Had lunch with Joe Sangl today (if you have money worries, can't qualify for a mortgage, have a credit card with an unpaid balance, always seem to run out of money before you run out of month, or have a title loan on your car then Call Joe Now and make an appointment for financial counseling. Ten years from now I promise you'll want to buy Joe a new car to say Thank You, and be able to buy Joe's gift with cash ... though I doubt he'll accept it :-).
Remember what I said here ten years from now. Yes it is that easy to become debt free and stay that way IF you want to do it.
--
I had a great time ... if you don't like Joe chances are you wouldn't like a man willing to throw life preservers to drowning families either ... but being a perpetual slow-thinker, I drove away unsure whether I'd been quite able to express what I was feeling. At least until now.
Communication is hard, especially with words. But then making this point is always hard when it should be so easy.
--
Have you ever seen a beheading video?
Wow, that's unpleasant. But if you haven't ... especially if you're an agnostic, an atheist, a secular humanist ... or even a believer who considers him- or herself a follower of Christ yet still think you can make deals and "private arrangements" or have an "understanding" with the Creator ... then I wish you'd bookmark this page, Google and watch one from the web, then check back here before reading any further. I'm serious and I'm makng no apologies because this is your life we're talking about.
Better still, watch two or three ... so you get a real feel for what I'm talking about.
--
Now I want you to picture it's you wearing the orange jump suit. Imagine yourself shackled, being led into a squalid, dim room with a video camera in the back and seeing a man in a black mask with a knife tucked in his belt waiting. You already know what the knife is there for and feel like your insides have just been kicked by a 6-legged mule.
Imagine feeling the sweat bursting on your forehead as you're shoved to your knees, then looking up into the camera and hearing the uneasy shuffling of the men standing behind you as the man in black starts reading. You feel like vomiting but wish you could cry instead ... because you feel so utterly helpless.
No one there will help you. You want to scream that you'd do anything ... anything to make it stop ... but no one's listening to you because they're listening to the hooded man who owns you instead and you think he must be the devil.
You wonder what your family is doing in another part of the world. You wish you could tell your executioners There's been a mistake, just let me go ... while beneath the masked man's voice you imagine the jeers around the world as your final moments are replayed on video and mocked for years after your execution.
You start hating yourself then because your imagination is showing you vivid pictures of what's coming soon as the man in the black mask stops reading and you can't make it stop ...
You lungs seem to catch on every breath and syllable and your heart feels like it's stopped each time he pauses or reaches the end of a sentence. You're so scared you're not even sure whether you've already lost your mind. Then the room goes blackly quiet and the world is dizzy, blurring forward in agonizing slow motion.
You close your eyes expecting to feel the knife plunge into your throat ... but then all the lights come on and suddenly all the hatred and rage you felt poised behind you is gone.
The camera shuts off and stops recording as the hooded man puts away his knife and helps you to your feet. He unties your binds, looks you in the eye and says in perfect English, "Someone else took your place, and you are free."
You think this must be a joke ... because it's too good to be true.
The hooded man is embarrassed, shrugs and tries to explain. "He said he took your place because he loves you and wanted you to believe it. He only asked for you to show others the same love ... and to live your life for him."
--
I don't understand why some believers feel like tithing is too great of a sacrifice, why some Christians try to deal with God from the bottom of the deck, or why so many of us act like our so-called righteousness puts God is in our debt and makes him owe us one single thing more than we've already got.
Have we forgotten who paid the price in our place?
--
I have problems with legalism, because God's power is infinite and also because God keeps his promises. When scripture says
"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God" [Ephesians 2:8 NLT] I believe it ... without question, doubt or tacking on any fine print or disclaimers. Nothing we can do will ever measure up to what Christ has already done for us.
Like the prisoner suddenly released as he's about to be slaughtered simply because another was willing to die in his place, we did nothing eo earn our release and there is nothing we can do ... no matter how many rules or traditions we make up ... to repay that debt. Knowing Christ means being released ... and not having to struggle with fear or worry about losing our salvation.
Rejecting Pharisaical legalism doesn't mean I'm free to sin; it means I'm free from sin. Sin has no more power ... because Christ paid the price in full. Nor does Christ's sacrifice mean we were freed, only to become re-chained with organ music, stained glass windows and traditions. Instead of all those things we are free to follow him.
Besides, I can't think of one good reason to argue with the man who was willing to die in my place.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
If John Deere was to Tractors like Mac is to Computers ...
We'd be mowing our yards with something like this:
Crash the Super Bowl
Doritos had a great idea: let the folks out there shoot their own Super Bowl commercial.
I've seen the one that'll be airing second after the kick-off. The guy, who's a wedding photographer during his day job, shot the whole thing himself and did the editing with an iMac.
But I liked it a lot anyway.
I've seen the one that'll be airing second after the kick-off. The guy, who's a wedding photographer during his day job, shot the whole thing himself and did the editing with an iMac.
But I liked it a lot anyway.
Foibles gone wild
Joe Francis, 33, founder and owner of the "Girls Gone Wild" video franchise, has an estimated net worth of over $100 million. source
In 2005 Hooters projected an estimated revenue just under $1 billion dollars.
In 2005 Hooters projected an estimated revenue just under $1 billion dollars.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Operating System Degradation
I like Ken and consider myself a bonafide card-carrying member of AVCLUB. Still, I puzzle over all the fuss about Macs.
I'm not gonna get started on all the reasons why PC's are better. Not just because the arguments are obvious, but also because LOST starts up again soon and nothing feels more miserable than the rejection of being bounced out the backdoor from the Wilson household (at least, this is what dj told me).
So I won't gloat here about the firestorm of headaches to be expected from a computer that intentionally named itself after a fruit.
ps. wasn't it Eve who took the first byte?
-from Apple Matters: Five Reasons Why There Will BE No More Macs in 2010
"Credit the people who love the platform, or OS X for the machine’s resilience, but don’t count on the Mac being there forever. The era of the all-in-one hardware and software solution has been gone for at least the last ten years, even though Apple hasn’t quite caught on yet. Here are five reasons why Apple will catch on and abandon Mac hardware by the start of the next decade."
I'm not gonna get started on all the reasons why PC's are better. Not just because the arguments are obvious, but also because LOST starts up again soon and nothing feels more miserable than the rejection of being bounced out the backdoor from the Wilson household (at least, this is what dj told me).
So I won't gloat here about the firestorm of headaches to be expected from a computer that intentionally named itself after a fruit.
ps. wasn't it Eve who took the first byte?
-from Apple Matters: Five Reasons Why There Will BE No More Macs in 2010
"Credit the people who love the platform, or OS X for the machine’s resilience, but don’t count on the Mac being there forever. The era of the all-in-one hardware and software solution has been gone for at least the last ten years, even though Apple hasn’t quite caught on yet. Here are five reasons why Apple will catch on and abandon Mac hardware by the start of the next decade."
Crunch Time
Mike the Asphalt Mariner called a few minutes ago and said to have Ben ready to go on Saturday morning. Wow, after two years it's time to swap engines.
Stuff I Don't Want to Admit Department:
1. Galley (kitchen) faucets still leak
2. Hot water line to shower still drips, slightly
3. Running lights don't work at the helm On/Off switch
4. Refrigerator looks shot
5. A few port reading lights don't work
6. Some leaks remain (I think)
Stuff I'm Glad AboutThough:
1. New oven/stove propane line works with no leaks
2. Electrics locker 99% re-wired
3. DSC VHF radio "talks" to the GPS
4. Old refrigerator is out & off the boat
5. Carbon monoxide detector installed
6. Many leaks repaired (I think)
I'll try to add a few photos, case yer interested.
Stuff I Don't Want to Admit Department:
1. Galley (kitchen) faucets still leak
2. Hot water line to shower still drips, slightly
3. Running lights don't work at the helm On/Off switch
4. Refrigerator looks shot
5. A few port reading lights don't work
6. Some leaks remain (I think)
Stuff I'm Glad AboutThough:
1. New oven/stove propane line works with no leaks
2. Electrics locker 99% re-wired
3. DSC VHF radio "talks" to the GPS
4. Old refrigerator is out & off the boat
5. Carbon monoxide detector installed
6. Many leaks repaired (I think)
I'll try to add a few photos, case yer interested.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Front Porch Outback - updated with photo
The exquisite and wonderfully charming FF took me to Outback last night which, finally after three years, gave me the opportunity to meet her boyfriend Shawn.
Didn't have a chance to talk very long but he seemed like a good guy ... and he's a Marine, to boot. And I woulda said that even if he hadn't picked up the tab. :-)
FF's a big fan of the 6:15 when she's in town.
Didn't have a chance to talk very long but he seemed like a good guy ... and he's a Marine, to boot. And I woulda said that even if he hadn't picked up the tab. :-)FF's a big fan of the 6:15 when she's in town.
Rock that boat up and down the coast? - updated
Hmmm.
Somehow it's easier adding ZZ Top and 30-year old Jimi Hendrix tunes to The Playlist than it is trying to make sense of new lyrics.
Somebody down on the Gulf coast texted me their playlist today, Cowboy by Kid Rock, [from the album Devil Without A Cause, go figure] along with instructions to "Adjust volume as necessary."
Too much trouble to re-write all the lyrics, but just a little bit switched around here for fun ...
Buy an old boat with a flag sayin' He's my friend
Then rock around the world in my leaky little barge
Say a prayer every Sunday and go park cars
Standin' round back 'cause the crowd's so large
Find an empty seat and tell my friends
Jesus is coming - just don't know when.
Start a fifth service for all the right reasons
A sixth is coming by this time next season
I'd stay here with the real mccoy
Cause I trust his will and that's the whole plan
To be more like him in every way I can
Somehow it's easier adding ZZ Top and 30-year old Jimi Hendrix tunes to The Playlist than it is trying to make sense of new lyrics.
Somebody down on the Gulf coast texted me their playlist today, Cowboy by Kid Rock, [from the album Devil Without A Cause, go figure] along with instructions to "Adjust volume as necessary."
Too much trouble to re-write all the lyrics, but just a little bit switched around here for fun ...
