This video is the most unique entrance to a wedding ceremony I have ever seen. If it doesn't put a smile on your face you can have your money back!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0#
[They turned off the embedding so you gotta click the link.]
Friday, July 31, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
People and Trees
I was mowing the lawn today and I had a thought as I passed the apple tree in our backyard. [sidebar: I used to enjoy mowing the lawn but now I anticipate the last cutting of the season.]
Trees can handle a lot more than we think they can - intense rains, strong winds, snow, sleet, ice, and squirrels. Trees are strong. Unless there is something wrong on the inside, something that we cannot see. Then at a time we expect them to be strong and sturdy, they break and fall. Because something was wrong on the inside.
Trees can handle a lot more than we think they can - intense rains, strong winds, snow, sleet, ice, and squirrels. Trees are strong. Unless there is something wrong on the inside, something that we cannot see. Then at a time we expect them to be strong and sturdy, they break and fall. Because something was wrong on the inside.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
the 4th
From The Toilet Paper (Daily News for the Thinking Man): 9 hours 27 minutes. Length of the longest firecracker display. Part of a 1988 tourism promotion in Johor, Malaysia, it consisted of 3,338,777 firecrackers and 1,468 pounds of gunpowder.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
CA Trip w/family
It was a great treat to go to CA with my wife and kids! Our main reason for going was to visit my parents and brothers and it was a good visit. Here are a few of the things about the trip that stick out to me: - People drive differently on the 405 in LA (and much of CA) than they do on I-75 in Flint.
- Our friends, the Thorntons, are in a unique situation and it is fun to watch them in it, better than TV.
- My dad is doing very well with his cancer (his oncologist called it a 'semi-miracle') and it seems to be good for everyone. He's been able to get out and about, cut back on some meds, and resume some of his painting projects.
- Our kids were pretty well-behaved, enjoyed the different cultures they entered and the different kids that they met. (Shout out to Wes, the In-n-Out Burger guy!)
- SF is so unique that it's really cool and weird at the same time.
- CA is a big state.
- Standing on the sand reminds me that the ocean is BIG and I am small.
- Much has changed in the areas where I grew up. Things I remember about those childhood days are confined to a very, very small geographical area when compared to the size of the greater Sacramento area.
This post doesn't do justice to the miles we covered and the sights we saw and the people we visited. But the best thing about the trip was being able to do it together. In one sense we do life together every single day but this was different and very enjoyable. I love my family and thank Him for allowing us to do this trip, and life, together.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Woodwork Parenting
I used to work with wood every single day. I was no craftsman but I learned what to look for and a few basic things about woodworking. Parenting has some similiarities to that job: 1) I didn't know much when I started. 2) But I did it every day. 3) I learned along the way.
The following quote is a combo of Max Lucado's thoughts and Max quoting James Dobson. It tied parenting and woodworking together.
The key, I repeat, is sensitivity---tuning into the thoughts and feelings of our kids, listening to the clues they give us, and reacting appropriately. The sensitive heart rubs its fingers along the edges, feeling for the deep cracks . . . the snags . . . taking the time to hear . . . to care . . . to give . . . to share.
That's a good word from Max!
Monday, June 8, 2009
Christian book trivia
Prayer of Jabez - 12+ million sold
Left Behind series - 60+ million sold
Purpose-Driven Life - 40+ million sold
Your Best Life Now - 4+ million sold
I gathered these tidbits from Michael Hyatt's May 29 blog entry, 'Why Religious Book Sales Are Down'. He is the CEO of Thomas Nelson, Inc. Here is the link if you want to read the whole interesting thing: http://tinyurl.com/kqwe8o
Left Behind series - 60+ million sold
Purpose-Driven Life - 40+ million sold
Your Best Life Now - 4+ million sold
I gathered these tidbits from Michael Hyatt's May 29 blog entry, 'Why Religious Book Sales Are Down'. He is the CEO of Thomas Nelson, Inc. Here is the link if you want to read the whole interesting thing: http://tinyurl.com/kqwe8o
Friday, May 15, 2009
CA Trip #2
I flew into San Jose; my brother lives in nearby Los Gatos.
Daniel is 3 years younger than me and through the years we have become good friends. We like sports. We don't like stupid stuff at church. We have the same perspective on our family.
I admire him for making a life for himself. Slugging through college. Finding a job. Relocating to a new area. Immersing himself in his work (he's a great art teacher!). Now he's looking at buying a condo (probably a good time to do so). He really has made a nice life for himself and I admire the moxy that he's shone along the way.
