in the street and the parking lot. So we cruised downtown a bit and waited until after 10 to head back. I don't know why but I suddenly just got a real anxiety about going in. This used to happen to me all the time, but it hadn't for a long, long time. And I always hate it when it happens. Why do I get afraid to go into places. It wasn't like I feared for our lives or anything. It was like I just turned into this big wimp, and then the more mad I get at myself, the more afraid I get and then I'm too mad and afraid to do anybody any good and... ahck... we must have driven around the block like four times and I finally just gave in to the notion that I'm too old to be doin' stuff like this. And that made me feel even more dejected. I reasoned that we didn't need to spend the $16, and it was such a tiny place, and I had to get up early, and we were too old, and... It didn't really matter. I was beaten. Foiled again. I drove home in shame at being too afraid to see the shack shakers. Maybe this is why I don't like Harrison Ford.

I really wish I'da went. Not that I needed the ear massage so much, but I really wanted to support the owner of this establishment in his efforts to bring good bands to the Fort. But... it's another day. Whatever.

Today we have a work day at the church. We're prepping ground for our new 15'x30' storage shed, and enclosing a corner of the pavilion for storage and a serving area (like a concession stand). Concession - now there's a word for you.

Support live music, folks. Peace all up in your face. Sigh.

This and that

Jane had class again last night so I decided to go all out and make my speciality: a tombstone deluxe frozen pizza. And I know you're probably thinking, "But gee, Dan, your birthday isn't until November." I know, I know. But daughter Carrie is right... when I put my mind to it I can make a frozen pizza like nobody's business. Favorites shouldn't only be for birthdays, you know.

And I was bored, so I put on these two pics of son Isaac's trip to St. Thomas. The first one is he and the lovely girlfriend Laura. I believe this is on the porch of Laura's grandmother's house - where they stayed.

This is just a random pic of the scenery there. Looks pretty nice if you ask me.

Hopefully daughter Carrie will oblige us with some pics from her and Drew's trip to Texas next week. ;)

Out of shape(ing)

I finished The Shaping of Things To Come. That's probably the quickest I've read a book in awhile (other than on vacation). Two quotes towards the end that really jumped out at me were:

(p.187) One of the best working definitions of poverty is not just the lack of money but the lack of a dream, a vision, hope. Darryl Gardiner, the director of Youth for Christ in New Zealand, believes that one of the core missional tasks when working with the poor is to help them to begin to dream again. The poor, in Darryl's view, are people without a dream. It is the missionary's task to rouse the imaginative abilities that lie at the base of the human soul in order to awaken the possibilities for a new gospel future and to access the deepest sources of human motivation - faith, love, pleasure, and hope. It is to awaken a sense of purpose, of mission, in life. No less is needed to help birth and nurture the missional church in the West. We need to dream again, and to do this we must cultivate a love for imagination. Before we can do it, we need to dream it.

Wow. Yeah. I could apply this in so many different situations and directions. It is so true, but also so troubling (to me, personally). Maybe not as much as this next quote on p. 223. They share a parable from Soren Kierkegaard about how when the wild geese fly overhead, the tame geese on the ground run about flapping their wings trying to imitate them...

The twist in this tale is this: that while it has been observed that wild geese have become tame... it has seldom been observed that tame geese can become wild again. We need to beware of the anesthetizing and stultifying effects that Christendom, the tame, nonmissional church, and our safe middle classness have had on us.

You know, I'm no good at book reviews and things like that. But I'll just say this about this book: It has pissed me off, but at the same time it ticks me off partly because it seems to be saying the exact things I was THINKING when I first had inklings to plant a church. And... this is a leadership-type book, and I am pretty much going to react negatively to any leadership type of stuff. But that doesn't always mean I don't agree with it. It's just how I am. I don't like it, and I don't exactly know why I do it. But it happens.

On the one hand, I think I reacted negatively to some of this stuff because it pointed out how I have been "tamed." I don't dream anymore. The fire's been dampened. I mean, though, it's not like I agreed with everything in the book. But overall I agree with what they're saying.

On the other hand, as I kinda said, it was nice to read stuff that's been in my head for years and years and have it put down into charts and graphs and paragraphs. My mind isn't able to be quantified as such, but this is the kind of movement I've been stirred by since early on in my spiritual journey. And sometimes it's irritating. I mean, I felt I was thrust toward ministry by nothing short of a driving passion for a particular group of people. It was never to be a "pastor" or anything like that. When I went to seminary I had no idea where it would lead... but I knew who I had a heart for! And I can remember talking with church planting people and they kinda steered me away from the notion because... you know... I'm not the most dynamic of personalities, and I had no real visions for how to "grow" the thing, and all the baggage I seem to carry on my shoulder (is that a chip on your shoulder or are you just glad to see me). So sometimes I think I've sold out, you know.

The truth is, though... life is long. And sometimes God takes us on these journeys, and it's not without good reason. I don't particularly know what the reason is... and maybe it doesn't matter. But I believe Jesus can redeem and restore anyone and anything... And sometimes things aren't the way they appear. And sometimes our ways are not his ways. And maybe waste is only something seen in human terms, not in God's economy.

Reading this book reminded me of the days when we had the Friday Night Freaks Bible Study back home. I was all into the Jesus People thing, and going to C-stone, and thinking about communal living, and I'd go to work in the chimney factory and talk about the stories I'd read in the Bible and how cool it was, and... Glenn Kaiser and Darrel Mansfield and Larry Howard... and...