Buy an old boat with a flag sayin' He's my friend
Then rock around the world in my leaky little barge
Say a prayer every Sunday and go park cars
Standin' round back 'cause the crowd's so large
Find an empty seat and tell my friends
Jesus is coming - just don't know when.
Start a fifth service for all the right reasons
A sixth is coming by this time next season
I'd stay here with the real mccoy
Cause I trust his will and that's the whole plan
To be more like him in every way I can
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Memo from Paris
"I always try to write on the principal of the iceberg. There is seven-eights of it under water for every part that shows. Anything you know you can eliminate and it only strengthens your iceberg... It is the part that doesn't show."
"If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one ninth of it being above water."
"All good books have one thing in common - they are truer than if they had really happened. "
"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn."
"All things truly wicked start from innocence."
"As you get older it is harder to have heroes, but it is sort of necessary."
"Courage is grace under pressure."
"Cowardice... is almost always simply a lack of ability to suspend functioning of the imagination."
"Hesitation increases in relation to risk in equal proportion to age."
"I know now that there is no one thing that is true - it is all true."
"I never had to choose a subject - my subject rather chose me. "
"If you have a success you have it for the wrong reasons. If you become popular it is always because of the worst aspects of your work."
"It's none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way."
"My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way."
"Never mistake motion for action."
"That is what we are supposed to do when we are at our best - make it all up - but make it up so truly that later it will happen that way. "
"The shortest answer is doing the thing."
"You're beautiful, like a May fly."
-Ernest Hemingway
"If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one ninth of it being above water."
"All good books have one thing in common - they are truer than if they had really happened. "
"All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn."
"All things truly wicked start from innocence."
"As you get older it is harder to have heroes, but it is sort of necessary."
"Courage is grace under pressure."
"Cowardice... is almost always simply a lack of ability to suspend functioning of the imagination."
"Hesitation increases in relation to risk in equal proportion to age."
"I know now that there is no one thing that is true - it is all true."
"I never had to choose a subject - my subject rather chose me. "
"If you have a success you have it for the wrong reasons. If you become popular it is always because of the worst aspects of your work."
"It's none of their business that you have to learn how to write. Let them think you were born that way."
"My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way."
"Never mistake motion for action."
"That is what we are supposed to do when we are at our best - make it all up - but make it up so truly that later it will happen that way. "
"The shortest answer is doing the thing."
"You're beautiful, like a May fly."
-Ernest Hemingway
47 Miles of Barbed Wire
We haven't done this in a while ... and uh oh, some more recent material included (finally).
Free Fallin' - Tom Petty
Anytime You Want Me - Mya
I Want You - B.V.M.S.P
Anytime - Journey
Stones In My Pathway - Robert Johnson
Terraplane Blues - Robert Johnson
Love In Vain - Robert Johnson
Come On In My Kitchen - Robert Johnson
The Sky Is Crying - George Thorogood and The Destroyers
Who Do You Love? - George Thorogood and The Destroyers
You Kids Drive Me Crazy Supplement: You want it then Ok, Doggone You Got It One Mo' Time:
Just Got Paid - ZZ Top
Jesus Just Left Chicago - ZZ Top
I Thank You - ZZ Top
I Need You Tonight - ZZ Top
Sure Got Cold - ZZ Top
Free Fallin' - Tom Petty
Anytime You Want Me - Mya
I Want You - B.V.M.S.P
Anytime - Journey
Stones In My Pathway - Robert Johnson
Terraplane Blues - Robert Johnson
Love In Vain - Robert Johnson
Come On In My Kitchen - Robert Johnson
The Sky Is Crying - George Thorogood and The Destroyers
Who Do You Love? - George Thorogood and The Destroyers
You Kids Drive Me Crazy Supplement: You want it then Ok, Doggone You Got It One Mo' Time:
Just Got Paid - ZZ Top
Jesus Just Left Chicago - ZZ Top
I Thank You - ZZ Top
I Need You Tonight - ZZ Top
Sure Got Cold - ZZ Top
That DJ ... and Saturday Night stuff
Swung by DJ's house late this afternoon, intending to slip a water hose through the mail slot in his front door and leave him a nice surprise, but turned out he was home so I ended up with no choice but to be neighborly, stay for a visit and wait till next time.
[an aside: I couldn't get over last night how, after DJ finished cooking, Jamie got busy cleaning up the kitchen. Even had me pulling the knobs off DJ's stove to clean behind them. Shoot, I don't worry with cleaning up too much ... not until I get a second letter from DHEC.]
Ask DJ sometime about his butter salted peanuts. He'd just finished baking a fresh batch (they go well with his chocolate chip cookies btw) and gave me a half bag to take home.
TRY THE TOLLHOUSE MACADAMIA COOKIES in your grocer's dairy case. Man. Betcha can't eat just six. No fuss, no bother. Just a few minutes in the oven and ... and ... and then have the butter peanuts for dessert.
Finally, there's a a great, easy, fast recipe for a popular chain-seafood-restaurant's Batter Fried Shrimp here.
And at 8 PM there's a Rolex Series race on SpeedTV.
[an aside: I couldn't get over last night how, after DJ finished cooking, Jamie got busy cleaning up the kitchen. Even had me pulling the knobs off DJ's stove to clean behind them. Shoot, I don't worry with cleaning up too much ... not until I get a second letter from DHEC.]
Ask DJ sometime about his butter salted peanuts. He'd just finished baking a fresh batch (they go well with his chocolate chip cookies btw) and gave me a half bag to take home.
TRY THE TOLLHOUSE MACADAMIA COOKIES in your grocer's dairy case. Man. Betcha can't eat just six. No fuss, no bother. Just a few minutes in the oven and ... and ... and then have the butter peanuts for dessert.
Finally, there's a a great, easy, fast recipe for a popular chain-seafood-restaurant's Batter Fried Shrimp here.
And at 8 PM there's a Rolex Series race on SpeedTV.
Join the Club
Last night I found a link to the Dar es Salaam Yacht Club in Tanzania, and enjoyed pouring through the site. These come from the Club Rules page and are worth remembering:
Beach – The seas around Dar are generally safe from sharks and the Club beach is a very safe place for swimming and sunning at high tide. However, due to local religious feeling toplessness is to be avoided.
Swimming Pool – For the benefit of swimmers when the tide is down or for those who have a problem with salt water there is a freshwater pool in a glamourous cliff top setting, allowing the sunset to be appreciated while gently floating.
Money Changing
There are several around the Askari Monument which seem to offer the most competitive rates. But do not be tempted to change with the touts who lurk around the area as, although they offer slightly better rates, there is a high probability of purchasing a handful of waste paper.
Security
While the Club tries to ensure that the premises are kept safe for Members and their property, the efforts are not always successful.
Going out of the Club on foot at night, especially if late, can be hazardous as muggings are unfortunately common. Although, if the victim co-operates, there is usually a minimum of violence.
Health Safeguards
The biggest hazards are malaria and intestinal problems (diarrhea, giardia, dysentery etc).
Water should never be drunk from the tap, not even for cleaning teeth, as it comes pretty well straight from the Ruvu River and carries a rich load of wild life.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Friday Nite Fun at DJ's
Was it Swedish meatballs and scalloped potatoes? Yum.
Great time spending an evening with Kelly, Will, Jamie, Emily and DJ though I stayed up way past my bedtime. And Squirt, bless his mean-spirited Chihuahua heart, still hates me.
Great time spending an evening with Kelly, Will, Jamie, Emily and DJ though I stayed up way past my bedtime. And Squirt, bless his mean-spirited Chihuahua heart, still hates me.
E-mail excerpt
Extracted from an e-mail I sent last night to a friend who lives pretty far away:
"Have I mentioned that an army of minivan drivers has seized control of public thoroughfares here in The Electric City? I've started carrying a novel with me in the front seat everywhere I go, seriously. Really I have. Great way to kill stress while accomplishing something at the same time ... especially while waiting to turn left at red lights and also at drive-thru windows :-)"
"Have I mentioned that an army of minivan drivers has seized control of public thoroughfares here in The Electric City? I've started carrying a novel with me in the front seat everywhere I go, seriously. Really I have. Great way to kill stress while accomplishing something at the same time ... especially while waiting to turn left at red lights and also at drive-thru windows :-)"
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Why not me - redacted
"All you have to do is write one true sentence.
Write the truest sentence you know." - Ernest Hemingway
__
I bought a silly wireless remote thermometer for the boat the other day. Now I can tell whether it's cold outside when it's warm inside, and vice versa. Knowing stuff like that intrigues me.
__
Novelist and short story author Flannery O'Connor once explained that she often used grotesque characters and exaggerated situations in her fiction to make sure the reader didn't miss the point.
__
Sometimes I wonder if ya'll must think my typical day includes falling off the boat and breaking a toe twice every day, routinely spearing and slicing myself with sharp metal objects, almost suffering horrific car crashes every Sunday on the way to church, shocking myself silly with electricity, or whether I stagger around in wet clothes all week because my boat leaks ... and if stuff might blow up real good as a result of doing my own propane plumbing from memory.
---
[me omitted]
Me me me. Let me post again about what me felt like when me felt such and such because this thing happened to me. But the only thing important about me is that me gets pushed aside and ultimately ignored ... no matter me what it feels like at the time.
Seems like me always has a way of getting in the way of what matters most ... and tripping me up with an unwelcomed distraction.
Write the truest sentence you know." - Ernest Hemingway
__
I bought a silly wireless remote thermometer for the boat the other day. Now I can tell whether it's cold outside when it's warm inside, and vice versa. Knowing stuff like that intrigues me.
__
Novelist and short story author Flannery O'Connor once explained that she often used grotesque characters and exaggerated situations in her fiction to make sure the reader didn't miss the point.
__
Sometimes I wonder if ya'll must think my typical day includes falling off the boat and breaking a toe twice every day, routinely spearing and slicing myself with sharp metal objects, almost suffering horrific car crashes every Sunday on the way to church, shocking myself silly with electricity, or whether I stagger around in wet clothes all week because my boat leaks ... and if stuff might blow up real good as a result of doing my own propane plumbing from memory.
---
[me omitted]
Me me me. Let me post again about what me felt like when me felt such and such because this thing happened to me. But the only thing important about me is that me gets pushed aside and ultimately ignored ... no matter me what it feels like at the time.