He's also pretty dang good with people and 'situations'. He's got a good read on why people do what they do. He's good at cutting through the bologna. He's great with strangers. He's good at mapping a plan out of the sitch. Plus, my kids like him!
I'm proud of my brother and glad he's mine!
Daniel is 3 years younger than me and through the years we have become good friends. We like sports. We don't like stupid stuff at church. We have the same perspective on our family.
I admire him for making a life for himself. Slugging through college. Finding a job. Relocating to a new area. Immersing himself in his work (he's a great art teacher!). Now he's looking at buying a condo (probably a good time to do so). He really has made a nice life for himself and I admire the moxy that he's shone along the way.
He's also pretty dang good with people and 'situations'. He's got a good read on why people do what they do. He's good at cutting through the bologna. He's great with strangers. He's good at mapping a plan out of the sitch. Plus, my kids like him!
I'm proud of my brother and glad he's mine!
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
the Max Dream
In the altered words of Martin Luther King, Jr. - "I had a dream!"
Yesterday I had a migraine. When I sense one coming on, my first strategy is to sleep it off. Many times that works for me and yesterday was not much different in that regard. I slept and when I awoke it was still there but not at full throttle. Knowing of others with much more severe migraine issues, I am glad to have something that works for me.
Anyway, as I was sleeping I had a terrible dream. I was talking with my son in his 9-year old state, but we were in a 'museum' from which he could not leave. That's because he was dead. The wounds on his head were from a golf club, some kind of iron/wedge by the looks of it. Apparently he had been killed by a violent idiot who had struck him in the head. First, a single killing blow on one side and then some blows, for effect, on the other side. And it was rather strange that we could talk while I was alive and he was dead. And he couldn't leave because he was actually on display. Apparently, the event was newsworthy in a sick tourist kind of way.
What bothered me most was the twisted ability to connect with my son but not being able to really connect with my son. No hugging. No high fives or fist bumps. No playing soccer or basketball. Just talking at odd (after business) hours. Not being able to leave together. He had to remain in his designated spot and I could only speak with him. That's such a big departure from our normal relationship that it bothers me even now as I recall those dream-world constraints. We are two physical guys. We wrestle. We smell each other (if you think that's weird you're ok, so does the rest of our family!). We play sports, tease and punch. We often 'wruggle' (a combo of wrestling and snuggling) at the end of a day.
Even though a wacky, migraine-induced dream prompted this, I'm so glad for the relationship we have. It's hard to think of it being different. Yet some day in some ways it will be that way; we will be limited in how and when we connect. [hopefully, his head won't be bashed in by a golf club.] Thank you Max for loving me even though I've got lots to learn about being a father. Thank you God for my son; thank you for our sweet relationship.
Yesterday I had a migraine. When I sense one coming on, my first strategy is to sleep it off. Many times that works for me and yesterday was not much different in that regard. I slept and when I awoke it was still there but not at full throttle. Knowing of others with much more severe migraine issues, I am glad to have something that works for me.
Anyway, as I was sleeping I had a terrible dream. I was talking with my son in his 9-year old state, but we were in a 'museum' from which he could not leave. That's because he was dead. The wounds on his head were from a golf club, some kind of iron/wedge by the looks of it. Apparently he had been killed by a violent idiot who had struck him in the head. First, a single killing blow on one side and then some blows, for effect, on the other side. And it was rather strange that we could talk while I was alive and he was dead. And he couldn't leave because he was actually on display. Apparently, the event was newsworthy in a sick tourist kind of way.
What bothered me most was the twisted ability to connect with my son but not being able to really connect with my son. No hugging. No high fives or fist bumps. No playing soccer or basketball. Just talking at odd (after business) hours. Not being able to leave together. He had to remain in his designated spot and I could only speak with him. That's such a big departure from our normal relationship that it bothers me even now as I recall those dream-world constraints. We are two physical guys. We wrestle. We smell each other (if you think that's weird you're ok, so does the rest of our family!). We play sports, tease and punch. We often 'wruggle' (a combo of wrestling and snuggling) at the end of a day.
Even though a wacky, migraine-induced dream prompted this, I'm so glad for the relationship we have. It's hard to think of it being different. Yet some day in some ways it will be that way; we will be limited in how and when we connect. [hopefully, his head won't be bashed in by a golf club.] Thank you Max for loving me even though I've got lots to learn about being a father. Thank you God for my son; thank you for our sweet relationship.
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