Dang, my office is a pigsty.

Summer schedule - roughly

Some things I need to remember about the summer - so far:

• Sunday, June 1 - no s.s.; and Jr. Worship the entire am hour.
• Sunday, June 15 - Father's Day concert & cookout at 6 pm with Tommy Womack and Andrew Camp (pavilion).
• Tuesday, June 17 - Thursday, June 19 - Midwest Region Conference in Decatur, IL.
• Sunday, June 22 - maybe do Lectio Divina am worship.
• Sunday, June 29 - Dave Frincke concert 6 pm (pavilion).
• Sunday, July 6 - Dave Moser to preach am.
• Sunday, July 13 - Ryan Hirschy concert 6 pm (pavilion).
• Sunday, July 20 - Water In2 Wine concert 10 am (inside). 3rd week of vacation for '07-'08.
• Wednesday, July 23-Saturday, July 26 - Impact in Findlay, OH.
• Sunday, July 27 - Donald Miller's "The Market Driven Jesus" am
• Sunday, July 27 - Doug Molgaard, missionary to Sweden, 6 pm (pavilion?).
• Sunday, August 3 - Donald Miller's "The Market Driven Jesus: pt. 2" am
• Sunday, August ?? - Earthsong concert 6 pm (pavilion)

Continue working on getting Josh Garrels for a Sunday night concert, and maybe one or two more. It'd be nice to find someone to do a children's show type of thing sometime in August too. At some point this year I need to attend another leadership conference of some sort. No idea what, when, or where. I'd like to read: 'The Forgotten Ways', 'Just Walk Across the Room', 'Beyond Smells & Bells', 'Everything Must Change', and reread some Nouwen, Yancey, and Lucado books (now I'm just dreaming, I know).

Uncooked

Man, I'm beginning to think I can't do ANYTHING. Last night Jane had class and I thought I would just eat something we had around. I was hungry for tomato soup, but we didn't have any. There was a leftover potatoes/carrots/onions thing in the fridge, and there was a bag of what looked like meatballs in the freezer. I thought, "Hey, I know there's a defrost button on the microwave; and who can't warm up veggies." So, I put the meatball-looking things in the microwave and put them on whatever setting I thought would unfreeze them. I had to do it several times before they started to soften up, but they didn't look so good. So finally I cooked them with the regular setting. Um... I've never put a piece of chocolate in the microwave and melted it, but that's what the meatballs started to look like. It was gross. Jane told me later that they were, in fact, meatballs, but they had never been cooked. Anyway, I pitched them, and ate the veggies raw. Also had a thing of pudding and some cheez-its. It was a quiet night. At least the Bulls got the top pick in the NBA draft (not that I'm a Bulls fan, necessarily).

Order of worship re-order

Hopefully beginning sometime in June we will change the routine of our Sunday morning gathering. We will not be having Sunday School from June - August, and kids in K-5th grade will be in Jr. Worship for the entire hour (10-11 am). We are using two VBS programs for summer Jr. Worship, and holding it outside under the pavilion. So... what I would like to do for everyone else is something like this (though it's not set in stone):

• Greeting, announcements, and sharing of info/news
• Maybe a song (maybe from the hymnal, or not)
  
• A scripture reading (from someone)
• A prayer
• The message
• A time of meditation - during which we will pass the offering plates (not sure about passing the offering plates. I would like people to bring it when they get up to receive communion, but I'm afraid maybe not everyone will partake in communion. I dunno yet)
  
• Prayer
  
• Several songs - during which people may come forward and receive communion
• Dismissal - with the Lord's Prayer
  

Flight tracking

We learned something new last night. Son Isaac was returning from St. Thomas and Jane got on the airport website and you can actually track where the flight is at in progress (like this one taking place right now from FW to Detroit). She tracked his flight from St. Thomas to Atlanta - where he had no problems. But then they were stuck on the ground for awhile in Atlanta before being able to start back to Fort Wayne. They ended up being about an hour late, but since we could see in real time where the plane was (and we could see the reason for the delay - weather), we were almost able to see the entire Spurs/Hornets game before heading to the airport. Of course, if the bypass didn't cut our road off it would only take us 5 minutes to get there. Instead it's like a whopping 15 minutes.

I don't know why, but I like hanging out in airports. Maybe someday I could get a job there. I think that would be interesting.

APEST is a pest

So I've started reading more about the APEST test to see if I'm more of an Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Shepherd (pastor), or Teacher. The Shaping of Things To Come calls it an APEPT, but it has apparently now been changed to APEST, so as not to have two "p's" - Shepherd replaced pastor. I did find it helpful when they compared them sociologically as:

The entrepreneur = the apostle
The questioner = the prophet
The recruiter = the evangelist
The humanizer = the shepherd/pastor
The systematizer = the teacher

But, I don't know... Basically the whole thing has me depressed now. I am debating about whether to spend the $10 to take the test, but I've taken so many of those stinkin' tests and being a bit on the manic side I can test out so differently depending on my mood at the time. And I actually think I am more of a prophet-type than anything, which is depressing in and of itself - nobody likes a questioner. Plus, it just seems that sometimes I am a little bit of all of them, and sometimes a little bit of none. I always thought that's what made me the perfect small-church pastor. Sort of a renaissance-type who could do a lot of things a little bit, but didn't do anything real well. But now I'm told there is no place for people like me, and that people like me are the cancer of the church at large. Yeah, that's about right. Of course, the truth is probably that I just don't understand it correctly. Which seems to be more true of more and more things anymore.