Seems like me always has a way of getting in the way of what matters most ... and tripping me up with an unwelcomed distraction.
These are the girls
The fabulous and highly-acclaimed FA and FF, great friends and confidants ... whom I miss very much.
Connecting the dots
Like uh, don't be mad about the sliced hand sandwich photo in previous post; it's just a scratch, really.
Sorry, I couldn't resist making this convoluted connection, but the other day someone told me how much they enjoy Pat Benatar's "We Belong" from a previous playlist. Well, the lyrics seem to go hand-in-hand with this morning's misadventures with my Miss Swiss Army sweetheart:
Many times Ive cried alone
Always Im surprised how well you
Cut my feelings to the bone.
Maybe I just wouldnt know
What to do with my strength anyway.
Note to self: I'll bet Boomerang never misbehaves or cuts up [sorry].
Asked and Answered
Am I a moron?
Last Thanksgiving I met one of McCoy's cousins who'd had a recent trip to the emerency room as a result of a knife accident. Best as I recall, what struck me (besides the size of the bandage) was when he said the wound, despite severing several tendons clear to the bone, hadn't hurt much until it started itching. So where am I going with this?
Hopefully not to the ER.
Around 6 AM this morning I was using my just-sharpened 4" Swiss Army lock blade, splitting thick rubber hose to use as plumbing anti-chaffing grommets between bulkheads. I remember telling myself, "Pushing down so hard on the blade toward your palm is probably a very bad idea" when the blade slipped and ...
Go on, see what happened next if you want to:
Like cousin said, it didn't hurt much at all. Then a few minutes ago it started itching and he was right about that, too.
Footnote for the obliquely observant:
Notice how the pinky finger is a bit misshaped? The unusual blooming-tulip shape is the result of a little trimming I did a few years back with a .44 Magnum. (That one didn't hurt either, really not at all, until the sutures started itching under the bandage.)
Last Thanksgiving I met one of McCoy's cousins who'd had a recent trip to the emerency room as a result of a knife accident. Best as I recall, what struck me (besides the size of the bandage) was when he said the wound, despite severing several tendons clear to the bone, hadn't hurt much until it started itching. So where am I going with this?
Hopefully not to the ER.
Around 6 AM this morning I was using my just-sharpened 4" Swiss Army lock blade, splitting thick rubber hose to use as plumbing anti-chaffing grommets between bulkheads. I remember telling myself, "Pushing down so hard on the blade toward your palm is probably a very bad idea" when the blade slipped and ...
Go on, see what happened next if you want to:
Like cousin said, it didn't hurt much at all. Then a few minutes ago it started itching and he was right about that, too.
Footnote for the obliquely observant:
Notice how the pinky finger is a bit misshaped? The unusual blooming-tulip shape is the result of a little trimming I did a few years back with a .44 Magnum. (That one didn't hurt either, really not at all, until the sutures started itching under the bandage.)
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Ingenious
Problem Solving 101: Think outside the bulkhead.
33 years ago when Ben rolled off the showroom floor, he came from the factory with plumbing that used copper tubing to supply hot and cold water at the galley sink and shower. While copper's fairly durable, the fact that the plumbing was installed against the hull, behind screwed-in cabinetry and bulkheads, makes service and repair extremely difficult.
The solution to patching all those pesky leaks (mostly from my home-made flare fittings) is to run all new flexible hoses ... but how do you fish a 1/2" reenforced tube around a 90-degree corner when it's fifteen feet away? The only solution I'd come up with was tying a string to a cat's tail, and then try shooing it to move in the direction I wanted my new hoses to go.
Then this afternoon Barrett had a better idea.
Use an electrician's snake to fish a loose piece of thread all the way to the corner, and then use the suction from a vacuum cleaner with a long hose attachment to "pull" the thread past the corner. Once you've got the free end in hand then you tie a stronger length of twine to the other end of the thread, pull the twine through the corner, and finally attach the new hose to the twine and simply pull the hose through..
In five lifetimes I'd never have thought of that myself. Left to my own devices I would've sighed and had a go at the fiberglass with a Skilsaw instead. Creativity can be pretty cool when it comes to tackling what seems impossible.
Thanks Barrett.
33 years ago when Ben rolled off the showroom floor, he came from the factory with plumbing that used copper tubing to supply hot and cold water at the galley sink and shower. While copper's fairly durable, the fact that the plumbing was installed against the hull, behind screwed-in cabinetry and bulkheads, makes service and repair extremely difficult.
The solution to patching all those pesky leaks (mostly from my home-made flare fittings) is to run all new flexible hoses ... but how do you fish a 1/2" reenforced tube around a 90-degree corner when it's fifteen feet away? The only solution I'd come up with was tying a string to a cat's tail, and then try shooing it to move in the direction I wanted my new hoses to go.
Then this afternoon Barrett had a better idea.
Use an electrician's snake to fish a loose piece of thread all the way to the corner, and then use the suction from a vacuum cleaner with a long hose attachment to "pull" the thread past the corner. Once you've got the free end in hand then you tie a stronger length of twine to the other end of the thread, pull the twine through the corner, and finally attach the new hose to the twine and simply pull the hose through..
In five lifetimes I'd never have thought of that myself. Left to my own devices I would've sighed and had a go at the fiberglass with a Skilsaw instead. Creativity can be pretty cool when it comes to tackling what seems impossible.
Thanks Barrett.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
From the church bulletin ...
Weight Watchers will meet at 7 PM at the
The Fasting & Prayer Conference includes meals.
The sermon this morning: "Jesus Walks on the Water." The sermon tonight: "Searching for Jesus"
Our youth basketball team is back in action Wednesday at 8 PM in the recreation hall. Come out and watch us kill Christ the King.
Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not worth keeping around the house. Don't forget your husbands.
The peacemaking meeting scheduled for today has been cancelled due to a conflict.
Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our community. Smile at someone who is hard to love. Say "Hell" to someone who doesn't care much about you.
Don't let worry kill you off - let the Church help.
Miss Charlene Mason sang "I will not pass this way again," giving obvious pleasure to the congregation.
For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs.
Next Thursday there will be tryouts for the choir. They need all the help they can get.
Barbara remains in the hospital and needs blood donors for more transfusions. She is also having trouble sleeping and requests tapes of Father Jack's sermons.
The Priest will preach his farewell message after which the choir will sing "Break Forth Into Joy."
Irving Benson and Jessie Carter were married on October 24 in the church. So ends a friendship that began in their school days.
At the evening service tonight, the sermon topic will be "What Is Hell?" Come early and listen to our choir practice.
Eight new choir robes are currently needed due to the addition of several new members and to the deterioration of some older ones.
Scouts are saving aluminums cans, bottles and other items to be recycled. Proceeds will be used to cripple children.
Please place your donation in the envelope along with the deceased person you want remembered.
The church will host an evening of fine dining, super entertainment and gracious hostility.
Potluck supper Sunday at 5:00 PM - prayer and medication to follow.
The ladies of the Church have cast off clothing of every kind. They may be seen in the basement on Friday afternoon.
This evening at 7 PM there will be a hymn singing in the park across from the Church. Bring a blanket and come prepared to sin.
Ladies Bible Study will be held Thursday morning at 10 AM . All ladies are invited to lunch in the Fellowship Hall after the B.S. is done.
The pastor would appreciate it if the ladies of the congregation would lend him their electric girdles for the pancake breakfast next Sunday.
Low Self Esteem Support Group will meet Thursday at 7 PM . Please use the back door.
The eighth-graders will be presenting Shakespeare's Hamlet in the church basement Friday at 7 PM . The congregation is invited to attend this tragedy.
The Priest unveiled the church's new tithing campaign slogan last Sunday: "I Upped My Pledge - Up Yours"
If we let X=X ...
Here's a little mathematical formula I got from Misty in Georgia (angels help her :-) I found interesting:
If:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 1 9 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.
Then:
H-A-R-D-W-O-R- K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%
And
K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%
But
A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%
Then, look how far the love of God will take you
L- O- V- E-O-F-G-O-D
12+15+22+5+15+6+7+15+4 = 101%
Numbers don't lie.
Defining Moments
In one of my favorite books, Into the Wild, author Jon Krakauer takes a brief intermission from the title story to relate the grand revelation, or rather the lack of one, he experienced after a harrowing effort to become the first man to climb a treacherous, nearly verticle needle of rock and ice in the remote Alaskan wilderness.
Prior to making the solo, unassisted attempt Krakauer had imagined his haphazard, directionless life would suddenly focus and acquire the uber-meaning he so desperately sought. After weeks of planning, back-tracking and mistakes, and after scaring himself half-silly and almost dying, literally, Krakauer finally reached the summit and achieved his life-long goal.
But after climbing down and hiking back to civilization no one was much impressed by his achievement. Krakauer was stunned and disheartened because So what? was hardly the reaction he'd hoped for ... especially after risking his life to become "the first man ever."
Accomplishing the goal in itself proved not to be enough to satisfy the emptiness inside. What he'd been seeking as a mountaineer, through achievement and acclaim, was external affirmation and a sense of self-worth. That he was willing to risk death to earn value for his life is beyond ironic.
It's like saying, "I'm not risking my life doing this, not really, because my life isn't worth anything as it is. But I expect that to change if I succeed in what I'm attempting ... and people will finally take notice and shower me with the adoration I've always deserved."
Krakauer learned life doesn't quite work that way, and went straight back to his job as a day laborer wondering how he'd so mistakenly overestimated the importance of doing the one big thing ... and why he hadn't been greeted as a conquering hero, not even after finally achieving his life-time goal to be the first.
The sartorial door he'd expected to an exciting new future had opened inward instead, and revealed that his achievement had changed neither the world nor himself after all. The goal he'd pursued only had significance for himself; probably everyone else was just too busy chasing theirs to notice or care.
Prior to making the solo, unassisted attempt Krakauer had imagined his haphazard, directionless life would suddenly focus and acquire the uber-meaning he so desperately sought. After weeks of planning, back-tracking and mistakes, and after scaring himself half-silly and almost dying, literally, Krakauer finally reached the summit and achieved his life-long goal.
But after climbing down and hiking back to civilization no one was much impressed by his achievement. Krakauer was stunned and disheartened because So what? was hardly the reaction he'd hoped for ... especially after risking his life to become "the first man ever."
Accomplishing the goal in itself proved not to be enough to satisfy the emptiness inside. What he'd been seeking as a mountaineer, through achievement and acclaim, was external affirmation and a sense of self-worth. That he was willing to risk death to earn value for his life is beyond ironic.
It's like saying, "I'm not risking my life doing this, not really, because my life isn't worth anything as it is. But I expect that to change if I succeed in what I'm attempting ... and people will finally take notice and shower me with the adoration I've always deserved."
Krakauer learned life doesn't quite work that way, and went straight back to his job as a day laborer wondering how he'd so mistakenly overestimated the importance of doing the one big thing ... and why he hadn't been greeted as a conquering hero, not even after finally achieving his life-time goal to be the first.
The sartorial door he'd expected to an exciting new future had opened inward instead, and revealed that his achievement had changed neither the world nor himself after all. The goal he'd pursued only had significance for himself; probably everyone else was just too busy chasing theirs to notice or care.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Unasikia mimi sasa?
This morning while I was waiting on Mike and Josh at The Fruit Punch I tried calling Vernon on my cell.
Who knew you could direct-dial Tanzania with a cheapo, pay-as-you-go phone like mine ... and get crystal clear reception?
Very cool ... even though I had to blame "static" for my rusty Swahili. Eeeeh.
--
For fun:
Hawalisikii
Hawalisikii
Lakini mlisikia
Na mlisikia.
They do not hear it
They do not feel it
But you all heard
And you all understood.
Who knew you could direct-dial Tanzania with a cheapo, pay-as-you-go phone like mine ... and get crystal clear reception?
Very cool ... even though I had to blame "static" for my rusty Swahili. Eeeeh.
--
For fun:
Hawalisikii
Hawalisikii
Lakini mlisikia
Na mlisikia.
They do not hear it
They do not feel it
But you all heard
And you all understood.
Do It Yourself
Today the technological gnomes at AVCLUB.US posted a cool link to a site called HowStuffWorks.com
HowStuffWorks includes helpful advices on Autos, Computers, Electronics, Entertainment and Health for all the would-be do-it-yourselfers out there.
Here's a few additional helpful sites I'd like to see:
FindAllTheNewLeaks.com
WhyBoatsBreak.com
WhyFixingItYourselfIsABadIdea.com
ReadTheInstructionsFirst.com
WhyElectricityIsPainful.com
WhyToolsFallOverboard.com
OptimismIsAPersonalityIssue.com
WhatJustHappened.com
UhOh.com
HowStuffWorks includes helpful advices on Autos, Computers, Electronics, Entertainment and Health for all the would-be do-it-yourselfers out there.
Here's a few additional helpful sites I'd like to see:
FindAllTheNewLeaks.com
WhyBoatsBreak.com
WhyFixingItYourselfIsABadIdea.com
ReadTheInstructionsFirst.com
WhyElectricityIsPainful.com
WhyToolsFallOverboard.com
OptimismIsAPersonalityIssue.com
WhatJustHappened.com
UhOh.com
Ready or not
Thanks this morning to Brent Sears for passing this along from Tony Morgan's blog:
10 Signs You're not Ready for Change
- You see other organizations as the competition instead of the idea incubators.
- You're trying to avoid criticism that comes when you fail...and when you succeed.
- You're afraid of the culture.
- Your life is fast and cluttered and there's no space to dream.
- You value getting it right over getting started.
- You believe conflict is a bad thing.
- You've stopped asking questions.
- You think systems and strategy are the enemy of creativity.
- You're expecting to receive credit for your ideas.
- You think you've already arrived.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Hosed
Seems like I spent all morning drilling holes, through cabinetry and bulkheads, for a high-pressure propane gas hose to replace Ben's original copper oven/stove supply line.
Just as I was getting good n' aggravated (and not just with my ineptitude) Tatiana called on my cell. Then as I went to sit down on the swimstep I misjudged the distance and, in nearly stumbling off the deck and falling onto the driveway, managed to almost break my left big toe.
Naaah, go on. It's broken. I just haven't taken my shoe off to look yet. Maybe it's the same one I broke last year; I can't remember.
Tatiana gasped and asked in perfectly unaccented English, "Oh, no! Did you throw your back out?"
Hmmm. I gotta memo self to find out more about that and what it means.
But there's two things here worth mentioning. (1) I didn't say any bad words, and Tatiana is my witness (2) Breaking your big toe has its own special way of making you forget all about being aggravated over something else even though the thing that had you aggravated seemed monstrously large and imposing at the time.
Yaaa, and the stove works now, too.
Just as I was getting good n' aggravated (and not just with my ineptitude) Tatiana called on my cell. Then as I went to sit down on the swimstep I misjudged the distance and, in nearly stumbling off the deck and falling onto the driveway, managed to almost break my left big toe.
Naaah, go on. It's broken. I just haven't taken my shoe off to look yet. Maybe it's the same one I broke last year; I can't remember.
Tatiana gasped and asked in perfectly unaccented English, "Oh, no! Did you throw your back out?"
Hmmm. I gotta memo self to find out more about that and what it means.
But there's two things here worth mentioning. (1) I didn't say any bad words, and Tatiana is my witness (2) Breaking your big toe has its own special way of making you forget all about being aggravated over something else even though the thing that had you aggravated seemed monstrously large and imposing at the time.
Yaaa, and the stove works now, too.
Friday, January 19, 2007
shutting the door to the kingdom
Sometimes it must seem like I'm in love with the keyboard, and can't stand to drag myself away from long-winded diatribes. But this time I'm forcing myself to leave out the gristle.
During dinner I heard a second-hand account that a woman and her son had recently visited a traditional large-denomination church in our community. During the service the woman had opened her New Living Translation Bible to follow the sermon... and afterwards was cautioned not to bring "that book" again, because only the King James Version was acceptable.
I forgot to mention her son wore jeans to church. She was told "the church has a fund to buy clothes for people who can't afford them."
In other words if you don't like the way we do things, which is the same legalistic self-serving way we've always done things to glorify ourselves in our self-righteousness, then you can go to hell for all we care.
During dinner I heard a second-hand account that a woman and her son had recently visited a traditional large-denomination church in our community. During the service the woman had opened her New Living Translation Bible to follow the sermon... and afterwards was cautioned not to bring "that book" again, because only the King James Version was acceptable.
I forgot to mention her son wore jeans to church. She was told "the church has a fund to buy clothes for people who can't afford them."
In other words if you don't like the way we do things, which is the same legalistic self-serving way we've always done things to glorify ourselves in our self-righteousness, then you can go to hell for all we care.
Recap of an Amazing Week
At Warp Factor 3 please, Mister Zulu ...
Heard from Sunday's plank person
Met ORP's fiance L
AF and FF (who also got a new horse) went back to school
(Hey FF, you been dating Shawn for 3 years ... ain't it about time I met him?! Say :-)
Watched the first show of this season's American Idol over at DJ's
The Key West Kid was spared the Dock 4 Break-In Mayhem
Took The Kid out to Zombie Island and back, a 90-minute roundtrip at night in a freezing rain storm, without misshap
Started Text Messenging
Saw TPW
The poor Roamer's still on the bottom
Started a great new book that I want to read as slowly as possible, to make it last longer
Began 15 new projects that remain incomplete
Joined Text Messengers Anonymous
Still clueless about Ben's overhead leaks
Reminded again that God answers prayers & that he, like his plan, is always bigger than all of us
Heard from Sunday's plank person
Met ORP's fiance L
AF and FF (who also got a new horse) went back to school
(Hey FF, you been dating Shawn for 3 years ... ain't it about time I met him?! Say :-)
Watched the first show of this season's American Idol over at DJ's
The Key West Kid was spared the Dock 4 Break-In Mayhem
Took The Kid out to Zombie Island and back, a 90-minute roundtrip at night in a freezing rain storm, without misshap
Started Text Messenging
Saw TPW
The poor Roamer's still on the bottom
Started a great new book that I want to read as slowly as possible, to make it last longer
Began 15 new projects that remain incomplete
Joined Text Messengers Anonymous
Still clueless about Ben's overhead leaks
Reminded again that God answers prayers & that he, like his plan, is always bigger than all of us
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Crazy Nut
Last night while every grocery and convenience store in the Upstate was jammed with shoppers frightened of being snow-bound through June without having every cupboard and cabinet space stocked full of bread n' milk, your diligent correspondent made other plans.
That's right, I fired up The Kid and headed out to Zombie. In the frigid wind and freezing rain. And it was an awesome ride.
Not a single boat in sight anywhere, no finding a pesky houseboat full of loud drunks already anchored in my favorite cove, no bassboats creating uncomfortable wakes ahead of me. When I arrived I merely switched off the engine, slipped the anchor over the side, and fired up the CD player.
Stayed out for about an hour before the cold began sinking in and decided it was time to head back.
The Kid loved it and ran like a champ.
I wondered if anybody in the cars crossing the double-bridges looked out, saw The Kid's red and green navigation lights far out on the lake and wondered, "What kind of crazy nut is out in a boat at this hour in this kind of weather?"
Well, whatever.
Hard-core bikers who live and breath to ride, the guys with leather jackets and big Harleys who're used to feeling the wind in their faces and the engine thundering beneath them, who've seen the world roll by without air bags, seat belts and metal fenders to protect them, have a special disdain for cars. They call cars "cages."
For more than a handful of good reasons, I sometimes think. Last night was one of them.
That's right, I fired up The Kid and headed out to Zombie. In the frigid wind and freezing rain. And it was an awesome ride.
Not a single boat in sight anywhere, no finding a pesky houseboat full of loud drunks already anchored in my favorite cove, no bassboats creating uncomfortable wakes ahead of me. When I arrived I merely switched off the engine, slipped the anchor over the side, and fired up the CD player.
Stayed out for about an hour before the cold began sinking in and decided it was time to head back.
The Kid loved it and ran like a champ.
I wondered if anybody in the cars crossing the double-bridges looked out, saw The Kid's red and green navigation lights far out on the lake and wondered, "What kind of crazy nut is out in a boat at this hour in this kind of weather?"
Well, whatever.