ADDED LATER: Yes, this is a whine (if you don't know I'm a whiner then you haven't read here very much). The thing is, I'm not saying the APEST ministry model is a bad idea, or unbiblical. I'm just not sure how it works in church leadership, and that it will work in each and every local church out there. So if you have some light you can shed - shed away.

"Shaping" quotes (random)

I'm reading The Shaping of Things To Come: Innovation and Mission For The 21st-Century Church by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch. It's okay. I didn't realize it was so old (2003), and I've heard most of the stories in it already. But I'm not complaining. I guess it's good that I'm reading a church leadership type book. Whatever. Anyway... here are some random quotes I've read so far that I want to remember:

• p. 47 "The missional-incarnational church... is a centered set. This means that rather than drawing a border to determine who belongs and who doesn't, a centered set is defined by its core values, and people are not seen as in or out, but as closer or further away from the center." Yep.
• p. 73 "In a world where many non-Christians assume God hates them (presumably because they gain the impression that God's people hate them) it is important to make one of the goals of incarnational church planting to help people connect with the God who is seeking them and desiring their friendship."
• p. 77 Robert Banks writes, "The church is described as belonging not to the people by whom it is constituted... nor to the district to which they belong... but rather to the one who has brought it into existence (that is, God) or the one through whom this has taken place (that is, Christ)."
• ***p. 77ff - Commitments for the church: COMMUNION (in relationship with Christ) - God's Word; worship. COMMUNITY (in relationship with One Another) - learning; fellowship/friendship. COMMISSION (in relationship with the World) - serving/giving; Gospel telling/sharing. ***
• p. 104 "In the second century, Diognetus wrote of the fledgling Christian Community in the following way: They dwell in their country, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things as if foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native country and every country of their birth as a land of strangers. They marry, as do all others; they beget children; but they do not destroy their offspring. They have a common table, but not a common bed. They are in the flesh, but do not live after the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but they are citizens of heaven. They obey the prescribed laws, and at the same time surpass the laws by their lives. They love all men, and are persecuted by all. They are poor, yet make many rich; they are in lack of all things and yet abound in all; they are dishonored and yet in their very dishonor are glorified. They are evil spoken of, and yet are justified; they are reviled and bless; they are insulted, and repay the insult with honor; they do good, yet are punished as evil-doers. When punished, they rejoice as if quickened into life; they are assailed by the Jews as foreigners and are persecuted by the Greeks; yet those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their hatred."
• p. 125 "It reminds one of the old rabbinical saying that one day we will all stand before God and he will judge us for all the possible pleasures he gave us to enjoy, but we failed to enjoy."
• p. 126 "The Hebrew word 'Torah' has traditionally been interpreted as "law," that is, a set of rules or legal codes. This is a somewhat misleading interpretation as it implies the rigid approach to life that distorts the inner intention of the idea of 'Torah.' A truer translation is that of "instruction" or simply "teaching." A better way of lookng at it is to see the Torah as an orientation course in the ways of God... When reading the Pentateuch, one is immediately struck by the radical non-linear logic associated with it. One verse deals with the Israelite's approach to God in the temple. The very next verse deals with what one does when one's donkey falls into a pit. The next might well deal with the mildew in the kitchen, the next with the female menstrual cycle. It seems to be radically discontinuous and generally lacks the sequential reason that we look for in a text. What is going on here? How can we comprehend this meaning?... We suggest that there is indeed a rather profound logic going on in the Torah, a logic that attempts to relate ALL ASPECTS of life to God. Therefore, everything - one's work, one's domestic life, one's health, one's worship - has the same significance to God. He is concerned with every aspect of the believer's life..."
  
• p. 144 "Whoever can no longer desire the impossible will be able to achieve nothing more than the all-t00-probable" (Martin Buber, On Judaism, p.35).
• p. 159 "There's a riddle in the Talmud that goes like this, 'If God intended man to live on bread, why didn't he create a bread tree?' And the answer is that, in fact, God could have created a tree that produced crusty loaves of bread, but he prefers to offer us a grain and invite us to buy a field and plant the seed. He prefers that we till the soil while he sends the rain. He prefers that we harvest the crop while he sends the sunshine. He prefers that we grind the grain and knead it and bake it while he gives us air in our lungs and strength in our arms. Why? Because he would rather we become partners with him in creation."
  

Guys with guns and the beautiful people

I am currently really ticked off at some people (not anyone in my church), so to avoid ruffling feathers I'll just show some more pictures from our vacation in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

On the morning Jane and I went down to the beach to see the sunrise we were happened upon by two guys carrying automatic weapons (that's Jane on the lounge chair - not lounging). There were only a few people around, and out of the blue two dogs came ambling around the corner of the beach from the wild. We thought that was weird. The resort security guard headed toward the dogs, and then we see these two guys with guns appear. They weren't in military or any other type of uniform, so we're not sure what the deal was. But... after a chat with the security guard - in which hands were shook and smiles were shown - they continued their early morning stroll down the beach.