Hard-core bikers who live and breath to ride, the guys with leather jackets and big Harleys who're used to feeling the wind in their faces and the engine thundering beneath them, who've seen the world roll by without air bags, seat belts and metal fenders to protect them, have a special disdain for cars. They call cars "cages."
For more than a handful of good reasons, I sometimes think. Last night was one of them.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Hello Miss Scarlet
What a sweetheart. This is FF's new horse, Scarlet Mimosa.
T.H. Southern Dawn
1988-December 2006
Papa Loves that Pony Playlist:
All Through the Night - Donna Summer
T.H. Southern Dawn
1988-December 2006
Papa Loves that Pony Playlist:All Through the Night - Donna Summer
Mayhem
Yesterday afternoon somebody broke into one of the boats at my dock and stole some of the electronics onboard.
They came back last night and ransacked essentially every boat on the dock, stealing radios, stereos, TVs, anything that could be sold quickly for an easy profit. A team of deputies and a forensic unit spent the entire day taking photographs and collecting evidence. One owner told me he estimated the damage to his boat alone was at least $25,000. And there was more than enough damage to go around.
Lots of bad words, angry people and sour faces swarming around the dock today.
One of the two suspects was apprehended around 8 AM this morning after being identified by witnesses ... allegedly he was in possesion of a handgun.
When I arrived one of the deputies took me aside and said, "Looks like he got yours worst of all. Man, he totally trashed it." You can imagine how my heart sank. But then ...
Remember me saying "essentially every boat on the dock"? But not mine. He left The Kid untouched. What the deputy didn't realize is that my little boat's interior always looks trashed. Or Totally Trashed, in forensic terms. Because she's "undergoing rennovation."
Right.
Heck, I'd even removed one of the windows overnight to have the cracked glass replaced, figuring nobody was dumb enough to come back and strike twice in two days. All the guy had to do was come aboard and climb inside.
But the culprit left The Kid untouched ... probably less from altruism and more from pity because my poor boat is a floating junk pile after all, or maybe because he thought she'd sink with his extra weight onboard. Maybe he thought he'd slip and get strangled by the loose speaker wires dangling from the ceiling (that is, if The Kid even had a ceiling under her exposed joists).
Which forced me to endure a long afternoon of ribbing from other owners who teased, "I'm surprised the guy didn't break into your boat just to give you some of the stuff he stole from ours."
I'm not sure whether to feel blessed or insulted but I think this one's an easy call.
Poor Kid. Just makes me love her that much more.
They came back last night and ransacked essentially every boat on the dock, stealing radios, stereos, TVs, anything that could be sold quickly for an easy profit. A team of deputies and a forensic unit spent the entire day taking photographs and collecting evidence. One owner told me he estimated the damage to his boat alone was at least $25,000. And there was more than enough damage to go around.
Lots of bad words, angry people and sour faces swarming around the dock today.
One of the two suspects was apprehended around 8 AM this morning after being identified by witnesses ... allegedly he was in possesion of a handgun.
When I arrived one of the deputies took me aside and said, "Looks like he got yours worst of all. Man, he totally trashed it." You can imagine how my heart sank. But then ...
Remember me saying "essentially every boat on the dock"? But not mine. He left The Kid untouched. What the deputy didn't realize is that my little boat's interior always looks trashed. Or Totally Trashed, in forensic terms. Because she's "undergoing rennovation."
Right.
Heck, I'd even removed one of the windows overnight to have the cracked glass replaced, figuring nobody was dumb enough to come back and strike twice in two days. All the guy had to do was come aboard and climb inside.
But the culprit left The Kid untouched ... probably less from altruism and more from pity because my poor boat is a floating junk pile after all, or maybe because he thought she'd sink with his extra weight onboard. Maybe he thought he'd slip and get strangled by the loose speaker wires dangling from the ceiling (that is, if The Kid even had a ceiling under her exposed joists).
Which forced me to endure a long afternoon of ribbing from other owners who teased, "I'm surprised the guy didn't break into your boat just to give you some of the stuff he stole from ours."
I'm not sure whether to feel blessed or insulted but I think this one's an easy call.
Poor Kid. Just makes me love her that much more.
Let Me Get This Straight
Are you telling me you actually believe there's always been this invisible, omniscient spirit throughout the universe ... a supernatural being that created mankind from dirt, who came to earth 2000 years ago in the form of the human being history knows as Jesus Christ, that this god-man was crucified and came back to life because he loved people so much even though we've all been breaking the creator's rules since Adam and Eve, so that anybody who believes he was who he said he was will be spared this same creator's justice and have eternal life, no matter what they've done ... that this creator hears and answers prayers, and finally that the spirit of this man who died on the cross will actually enter, live inside and change people who put their faith in him?
Do you honestly believe all that?
Yup, that's exactly right.
Do you honestly believe all that?
Yup, that's exactly right.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Sticking with it
I was dangling off Ben's upper side rail this morning with a tube of leak-stopping Scotch 5200 Fast Cure Adhesive Sealant in one hand (three fingers on the other hand were already stuck together) when my cell buzzed with a message requesting text correspondence.
Fast-drying glue smeared over one hand, cell phone in the other. Go ahead and guess what happened next.
Fast-drying glue smeared over one hand, cell phone in the other. Go ahead and guess what happened next.
Monday, January 15, 2007
BLT for lunch - updated with links
I met Mike and Josh (who also goes to NS) at 11:45 am for lunch at Staton's then headed into town to meet B and L for 1:30 PM lunch at The Brick. T couldn't make it (a case of CENSORED :-), which comes from horsing around) but maybe next time.
It was great finally meeting L. First impression tells me he's as awesome as B described .... she got herself a good one here (even after figuring FSU into the equation), imho. Go 'Noles.
Whatever.
Course, B's no slouch herself, either :-)
Looking forward to seeing them both again soon. Thanks you guys.
It was great finally meeting L. First impression tells me he's as awesome as B described .... she got herself a good one here (even after figuring FSU into the equation), imho. Go 'Noles.
Whatever.
Course, B's no slouch herself, either :-)
Looking forward to seeing them both again soon. Thanks you guys.
I know what I'm doing and I'm in a hurry, SO LEAVE ME ALONE - thanks - updated
Soon as I bought Ben I started adding some custom touches for my personal comfort and entertainment.
Stuff like TV and radio antennas, extra lights and speakers were a snap to install: all it took was an electric drill, a few wood screws and a few minutes of my time.
Just think, I told myself, how easy and how much fun it is doing things on your own. And best of all everything worked like I'd planned.
Two years ago poor Ben's engine blowed-up real good, effectively turning my little guy into an emasculated barge. Rather than pay slip fees for a boat that wouldn't move, Ben got loaded onto his trailer and towed home to my driveway (where he remains to this day). Then I started working on my little houseboat to turn him around 360 degrees and get him "right" again.
Recently I noticed two strange things with Ben. When I'm onboard I can tell when it's raining outside because it starts raining inside ... soaking the side curtains and most every horizontal surface within minutes.
The other thing: when I went looking around the flybridge up top to find where the rain was coming in, I noticed soft spots on Ben's fiberglass "roof" that sagged under my weight.
Uh oh.
Mike the Mechanic explained that soft spots are caused by rain water seeping in and saturating the foam core under the fiberglass layers. Once water gets trapped inside the foam, dry rot starts destroying the core. As rot spreads it weakens and attacks critical structural elements that hold the boat together.
If not quickly arrested dry rot can ruin a boat that, from the outside, seems in otherwise perfect condition.
Where were all the leaks coming from? Ben stayed bone dry when he was at the marina ... but back then he was living "under cover" beneath the protection of a metal-roofed slip. The leaks were revealed soon as he was out in the open.
Uh oh.
Mike asked me, "Any idea where the water's coming in?"
Hmmm. Could be from the holes I'd drilled for all the extra stuff I wanted? Just a guess.
If I'd taken five minutes from my hurry to get the speakers jamming to Jimmy Buffet, I could've opened the big boat book and learned that the right way is NOT the way I'd been doing things.
The right way is more trouble and takes more time, but the right way prevents rot from ever starting because it keeps rain out in the first place.
I recently read an article by a marine surveyor who'd discovered core rot in an otherwise pristine cabin cruiser that would've cost more than the boat was worth to repair. In other words that $50,000 boat was lost.
Even though it looked perfect, and didn't seem to be in any danger of literally falling apart. And suddenly, permanently, sinking.
The idea that a boat that sparkles and looks factory-new on the outside could be a total floating wreck on the inside from nothing more significant than a pin-sized hole in its deck made my knees buckle. I had a hard time grasping that even the tiniest leak, even if it's unintentionally overlooked, can destroy the boat's integrity and make the vessel useless.
Man, I need to keep an eye out for pinhole leaks in the deck.
I spent two hours this morning patching the holes I already know about. Next time it rains I'll keep both eyes open and account for any leaks I missed ... and also check to see how the work I've already done is holding up in bad weather.
The Big Boat Book would've shown me very simply how to avoid leaks, and I'll know next time to consult The Book first ... before getting in a hurry, jumping in and doing things my way.
Because even one leak is too many to let slide, even if we're only talking about boats.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
I can't believe you did that to me
I was pacing in the atrium tonight after the 6 started, staring at the double glass doors as though I could will K to somehow show up and walk through them, she wouldn't and didn't, when Tatiana called on my cell.
I met her for Chinese about twenty minutes later and I'm sure she noticed I wasn't all there (even forgot to turn off my phone after placing it on top of the table ... just in case). But I'm glad I got to see her and because, selfishly, it gave me an hour to decompress with a dear friend.
Things left over from the weekend still sloshed around undigested behind my eyeballs ... almost all of them centered on friends, acquaintances, buds, confidants, soul-mates or whatever, relationships, relatives, almost-fiances, girlfriends and all the rest ... that either dropped out of sight, stopped returning calls or had otherwise gone suddenly MIA with no explanation.
And how much not knowing why stings.
It just doesn't sting, it doesn't just hurt. The abrupt loss is a tearing away that leaves bruises and a sore, tender spot where affection, fondness and I really like knowing and spending time with you used to be that can ache months, even years, after the wound should already have healed.
It leaves you wondering Am I really that bad of a person that I deserve being treated that way? How could you do that to me?
---
Picturing an imaginary chance to tell that person I'm sorry for whatever I did and will do anything I can to ... Please just tell me how only seems to reenforce the sense of loss and helplessness, because no one's there to notice how much and how sincerely we mean it ... least of all the person we most wish could somehow hear us.
The same person we wish we could see grin and say in return, Yeah me too. Let's just start over ... and see what happens this time.
Then after another day, another week or another month is gone without a word, e-mail or text message the wound swells into an ugly scab from suspicion, jealousy and mistrust ... quietly hardening with hate and boiling rage.
I hate what you did. How could you do that to me? Really this time I mean it ... I hate you.
---
This morning at the 9:15 only one person came to mind to write down on my plank. I kept staring at the name I'd written because I was surprised, no, I was shocked, because not a single other name came to mind. Not even one.
And it wasn't at all who I was expecting.
It took seeing her name between my fingers, staring back at me in my own chicken-scratch handwriting, to make me realize how much hurt was attached to it.
As though I'd lowered my bucket into the pity well and pulled up a 55-gallon drum instead. I hadn't realized how much, and how deeply, the hurt had been affecting me ... and how much the weight was dragging me down.
But the time had come to cut the rope, and let the weight fall free.
--
Tonight I wondered if my name had been on any of the thousands of broken planks left at the altar. I hoped not; I hoped I'd never caused anyone so much hurt that my name was the one that had left bruises, stained and seemed impossible to forgive.
But I know it isn't true. Two-story houses in six different states have probably been built from planks with my name stamped across them in bold red letters, as the exclusive manufacturer. I realized I'd want to know ... and be grabbed by the shoulders and shaken half silly.
So I'd have the chance to grin and say in return, Yeah, me too. Why don't we start over ... and try 77 more times?
I met her for Chinese about twenty minutes later and I'm sure she noticed I wasn't all there (even forgot to turn off my phone after placing it on top of the table ... just in case). But I'm glad I got to see her and because, selfishly, it gave me an hour to decompress with a dear friend.
Things left over from the weekend still sloshed around undigested behind my eyeballs ... almost all of them centered on friends, acquaintances, buds, confidants, soul-mates or whatever, relationships, relatives, almost-fiances, girlfriends and all the rest ... that either dropped out of sight, stopped returning calls or had otherwise gone suddenly MIA with no explanation.
And how much not knowing why stings.
It just doesn't sting, it doesn't just hurt. The abrupt loss is a tearing away that leaves bruises and a sore, tender spot where affection, fondness and I really like knowing and spending time with you used to be that can ache months, even years, after the wound should already have healed.
It leaves you wondering Am I really that bad of a person that I deserve being treated that way? How could you do that to me?
---
Picturing an imaginary chance to tell that person I'm sorry for whatever I did and will do anything I can to ... Please just tell me how only seems to reenforce the sense of loss and helplessness, because no one's there to notice how much and how sincerely we mean it ... least of all the person we most wish could somehow hear us.
The same person we wish we could see grin and say in return, Yeah me too. Let's just start over ... and see what happens this time.
Then after another day, another week or another month is gone without a word, e-mail or text message the wound swells into an ugly scab from suspicion, jealousy and mistrust ... quietly hardening with hate and boiling rage.
I hate what you did. How could you do that to me? Really this time I mean it ... I hate you.
---
This morning at the 9:15 only one person came to mind to write down on my plank. I kept staring at the name I'd written because I was surprised, no, I was shocked, because not a single other name came to mind. Not even one.
And it wasn't at all who I was expecting.
It took seeing her name between my fingers, staring back at me in my own chicken-scratch handwriting, to make me realize how much hurt was attached to it.
As though I'd lowered my bucket into the pity well and pulled up a 55-gallon drum instead. I hadn't realized how much, and how deeply, the hurt had been affecting me ... and how much the weight was dragging me down.
But the time had come to cut the rope, and let the weight fall free.
--
Tonight I wondered if my name had been on any of the thousands of broken planks left at the altar. I hoped not; I hoped I'd never caused anyone so much hurt that my name was the one that had left bruises, stained and seemed impossible to forgive.
But I know it isn't true. Two-story houses in six different states have probably been built from planks with my name stamped across them in bold red letters, as the exclusive manufacturer. I realized I'd want to know ... and be grabbed by the shoulders and shaken half silly.
So I'd have the chance to grin and say in return, Yeah, me too. Why don't we start over ... and try 77 more times?
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Christ in us
"This is real Christianity .... God put it in failing, faulty, weak, sinful men and women in order that it might be evident that the power does not originate in us.
"It is not a result of a strong personality, or an extroverted nature, or a highly honed and trained mind. No, it is not a result of any of these things. It is something which arises from the presence of God in the heart.
"That is why God so delights to call people like us -- the stupid, the weak, the faulty, the failing -- and to manifest his life and grace through us. "
-Ray C. Stedman
"It is not a result of a strong personality, or an extroverted nature, or a highly honed and trained mind. No, it is not a result of any of these things. It is something which arises from the presence of God in the heart.
"That is why God so delights to call people like us -- the stupid, the weak, the faulty, the failing -- and to manifest his life and grace through us. "
-Ray C. Stedman
First as the last
Yaaa, one more thing the psychologist-ex told me: Always trust your first impressions.
She said when you meet someone for the first time, your emotional eyeballs are fresh and your inner warning signals haven't yet been "diluted."
Oh how I railed against that one. Surely it can't be true ... subsequent experience changed my mind.
I guess there's exceptions ... but then there's times I think frogs can fly, too.
---------
I got an unusal text message last night around 12:15 AM and because we're all friends I guess it's ok to share here:
"Do a ditty bob
ditty boo - u r
right again."
It's the ditty bob ditty boo part I can't figure out. Sounds like some cousins I would've met at last year's family reunion.
---------
Back to being serious.
Please pray for K at tomorrow's 6.
She said when you meet someone for the first time, your emotional eyeballs are fresh and your inner warning signals haven't yet been "diluted."
Oh how I railed against that one. Surely it can't be true ... subsequent experience changed my mind.
I guess there's exceptions ... but then there's times I think frogs can fly, too.
---------
I got an unusal text message last night around 12:15 AM and because we're all friends I guess it's ok to share here:
"Do a ditty bob
ditty boo - u r
right again."
It's the ditty bob ditty boo part I can't figure out. Sounds like some cousins I would've met at last year's family reunion.
---------
Back to being serious.
Please pray for K at tomorrow's 6.
Fried Worms on the Grill
Pretty much everything I know about human behavior comes down to worms and a hot skillet. If you drop a worm onto a skillet that's been placed half-atop a hot stove, with the other half resting on the countertop, you'll see what I mean pretty quickly.
Even before the skillet gets warms to the touch the worm, like magic, will start worming its way to the cool side. Because even worms know what feels good ... at least until the heat starts spreading and finally ruins Mr. Worm's day.
Human beings are all about pleasure-seeking and pain-avoidance, too. When life causes our personal skillets to start heating up around us it doesn't take much coaxing for most of us to start running away from the heat.
We prefer avoiding pain so much that we'll even deny that the skillet beneath us ever got hot in the first place, rather than admit we weren't always cool and in control all along.
Because we're smarter than worms (except maybe when it comes to emotional stuff, like relationships), our brains use the advantage of memory to point us toward the easiest direction to escape the heat. ... even though the immediacy of getting away from the heat is what we remember- instead of using what we've previously learned to avoid falling into somebody else's skillet in the first place.
Worms can't read self-help books or refer to appliance manuals when they need help: about all they can do is keep squirming away, from one cool spot to another ... at least until the heat warms the entire skillet. There's nothing to learn and no decisions to make about avoiding hot spots when it comes down to being a worm.
Because worms don't have the choice of asking for help and personal intervention from outside the skillet.
Even before the skillet gets warms to the touch the worm, like magic, will start worming its way to the cool side. Because even worms know what feels good ... at least until the heat starts spreading and finally ruins Mr. Worm's day.
Human beings are all about pleasure-seeking and pain-avoidance, too. When life causes our personal skillets to start heating up around us it doesn't take much coaxing for most of us to start running away from the heat.
We prefer avoiding pain so much that we'll even deny that the skillet beneath us ever got hot in the first place, rather than admit we weren't always cool and in control all along.
Because we're smarter than worms (except maybe when it comes to emotional stuff, like relationships), our brains use the advantage of memory to point us toward the easiest direction to escape the heat. ... even though the immediacy of getting away from the heat is what we remember- instead of using what we've previously learned to avoid falling into somebody else's skillet in the first place.
Worms can't read self-help books or refer to appliance manuals when they need help: about all they can do is keep squirming away, from one cool spot to another ... at least until the heat warms the entire skillet. There's nothing to learn and no decisions to make about avoiding hot spots when it comes down to being a worm.
Because worms don't have the choice of asking for help and personal intervention from outside the skillet.
Friday, January 12, 2007
skimming - updated + new poem
These copied from the blog of a young lady in Singapore, who dropped by a few months back.
Closeness is not about the proximity, but the understanding of each other.
Prosperity doth bewitch men, seeming clear;
As seas do laugh, show white, when rocks are near.
Forever Gone, Go Far & Be Never Near.
It Went All Wrong, The Love That Has Gone Stale.
-- you know me, I can't leave well enough alone. I woulda changed it to:
Forever gone, go far and never be near,
It went all wrong, the love
Waiting to be revealed.
See what I mean? A Word Mechanic keeps going back and adjusting stuff:
Forever go, go far and never be near
One heart whispers, Stay
The other too hard
To glance back or hear.
Away from you, lands apart.
Missing you so, in my heart!
Closeness is not about the proximity, but the understanding of each other.
Prosperity doth bewitch men, seeming clear;
As seas do laugh, show white, when rocks are near.
Forever Gone, Go Far & Be Never Near.
It Went All Wrong, The Love That Has Gone Stale.
-- you know me, I can't leave well enough alone. I woulda changed it to:
Forever gone, go far and never be near,
It went all wrong, the love
Waiting to be revealed.
See what I mean? A Word Mechanic keeps going back and adjusting stuff:
Forever go, go far and never be near
One heart whispers, Stay
The other too hard
To glance back or hear.