In the picture below you can just barely make out the leg of a lady in one of the chairs reading a book. I dubbed her and her husband "the beautiful people." They were probably older than us, and for some reason I think they were Russian or something - we didn't see them ever talk to anyone. Jane talked to him, but said the woman couldn't speak English. Jane called them "GB" and "HG" - for "green bikini" and "hairy guy" (I know, we're terrible). Anyway, every single day they were across the pool from our room, and they did nothing but read books (big ones too) and occasionally get in the pool. At one point she was reading "War and Peace" while I was reading "Of Mice and Men." They always seemed to eat at the same time as us, and usually at the same place, and they almost always held hands whenever they went anywhere. They were very polite and cordial to one another, and when she walked... lemme tell you... it was like a tall glass of champagne - with the slightest of sway. I mean, I'm thinking she was either a supermodel or actress or something. Anyway, it was innaresting, because they just always seemed to be 'there.' And they had this 'look' about them like they were famous or really wealthy.

I guess that's the kind of thing you do when you lay around a place for a week and don't do anything. Man, I wish I were there again.

Being Christ-like

From Frost and Hirsch's The Shaping of Things To Come, p. 107:

Theologian Harvey Cox once told of speaking at a conference for Christian healers and therapists. The audience was full of pastors, doctors, nurses, counselors, and psychologists, all committed to bringing healing as an intrinsic part of their Christian faith. Cox says he retold the audience the story of Jesus raising Jairus's daughter from the dead and how along the way he healed the hemorrhaging woman. This story occurs in Luke 8:40-56 and is a wonderful episode that shows Jesus' compassion for both the religious leaders, Jairus, and the scorned woman. Having recounted the story, Cox then asked his listeners to identify which character in the story they related most strongly to. Was it the bleeding woman, abandoned, suffering, and defeated? Or Jairus, anxious and grief-stricken? Or even perhaps the disciples who observed these fantastic miracles in wonderment and awe? Sections of the audience identified with different characters. Then Cox asked them how many identified with Christ. Six out of six hundred raised their hands.

When confronted with a story about Jesus the healer, only one percent of an audience full of healers related to Christ himself. How many teachers relate to Jesus the teacher? How many of us identify with Jesus as a person we aspire to become like? Of course, he is divine as well as human, and therefore we can never hope to fully emulate him. But we are called to live Christlike lives. We need to recapture our focus on Jesus and live like him, adore him, befriend him again.

On a related note, I saw this in a comment on one of Scot McKnight's posts. You can read the post here, but I liked what one commenter (#4 - Jim) said:

Michael, here’s another viewpoint that author Bill Johnson helped me to see. Jesus said of Himself, “The Son can do nothing by Himself” (John 5:19). The Greek word here for “Nothing” has a unique meeting—IT MEANS NOTHING. He had no supernatuaral capabilities whatsoever!
While He is 100% God, He chose to live with the same limitations that man would face once He was redeemed. He made that point over and over again. Jesus became the model for all who would embrace the invitation to invade the impossible in His name.

Acts 2:22, “Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst…”

He performed miracles, wonders, and signs, as a man in right relationship to God…not as God. If He performed miracles because He was God, then they would be unattainable for us. But if He did them as a man, I am responsible to pursue His lifestyle. Recapturing this simple truth changes everything…and makes possible a full restoration of the ministry of Jesus in His Church (John 14:12-14).

So, the stories of Jesus in the Bible are not the record of what God can do, but the record of what a person can do rightly related to God.

Hmm. Innaresting stuff.

Which should I get?

I could use some advice here. I think I may finally take the plunge into this century and move away from getting my music on 8-track tape. Well, okay... cassette. Well... yeah, I have some cd's. Like an idiot I gave away all my albums.

Anyway... so... what's the best thing for music and podcasts and such - keeping in mind I don't have much throw-around cash? Are ipods the best? What about Zune - they look pretty cool to me? Or is there something else that's just as good or better? And... what size do I need - will 4 gig do me fine, or 8, or do I need 80? I would like to download some sermons and conference material, plus music (if you can even do that - I don't know anything).

Both my kids have ipods, but they're also both mac users. I'm not tied to any brand, but I don't want to spend a little bit of money only to have to re-spend more later. And... I just thought of this... I am also do for a new cell phone. Is there a phone that would make just as good of an mp3 player (other than the iphone - I would feel like I was trying to be too hip; plus the $ thing)?

Yeah, well, I know my comment box is going to fill up fast (ha ha)... but I really would appreciate any input or info anyone might have to offer.

Life is fragile

Sometimes we have great ideas about changing the world, when all some people really need is a thank you, or a phone call, or a smile. Sometimes even just our presence.

My thoughts and prayers today are with those who are grieving the loss of their six-year-old son, grandson, cousin, friend, etc. in an ATV accident; and with my friend Tom who will be doing the funeral. You would think after you had done so many of these it would be easier. It sucks.

Blessing sunday

I don't know if that's what I would call it, but... I've always wanted to have a Sunday where our church doesn't meet together. Instead, we would disperse ourselves to other area churches and try to be a "blessing" in their Sunday worship gathering.

I'm not suggesting that our church is somehow better than other churches, because we are not. But I believe there are churches all around, with people who really want to worship God, who really want to have vibrant services, who really want to see people come to Jesus, and see justice carried out and all that... but they are discouraged and unmotivated by years of rejection and mundanity (I'm not sure if that's a word). A 'Blessing Sunday' probably wouldn't solve anything, but I think - at least for one Sunday - it might inspire some folks to hear some extra voices singing, and to have some smiling faces to pass the peace with, and I know a few more attentive minds during the sermon never did any pastor any harm. It would be a small thing, really, because we're a small church ourselves.... but it would be something.

I wonder if it might also be a way to chip away at breaking down some walls; helping people realize that our churches are not in competition with one another, but we are on a mission TOGETHER.