Away from you, lands apart.
Missing you so, in my heart!
Religion doesn't get it - updated
If you asked ten people from ten different denominations identifying themselves as "Christian" to Describe Jesus, you'd get at least twenty-six different answers.
All of us have at least some ideas about Jesus, right?
Traditionalists might start off describing Jesus as a gentle-faced, bearded man in glowing white robes standing at the pearly gates with organ music playing in the background, his hands benevolently extended toward us not just as a gesture of welcome but also to remind us of the nail scars in his hands.
Strict fundamentalists might depict Jesus as a wild-eyed, wrathful judge scowling down at us between thunder clouds from heaven. Their version hints He's Just About Had It With Us ... for the last 2000 years ... and the time's long overdue before he rains down fire upon sinners, the unrighteous, the wicked and especially the misled (who have tattoos and play rock music in church).
There's just something satisfying in having smug confidenence that one day, all the sinners are gonna get theirs in hell- and boy will they ever be sorry for not paying attention to us.
Universalist folks might tell us Jesus was a good man, a wise teacher, a real regular guy who kinda sorta maybe misunderstood what he was all about, that was the problem, and got himself killed for no good reason. Their Jesus understands and empathizes with us ... he's cool with everything, because he's a silly-faced big fraternity brother in heaven who'd never condemn anyone to spend eternity roasting in hell, even if such a place really existed.
They might even shrug off the resurrection and imply that Jesus was just like us, no more divine or the literal Son of God than you or me.
Jesus as Jerry Garcia?
Other, more "politically conscious" churches with their roots in the turbulent 1960s see Christ as a social revolutionary and activist whose message was geared toward class warfare and ending economic oppression of the masses.
But which of those perspectives comes closest to grasping what Jesus is really like?
Seems each description skewers What Christ Was Like to specifically conform to an exact (whether it's traditional or universalist) religious criteria existing more or less independent of scripture.
Because none of them mention What Christ Is Like. Nor do they tell us much about how Christ lives inside those who've placed their faith in him. And having a relationship with the Creator of the universe through Jesus Christ is hardly ever mentioned, as though the Messiah lost interest, packed his bags and forgot all about us soon as he ascended back into heaven.
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."
-Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
I wonder when so-called "Christian religions" became arrogant ... man-made for man's benefit ... and why faith in Christ and a relationship with the living God isn't enough to satisfy the folks who think we need, and can work to give ourselves, anything more than God's eternal promise. 1 Corinthians 15:57
Our faith is not based on man-made religion ... it's about our relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ.
All of us have at least some ideas about Jesus, right?
Traditionalists might start off describing Jesus as a gentle-faced, bearded man in glowing white robes standing at the pearly gates with organ music playing in the background, his hands benevolently extended toward us not just as a gesture of welcome but also to remind us of the nail scars in his hands.
Strict fundamentalists might depict Jesus as a wild-eyed, wrathful judge scowling down at us between thunder clouds from heaven. Their version hints He's Just About Had It With Us ... for the last 2000 years ... and the time's long overdue before he rains down fire upon sinners, the unrighteous, the wicked and especially the misled (who have tattoos and play rock music in church).
There's just something satisfying in having smug confidenence that one day, all the sinners are gonna get theirs in hell- and boy will they ever be sorry for not paying attention to us.
Universalist folks might tell us Jesus was a good man, a wise teacher, a real regular guy who kinda sorta maybe misunderstood what he was all about, that was the problem, and got himself killed for no good reason. Their Jesus understands and empathizes with us ... he's cool with everything, because he's a silly-faced big fraternity brother in heaven who'd never condemn anyone to spend eternity roasting in hell, even if such a place really existed.
They might even shrug off the resurrection and imply that Jesus was just like us, no more divine or the literal Son of God than you or me.
Jesus as Jerry Garcia?
Other, more "politically conscious" churches with their roots in the turbulent 1960s see Christ as a social revolutionary and activist whose message was geared toward class warfare and ending economic oppression of the masses.
But which of those perspectives comes closest to grasping what Jesus is really like?
Seems each description skewers What Christ Was Like to specifically conform to an exact (whether it's traditional or universalist) religious criteria existing more or less independent of scripture.
Because none of them mention What Christ Is Like. Nor do they tell us much about how Christ lives inside those who've placed their faith in him. And having a relationship with the Creator of the universe through Jesus Christ is hardly ever mentioned, as though the Messiah lost interest, packed his bags and forgot all about us soon as he ascended back into heaven.
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."
-Galatians 2:20 (NIV)
I wonder when so-called "Christian religions" became arrogant ... man-made for man's benefit ... and why faith in Christ and a relationship with the living God isn't enough to satisfy the folks who think we need, and can work to give ourselves, anything more than God's eternal promise. 1 Corinthians 15:57
Our faith is not based on man-made religion ... it's about our relationship with the living God through Jesus Christ.
Today's head-scratcher
Remember on January 6, when I said I'd give you $100, be your major domo, do your grocery shopping, mow your yard, destroy the phone. etc. etc. for a week if my cell phone rang during a pre-arranged meeting ... so long as we're not of the same sex? (because I believe women should be treated like ladies, with respect)
Well, guess what happened around 10:00 AM this morning. My cell phone rang during a pre-arranged meeting.
But since the pre-arranged meeting was with DJ, does that let me off the hook?
Well, guess what happened around 10:00 AM this morning. My cell phone rang during a pre-arranged meeting.
But since the pre-arranged meeting was with DJ, does that let me off the hook?
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Why I'm Not Answering the Phone - updated
Or bothering with text messages, responding to emails, returning phone calls, reading FAXes or even letting Luke out in the morning:
I've literally been waiting for this book for years. I mean, years. And finally it came in today's mail.
"This book now published will forever tell of a few exciting years and of a time when great men battled with great elephants in a wild corner of Africa, and the mighty Nile will forever thunder over the Fola Rapids."
My goodness.
Well now you know I'd never just sit back and ignore either the phone or any text messages ... answering the phone is how I ended up at 8 AM in the backyard this morning, whacking bamboo with a machete so DJ could finish up his reflecting pool.
The final result really looks good, too. Definitely worth all the time and trouble he's put into it.
I've literally been waiting for this book for years. I mean, years. And finally it came in today's mail.
"This book now published will forever tell of a few exciting years and of a time when great men battled with great elephants in a wild corner of Africa, and the mighty Nile will forever thunder over the Fola Rapids."
My goodness.
Well now you know I'd never just sit back and ignore either the phone or any text messages ... answering the phone is how I ended up at 8 AM in the backyard this morning, whacking bamboo with a machete so DJ could finish up his reflecting pool.
The final result really looks good, too. Definitely worth all the time and trouble he's put into it.
Coming up later today - updated- failure
I forgot to mention that the Chris Craft Roamer moored in front of me sank.
The bilge pump apparently hadn't been working in quite a while and with the additional weight from last weekend's rain, the transom finally sank low enough to start the scuppers siphoning lake water straight into the hull.
The fiberglass top broke off on the way to the bottom, and was last seen floating about 4 inches below the surface somewhere near Anchor Point.
Today the marina plans to sink 55-gallon drums around the boat, where a diver will fasten them to hoisting straps cradled under the hull, pump out the air from the drums and let their buoyancy float the Roamer back up to the surface.
Neat.
Memo to self: fix The Kid's bilge pump soonest.
That didn't work. The crew got the hull about 8 feet off the bottom, then it slipped off its cradle and fell back to the bottom. Add that was the end of the beginning of that. Ah, well.
Try again tomorrow. At least I get to move into the Roamer's previous slip, soon as the salvage barge goes away, for an unimpeded view of the gorgeous Lake Hartwell sunsets.
The Blue Book's IT Department is busy working overtime compiling an appropriate Playlist to pipe down to the divers working on the bottom, but so far this is all they've come up with (I knew it was a mistake to go with Macs):
Should I Stay Or Should I Go? - Clash
The bilge pump apparently hadn't been working in quite a while and with the additional weight from last weekend's rain, the transom finally sank low enough to start the scuppers siphoning lake water straight into the hull.
The fiberglass top broke off on the way to the bottom, and was last seen floating about 4 inches below the surface somewhere near Anchor Point.
Today the marina plans to sink 55-gallon drums around the boat, where a diver will fasten them to hoisting straps cradled under the hull, pump out the air from the drums and let their buoyancy float the Roamer back up to the surface.
Neat.
Memo to self: fix The Kid's bilge pump soonest.
That didn't work. The crew got the hull about 8 feet off the bottom, then it slipped off its cradle and fell back to the bottom. Add that was the end of the beginning of that. Ah, well.
Try again tomorrow. At least I get to move into the Roamer's previous slip, soon as the salvage barge goes away, for an unimpeded view of the gorgeous Lake Hartwell sunsets.
The Blue Book's IT Department is busy working overtime compiling an appropriate Playlist to pipe down to the divers working on the bottom, but so far this is all they've come up with (I knew it was a mistake to go with Macs):
Should I Stay Or Should I Go? - Clash
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Batteries not included - updated
The "Ex" (the shrink) mentioned in a previous post had another observation that's stuck with me.
She had her own theory about why, when bad things happen to us (say a car accident), we have a tendency to look back and convince ourselves, "If only I'd left the house 10 seconds sooner." Or, "If only I'd stopped to get gas, like I was supposed to."
We like to pretend things woulda been different if only we could use life's remote control, hit the button to re-wind time, and do an insignificant thing different that we could've changed the sequence of events leading up to the moment when disaster snuck up and grabbed us.
It's like the football fan who's convinced his team lost the big game because he didn't have his Lucky Shirt tucked in just right, or because he forgot to walk backwards three times around his favorite recliner before the game started. He's convinced two half-billion dollar sports franchises are more affected by what he wears, or by the way he walks around his living room, than they are by coaching, game planning or team practice.
If only I'd ...
The reason, the good doctor explained, is our persistent need to feel in control of our lives ... even with situations and events that took place in the past.
You can expand her point to include most any ordeal that either hurt , disappointed, or caused us to think "That would never have happened if only I'd ..." or "If only I hadn't ..."
If I'd only done one little thing different, that wouldn't have happened underscores our belief that we've actually had control over the billions of sequences of events that've happened to every one of us up to this second in our lives all along.