I don't know... maybe stuff like this is stupid. But I remember talking to someone several years ago - this young couple who had decided to leave their "hip, contemporary church" and started attending a teeny little church full of gray hairs. Not that they disliked their other church, but they just felt they wanted to help make a difference somewhere. So many of these little churches are so discouraged, and these people wanted to help them learn that they did, in fact, have value and a purpose, and a reason for existing and whatnot.

Oh, I doubt that it will ever happen. I told my church Sunday that I'd like to try it sometime and they can fire me afterwards if they want. But... I'm basically just a dreamer.

Blessings to ya.

25 years

Twenty five years ago today the lovely Jane Pratt walked down the aisle and was silly enough to marry me. She was nineteen, I was twenty. We went all through school together, but it wasn't until our last year of high school that we "connected." We sat beside each other in an english class, and I mentioned one day that she had changed her nail polish. I think that's what won her over. The rest is, as they say, history.

We won't see much of each other today, but... there's always tonight. Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton is kind of "our song." It was also the only song I would dance to for a long, long time. :) And do you know how hard it is to find a youtube of this in its original form? Anyway... this is for you, dear. Happy anniversary.

Looking for sound equipment

This is why I hate to get excited about anything. We normally borrow our portable sound equipment from a guy in our church (when we do outdoor shows). He just informed me that he can't be at any of the Sunday evening shows and doesn't really want us using his stuff if he's not here. So... I am now looking for some (probably used) sound equipment. Maybe an 8 to 12 channel powered mixer, and a couple of 12"or 15" speakers w/stands oughta do it. The only problem is we have a budget of $0 for this.

Yep.

Booking summer concerts

I've finally started working on getting some shows booked at our pavilion for this summer. The only one I'd had up until now was Tommy Womack for Father's Day evening. I think I may now have an opener for him too (if J. Andrew comes through). We'll probably have a good old-fashioned picnic as well.

Ryan Hirschy is going to do a Sunday morning or Sunday night show for us - I should find out tomorrow. We had him last year for a Sunday morning outside and it went pretty good. I like him. Today I also booked Dave Frincke from Fort Wayne. I have heard Dave many a time at c2g and really like not only his voice, keys and guitar work, but he's got a great heart for Jesus. I always like seeing someone who is totally in love with God sing and play, and that's what Dave is. And I think I lined up a band for a later summer date. They played for us last summer as Full Circle, but now they have a few different members and go by EarthSong (I think).

I have several more inquiries in and am on the lookout for more. What I would really like to do is book almost exclusively on Sunday nights at 6 pm from the middle of June through August. That way we could develop some continuity. And having the shows outside under the pavilion will hopefully draw more people from the community, because that's really what we're doing this for anyway. These aren't shows for our church - they are shows for the community our church building is located in and around. That's why we built the pavilion and the playground. So hopefully with our big yellow roadside sign people will know it's not just a "church thing."

We have plans to enclose one corner of the pavilion and make it a storage area / concession stand. Someone is donating a prep table that we can store pop and water in. And I'm thinking we can have pizza the night of shows. We can start with a few and if we run out we can always just have more delivered (the benefit of having your wife work at a pizza joint). If we charge 50 cents for pop and $1.50 for pizza we should cover our costs. So eventually I would like people in the area to think to themselves, "Hey... I wonder who's playing at the pavilion this Sunday? Let's go see."

The big challenge for me is finding performers though. And even though it would be easier to find Southern Gospel groups, I would really rather not have too many of them. We'll probably do a couple, but there's a lot of "other" good music out there too. Even good Christian music. Hopefully we will have some that isn't even "christian." It's a community thing, you know. We aren't trying to save people with this stuff; we just want to provide a place for people to have a good time, maybe develop some friendships, and if they get a hankerin' for Jesus too... well, there would certainly be nothin' wrong with that.

You know... come to think of it... I think this is actually the kind of stuff I like to do. Not so much when I have all kinds of other stuff to do too, but... this gets me stoked. There, I said it! There is somethin' I actually like to do. :)

So, that's what's happening. If you know any good performers who don't need a lot of money... lemme know, okay?

PS - I could also use a couple of spotlights (at least one). Like, real ones - not the shop lights we have now.

Random #313

Sometimes living right next to the airport has its advantages. I woke up a little before 6 this morning and saw son Isaac's plane knife into the clouds. At least I'm assuming it was his plane, if he made it to the airport on time, and it departed on time. He is headed to Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands for a week with his girlfriend and her mother. They will be staying with the mother's mother - who lives there. It looks like kind of a nice place to live, or even visit.

The boy finished up year two at Anderson U. last week. He came in Saturday night and dumped a pile of stuff in his room. When he gets back he'll be moving to an apartment in Anderson and working full-time doing landscaping. I wish he'd get involved in another band - though I like having his guitar and amp at the church for me to use on Sundays. :) Somewhere he has two or three other guitars though, and I don't believe they are in the pile of stuff in his room. Whatever. Man, it seems like just yesterday big sis was STARTING college. One of these days I am going to be old.

I think we had a nice Mother's Day - even though it was a crappy, rainy day. The boy and the girl and the boyfriend were all in church, and then we had a nice lunch. Of course there was a nap in there in the afternoon. Then everyone went their separate ways - other than m'lady and me, and the dog. He hid behind my chair when it rained - probably so we wouldn't give him another downer pill. The last time (which was also the first time) we gave him one he couldn't walk.

I talked to two people yesterday who had just been to Amsterdam. I thought that was interesting.

Saturday I sold our old riding lawn mower. It was a good mower. I want to use the money to buy something that will honor the memory of the person we got the mower from. It's a long story that I don't really want to go into. Originally I was thinking of an electric guitar.

Yesterday morning I was walking over to the church at 6 am in the rain, and... all of a sudden I noticed someone was walking down the middle of the road. in the rain. with a black hoody on. I was a bit startled, as it was still fairly dark, and we kinda live out in the middle of nowhere. I didn't know whether I should ask if they needed help, or if I should run and hide. So... I just minded my business and unlocked the door and assumed if they needed or wanted something I would find out soon enough. I never saw him again.

Well, I guess it's time to start it all over again. Here we go...

Mother's day or pentecost

Tomorrow is Mother's Day - a day set aside each year to honor Mothers. This year it also happens to fall on Pentecost Sunday - which marks the birth of the church (Acts 2). These are both very significant events in my mind. Mother's deserve to be honored, and I think the church is pretty darn important too (whether you're against the "organized" church or not, I find it hard for someone to say they're a Christian and not be about the body of Christ). So... my question is, which should a pastor/worship leader focus on this Sunday? Should it be more about Mother's Day, or more about Pentecost? Or does anybody really care?

Rough equivalents

Just found this cool website - Rough Equivalents. It's a blog that gives you equivalents like:

• 25,000 hours is how long it takes to cook half-a-million three-minute eggs... in a row.
• 25,000 hours is 180 million split seconds.
• 25,000 hours at two maximum strength Tylenols every 4 hours for pain is a 3 month old baby made entirely of Tylenol.

It also has fun facts and ideas like "How much toilet paper is the war in Iraq costing?" Or, "If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. How many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?" And, "What IS your weight in gold?" All kinds of great (and useful) stuff.

ht - www.thisistrue.com

That's me in the corner

This is me on our patio during the recent vacation in Punta Cana. I don't know if I just got out of bed, or if it was afternoon nap time. For the most part I didn't think about work too much while there. But I did plenty of thinkin. Although... maybe that was just a dream.

FYI - Jane just walked in and said something astounding that neither one of us knew before. When Charlton Heston gets captured on Planet of the Apes and they ask him where he's from, he says, "Fort Wayne, Indiana." Ha! Who'd a thought?

Music optional

Okey-dokey. I think I figured out how to make the music an optional feature now. It should no longer play when you open my blog. If you want to listen - either click on the big arrow in the middle of the playlist, or click on the particular song you want to hear. I like this much better; plus I heard of some situations where it came blaring out in workplaces, and also, at one particular restaurant, the computer is tied into the sound system for the whole place. Oops.

I will likely be adding some additional songs now too. I think I can put 100 songs on it. I put Broken Whiskey Glass by Jason & the Scorchers on. Wow. That's one of their first songs - from 1984 (I think). You can't beat that song live. It's one where everybody literally sings along. I hear reports from Europe that just the other night Jason just held the mic up and everyone in the place sang it.

If you're thinking of putting this on your blog - I'm not computer genius, but I did have some problems getting the code set so it would fit in my sidebar. Plus, I almost exclusively use Firefox, and for some reason I can't do anything in the playlist with Firefox. I have to use IE; and it took a little jerry-rigging to get that to work at first too. But then, I'm an idiot, so... whatever.

Jane is off to class again. She's taking two classes this semester, plus working full-time, plus doing all kinds of stuff at the church, plus she's married to me. There must be two of her. And I need to hit the treadmill. I haven't been very good about it since vacation yet. Ok... I'm getting up. Really. Here I go...

Tunes in or tunes out

Perhaps you noticed that I added music to my blog. I didn't know you could do such things on good ol' blogger. I think it's actually a Myspace thing. Not sure how I feel about it yet. But what about you... Should it stay or should it go? I was hoping there was a way I could make it so the music didn't play automatically, but I can't figure out how to change that. I guess you can always hit the pause button.

And while you're at it - which is your favorite song on my current playlist?

• All That I Can Say - David Crowder Band
• Into The Mystic - Van Morrison
• Angel From Montgomery - John Prine (even though that's not John singing)
  
• Somewhere Within - Jason & the Scorchers
• Cortez The Killer - Neil Young
• Nice Day - Tommy Womack
• Peace - Rich Mullins
• Blue Jean Blues - ZZ Top

Do you have any suggestions you think I should add? Or... maybe I'll get tired of this thing and remove it altogether. I dunno. We'll see.

Peace out; peace in.

All that I can say

Actually, there is nothing that I can say right now. I just read this post from a young mother grieving the loss of her child. Wow. She had the David Crowder song in the title playing while I read it. I'm not very familiar with DC, but the song fit perfectly.

Hmm.

ht - Jared

New kitchen carpet

We got the new carpet for the kitchen/laundry room/bathrooms. Here are some pics - and remember, there are no pictures or shelves on the walls yet, or china in the new green hutch (which the bottom half was my childhood dresser). I don't know that this is how we'll decorate, but this is how I put things back in whilst lady Jane was at class last night.

This is looking from the kitchen into the laundry room and the back bathroom. We decided to go with the "empty nest" table - up against the wall, with only two chairs. And someday Carrie may take her wild looking overstuffed chair that she got from Grandma, but I don't think it looks too bad there.

This is the view of the "kitchen proper," I guess. Notice I have my blog displayed on the computer. :) We're hoping for a new refrigerator sometime. This one still works, but it's a little on the smallish side (and makes funny noises). We're running out of picture space too.

I am glad that's all done. I was actually able to get the car in the garage last night! I still need to put new cove along the baseboard in the laundry room and back bathroom, but... it's good enough for now.

Early and often

It's been quite the fun time today. It is Primary Tuesday in Indiana, and there's been a pretty steady stream of voters coming through our church building all morning. I was here at 4:30 a.m. to make coffee and unlock the door for the workers. I didn't cast my vote until around 7:45 though (polls are open from 6 am to 6 pm). I only pushed one button because I hadn't heard of anyone else on the two-page ticket. Did my civic duty for the day.

It was a little bit funny... when you sign in you have to declare either: "D", "R", or "SB." There are like 6 people working at our little precinct, and I asked what the "SB" stood for. Hehe... the four who were standing there didn't have a clue. Finally the lone guy came in and said it's "split ballot." Of course, you can't use that during the primary anyway, but... I thought it was funny that no one knew.

And we did have a little excitement when a lady came in and voted on the Republican ticket, but somehow they found out she'd already voted absentee as a Democrat. I haven't heard yet what they ended up doing, but it was sure the talk of the voting room.

The election workers just fed me barbecue and chips, and I need to walk over to the house and see how the carpet layers are doing. They arrived around 10 am. I made Bogey stay outside in the fenced-in back yard. He doesn't like spending anymore time outside than it takes to go potty. He can rough it for a little while.

Peace out; and in.

I dont' want a pickle (2)

I just changed the title to the previous post. It should have been 'I don't want a pickle' to begin with. How silly of me to not realize this. One of the truly fantabulous songs of all time in my opinion.

This will just be a ramble - I'm killing time waiting for the polling judges to come by the church building and set up for the primary elections tomorrow. Our church is a polling place - which I think is kinda cool. Not that I'm into the whole politics thing, but I believe churches ought to be here to serve their communities (not the other way around), and it's the least we can do. We also have some people who set up a table with coffee and cookies for people as they come to vote. So tomorrow could be a lively day around the ol' office. I might even vote. Not so much that I'm voting FOR someone (well, maybe), but I want to vote AGAINST someone. Seems funny that it's perfectly okay with people that one candidate has a lifelong track record of lying and deceit, but the other candidate gets raked over the coals because his former pastor speaks his mind. This is the American way? Unfortunately it seems to be anymore. I'm ready for a change.

Anyway... I did have an artichoke experience yesterday. Daughter Carrie and boyfriend Drew made us two big honkin' arti's that we choked down. I wimped out after only a few leaves. I'm not a real butter lover, and I'm also not an adventurous eater. I could basically eat the same things every day. But it was kinda cool to actually see one and give it a try. Seems to be more of a "social" food. You socialize while making it and also while eating it.

The carpet people are supposed to come and put our new kitchen/laundry room/bathroom carpet in tomorrow too. I was hoping to leave Bogey-boy at the church while they did that, but it might not be a good idea with the election going on. I guess the carpet guys will just have to deal with the tub-o-dog lumbering around the house. At lunch today I spackled the big seams in the floor, so I'm hopin' it's all set. It'll be nice havin' kitchen furniture and a real floor again.

Can't think of anything else. Later.

I don't want a pickle...

[NOTE: I changed the title of this post to what it should have been originally. Song reference and artist???]

It's days like this when I wish I had a motorcycle again. I was never a "biker" or anything, but I used to enjoy riding my little Honda some. Mostly to work and back when I worked at the gas station along Interstate 80. And even though I don't foresee ever really having another one... lemme tell you: if I did... or if someone handed me a wad of cash and told me I had to spend it on something totally frivolous... I would get me a Norton, baby.

I saw somebody ride by the office window on one just about like this the other afternoon (minus the booted lady), and it set my mind a wanderin'. Yep. I've never really had a "dream car," but I could really dig me one of these. Forget Harley Davidson's - give me a Commando. And I know it's nothing but pure vanity. So sue me or whatever, ya know.

Back home we had these friends who collected vintage old bikes. They had a Morton building full of Norton's, and Harley's, and Indian's, and BSA's, and Triumph's, and on and on and on. I don't know how many bikes they had, but it was a lot, and they were all totally cool. What a nice couple too. Though the wife had some peculiar habits. Hehe (she was great fun at parties).

The toughest decision would be what color: black, yellow, red, blue, white... And I think I would opt for the newer 850, since I'm not a real tool-head, and they're supposed to be better than the earlier 750's. Though that's somethin' else I dream about - spending hours in my "bike shop"... tinkerin' around; turnin' screws, shop rags layin' about, the smell of gasoline, and shiny chrome, and buffing, and... hey... I'd need to get me a barber chair again too! (I used to have a barber chair in my shop in Illinois. It was the coolest. I sold it on a garage sale when I went to seminary). But I know it's just a dream. And that's okay. This is the kinda thing I thought about when I was a youngster - like in grade school. Then came sports, and music, and girls, and... other things.

One of the dumbest things I ever didn't do was when I passed up the chance to buy an old, old, old, Sears motorcycle (made in Italy). A friend of my dad's had it. He was retired and only used it to go to his fishin' pond and back. He was practically going to give it to me. God only knows why I was such an idiot that time.

Aaaaanyway... it's not like I don't love our beautiful Buick Century. But a man with no dream is a dangerous thing. I guess I can always roll the window down in the car.

Indy mini-marathon

Today we went to Indianapolis where son Isaac and 'the girlfriend' Laura ran in the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon. Wowza, I was not expecting this kind of crowd. Apparently 90,000 people show up for this thing. The picture at right doesn't do justice to how many were collected in the Rest & Recovery Area. Actually, the race was still going on when I snapped this pic, and there were literally people all over the west side of downtown Indy. [click on photo's to enlarge]

It was a beautiful day for the festivities too, after a stormy day on Friday and with clouds rolling in this afternoon. We didn't make it for the start - which was at 7:30 am!!! We were there before Isaac and Laura finished though. We would have been there a bit sooner too, but I lost my sense of direction (which is so unlike me). We couldn't come into town the way we normally do because roads were closed for the race, so we found a parking garage that only charged $5. For some reason I had the map backwards and we walked five blocks the wrong direction. It turns out we were parked only 1 block from the finish line. Oops. It was nice when we left though.

I thought Isaac & Laura did extremely well, especially since it was their first mini (which is 13 miles, btw). They ran together and finished in 1 hour and 53 minutes. Smokin'. Laura got 5,151st place and Isaac got 5,154th place (not sure who was between them), but that's pretty darn good considering there were 35,000 runners. This is a pic of the two of them talking to Jane after we finally found one another under the "H." I think we were as winded from walking downtown as they were from running the race. We saw a few people that looked pretty rough though.

I snapped this pic of the canal that runs downtown as we were leaving (along Ohio St.). I have been to Indy quite a number of times and never even knew this place existed. It was pretty cool. All in all a pretty nice day too. I thought about running on the treadmill while we were driving home, but... you know... I've got some work to do first. We'll see.

Peace out; and in.

Doctor visit

Made the ol' visit to the doc today. Always nice to hang out on South Anthony in Fort Wayne (uh... not really). Although I finally took a picture of the speed limit sign as you pull into their facility. I've always thought this was interesting: 10 1/3 mph. Hehe.

Anyway, it was a routine visit to see how the niacin has been affecting my cholesterol. Plus I had to tell him that my ear was still messed up. He said the leakage is just like when you get a blister or something and it oozes. I didn't need to hear that! So he said to keep using the ear drops he gave me last time - and just keep using them until it goes away for good. I don't know... we'll see.

There was a little bit of movement in my numbers. Here is the rundown today:

• Blood pressure: 128/80
• Weight: 166 (same)
  
• Total cholesterol: 221 (up from 219 - no biggie, but should be under 200)
• Bad cholesterol: 150 (up from 139 - no biggie; should be below 130)
  
• Good cholesterol: 35 (UP from 33 - should be above 40, but this is the highest it's ever been)
  
• Tryglicerides: 174 (down from 216 - great; should be below 200)

All in all I'd say it's pretty good. The niacin is supposed to mainly help the good cholesterol and tryglicerides - which were both pretty good for me. The doc didn't seem concerned about the other stuff. And my weight and blood pressure are good.

Also, he wrote me a new prescription for generic niacin, instead of niaspan, like I had been taking. The great thing about the generic is that it only costs $4 at Walmart (as does my bp medicine). That's cheaper than over-the-counter stuff. Yes! Oh, and my cholesterol numbers might have been even better, but I didn't take any niacin the 2 weeks I was on vacation.

I was so happy when I left I drove ten and ONE HALF mph out the driveway! But now I have to go back for another cholesterol check in three months to see how the generic niacin works. Does it ever end?

Random act of linkage

I was struck by three very fine blog posts this morning. Not only am I pointing them out to anyone who might happen to read here, but I want to remind myself of them too.

My lovely wife posted some thoughts from our recent vacation in Punta Cana. I wish I could be concise like this. I had half a notebook. Anyway, thanks for the memories, dear.

Good friend, Joan, wrote a very good and thought-provoking post on having a home vs. being home-less (with the hyphen), as she was leaving D.C. to come back to our neck of the woods (while still "on assignment" with Sojourners). I wonder if this problem isn't going to get worse and worse as the current war lingers, and the housing market degrades, and prices increase, and...

And I stumbled onto Julie Unplugged for the first time this morning. A fellow Scorpio from the Midwest who apparently attends the same school as son Isaac's love interest. I haven't read much of her blog, but I love her honesty, and how she's not afraid to say what she thinks (especially since she apparently thinks along the same lines as me). I will possibly be adding her to my sidebar. What caught my eye, though, was a link I saw (somewhere) to her post "When you forgive..." A very honest look at her reaction to - and how she ultimately dealt with - her parents divorce.

Well, it's storming here, and the dog is drooling all over my legs and feet. Dog drool really grosses me out.

My wallet's gone!

Well, my wallet's not really gone. But I love that episode where Morty Seinfeld hollers that out when he goes to the doctor for his sore back... and my back hurts today.

I spent yesterday afternoon putting underlayment down in part of our kitchen, and then me and the guy who actually knew what he was doing decided to go ahead and rip up the old linoleum in the other part of the kitchen and the laundry room and bathroom. Ugh. The underlayment wasn't so bad, but tearing out linoleum is just not fun. I'm not used to manual labor like this anymore. But it will be much better having the linoleum out. It's all one nice even surface now. The new carpet is supposed to arrive next Tuesday. Bogie boy doesn't much care for the wood floor.

I need to mow the yard today, but I'm not sure if my back is up to bouncing around for 3 hours.

Photo: I could really use a dip in our pool in Punta Cana again. If you click on the pic you can also see the ocean in the background - just over the bridge.