We don't like getting nasty surprises, especially when we're convinced we don't deserve them. And none of us like accepting the fact that we don't have a cushy seat reserved in Heaven's VIP Departure Lounge while we're watching the clock here on earth waiting to catch our flight home.
It scares us to think our lives might just be out there in the cosmos somewhere, bouncing between random bumpers like an un-numbered foosball, and that misfortune can still surprise us no matter how young we are, no matter what degrees we've earned, no matter where we live and no matter how much money we net after taxes.
We'd rather brick up the windows than acknowledge tragedy might show up unexpectedly at our doorstep, enter without knocking, move in like an uninvited guest and change our safe little routines forever.
We'll trust lucky key rings, astrologers, superstitions and even our own ability to prevent tragedies rather than place our faith where it matters most ... in the Creator himself.
If only I could do it over again ... if only we weren't so audacious.
She had her own theory about why, when bad things happen to us (say a car accident), we have a tendency to look back and convince ourselves, "If only I'd left the house 10 seconds sooner." Or, "If only I'd stopped to get gas, like I was supposed to."
We like to pretend things woulda been different if only we could use life's remote control, hit the button to re-wind time, and do an insignificant thing different that we could've changed the sequence of events leading up to the moment when disaster snuck up and grabbed us.
It's like the football fan who's convinced his team lost the big game because he didn't have his Lucky Shirt tucked in just right, or because he forgot to walk backwards three times around his favorite recliner before the game started. He's convinced two half-billion dollar sports franchises are more affected by what he wears, or by the way he walks around his living room, than they are by coaching, game planning or team practice.
If only I'd ...
The reason, the good doctor explained, is our persistent need to feel in control of our lives ... even with situations and events that took place in the past.
You can expand her point to include most any ordeal that either hurt , disappointed, or caused us to think "That would never have happened if only I'd ..." or "If only I hadn't ..."
If I'd only done one little thing different, that wouldn't have happened underscores our belief that we've actually had control over the billions of sequences of events that've happened to every one of us up to this second in our lives all along.
We don't like getting nasty surprises, especially when we're convinced we don't deserve them. And none of us like accepting the fact that we don't have a cushy seat reserved in Heaven's VIP Departure Lounge while we're watching the clock here on earth waiting to catch our flight home.
It scares us to think our lives might just be out there in the cosmos somewhere, bouncing between random bumpers like an un-numbered foosball, and that misfortune can still surprise us no matter how young we are, no matter what degrees we've earned, no matter where we live and no matter how much money we net after taxes.
We'd rather brick up the windows than acknowledge tragedy might show up unexpectedly at our doorstep, enter without knocking, move in like an uninvited guest and change our safe little routines forever.
We'll trust lucky key rings, astrologers, superstitions and even our own ability to prevent tragedies rather than place our faith where it matters most ... in the Creator himself.
If only I could do it over again ... if only we weren't so audacious.
Monday, January 08, 2007
In the beginning ....
God is sitting in Heaven when a scientist says to Him, "Lord, we don't
need you anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing. In other words, we can now do what you did in the beginning."
"Oh, is that so? Tell me..." replies God.
"Well, " says the scientist, "we can take dirt and form it into the likeness of You and breathe life into it, thus creating man."
"Well, that's interesting.
So the scientist bends down to the earth and starts to mold the soil.
"Oh no, no, no..." interrupts God,
( I love this)
"Get your own dirt."
Driving Along Main Street at 3 PM
Word of God Speak - Kutless
-I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's okay
The last thing I need is to be heard
But to hear what You would say.-
-I'm finding myself at a loss for words
And the funny thing is it's okay
The last thing I need is to be heard
But to hear what You would say.-
Had to Happen
And I knew one day it would.
Yesterday afternoon while driving to the 4:15 it seemed like a good idea to check my cell and see if I'd missed any messages. And while scrolling through menu options I blew right through a stop light.
I was so distracted (or so intensely focused on the wrong goal) that if I hadn't looked up and seen the startled faces of the drivers facing me at the intersection, I might've never even suspected what I'd done.
Uh, and this came after I'd hit the curb with the front-passenger side wheel a few miles before, while trying to plug in the charger.
Lesson learned: either drive, talk, recharge or text message ... but don't do more than three at the same time.
Yesterday afternoon while driving to the 4:15 it seemed like a good idea to check my cell and see if I'd missed any messages. And while scrolling through menu options I blew right through a stop light.
I was so distracted (or so intensely focused on the wrong goal) that if I hadn't looked up and seen the startled faces of the drivers facing me at the intersection, I might've never even suspected what I'd done.
Uh, and this came after I'd hit the curb with the front-passenger side wheel a few miles before, while trying to plug in the charger.
Lesson learned: either drive, talk, recharge or text message ... but don't do more than three at the same time.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Goal to go at the 3
Disclaimer: I'm not on the church staff and any observations or statements presented here are entirely my own. Any errors are mine, too.
This afternoon was the very first 4:15 PM service at the new building. The extra service, which is now the third of four, was added because the brand new 2500-seat auditorium had pretty quickly run out of seats as attendance soared past 8000 people per Sunday.
This is in a community with a county-wide population last year of 175,514.
I've heard that pastors from across the country call the church office, send e-mails and ask, "What are you doing to see such growth?" though I think the question also means, What are you doing to see so many people saved?
The answer has to be just one thing: instead of getting "deeper in the word", focusing on boycotts or wasting time with finance committees or worrying about steeples and stained glass windows, it comes down to ministering and preaching Jesus Christ and nothing but Jesus Christ.
Every Sunday, four times each Sunday ... it's all about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ. Acts 5:42
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3
This afternoon was the very first 4:15 PM service at the new building. The extra service, which is now the third of four, was added because the brand new 2500-seat auditorium had pretty quickly run out of seats as attendance soared past 8000 people per Sunday.
This is in a community with a county-wide population last year of 175,514.
I've heard that pastors from across the country call the church office, send e-mails and ask, "What are you doing to see such growth?" though I think the question also means, What are you doing to see so many people saved?
The answer has to be just one thing: instead of getting "deeper in the word", focusing on boycotts or wasting time with finance committees or worrying about steeples and stained glass windows, it comes down to ministering and preaching Jesus Christ and nothing but Jesus Christ.
Every Sunday, four times each Sunday ... it's all about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ. Acts 5:42
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18
We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:3
Saturday, January 06, 2007
First Ever Re-Post
Ya'll are so nice to me. Really.
Taking the time to either write or call to say how much you enjoyed and appreciate the following post means a lot, an awful lot. So here ya go for one more time around the block
You're the best friends in the world ... and I trust you to hold me to my word.
This applies if you and I are of the opposite gender: If my cell phone rings in your presence during a pre-arranged meeting of any kind, I will:
1. Give you $100
2. Vacuum, clean your house, be your butler, do your grocery shopping and be your yardman for one (1) week
3. Destroy the phone on the spot
My reasoning here is simple: you deserve my 100% undivided attention even if we're only casual acquaintances or "just friends."
I'm serious. I hate cell phones .... and besides, You are worth much more than that.
Taking the time to either write or call to say how much you enjoyed and appreciate the following post means a lot, an awful lot. So here ya go for one more time around the block
You're the best friends in the world ... and I trust you to hold me to my word.
This applies if you and I are of the opposite gender: If my cell phone rings in your presence during a pre-arranged meeting of any kind, I will:
1. Give you $100
2. Vacuum, clean your house, be your butler, do your grocery shopping and be your yardman for one (1) week
3. Destroy the phone on the spot
My reasoning here is simple: you deserve my 100% undivided attention even if we're only casual acquaintances or "just friends."
I'm serious. I hate cell phones .... and besides, You are worth much more than that.
Please - updated
Pray for K, ok? We just got off the phone and she's getting close.
It's today's 11:15
It's today's 11:15
Love Is All Ya Need ...(loser) - updated
One of the wisest things I've ever heard came from an ex-girlfriend.
TPW may have been quoting someone else, I don't remember and guess it doesn't matter. But what she said is this:
"People don't fall in love with a person, they fall in love with how they feel when they're with that person."
Whoa. The subtext here is, "I must be in love because I really like the way I feel when I'm with you. I'm willing to overlook your issues at the same time, because I'm desperately hoping you can fix and make me feel better about mine."
That's why we see middle-aged men who've been married 30 years buying Corvettes soon as their kids are out of college and start running around with teen-aged girlfriends... they feel trapped and are rebelling against their marriages through sheer boredom and the lack of any prospect for a meaningful future (it's also why middle-aged women who feel neglected and left-at-home start exploring romance novels and pool boys.)
The compulsion to fix what's broken inside me is often misidentified as Romantic Attraction and leads us toward partners with their own gritty issues, eventually steering us into relationships that can be hurtful, destructive and co-dependent.
The persistent longing for approval explains why young women become promiscuous, especially at very young ages: Girls hurting inside from fractured notions of their self-worth use boys (and anything they do with them sexually) as a fix, learning from their peers to dress and advertise themselves like prostitutes ... because they're willing to trade sexual favors in return for a man's attention and the illusion of his affection.
Being goal-oriented, young men who've grown up seeing women neglected or abused, whether physically or emotionally, quickly learn to feign emotional affection (or provide young women with gifts ... whether clothes, jewelry or drugs) in exchange for immediate sexual gratification.
Never mind the lie that's happening in-between or the consequences taking place afterwards: young women and girls end up being treated as disposable sex toys and become bitterly convinced that "all men are just alike and only want one thing."
Boys and young men who forget the most important thing inside a woman's shirt is her heart never quite grow beyond an adolescent infatuation with the simple mechanical physicality of sex.
No matter what their age, people who keep trying to heal themselves by sleeping with their partner's issues inevitably leave those same relationships feeling tricked, misled and deceived ... and carry that same baggage with them as they begin each new search for the "right" fix ... always missing that sexual intimacy between a man and his wife is an emotional act designed to affirm their commitment and secure the spiritual bond between them.
Sexual intimacy is meant to build a life-long communion that's a celebration of life. It's a gift given to us not by pornography or romance novels, but by the Creator himself ... to be used only as he intended.
Ooey-gooey infatuation, sexual attraction and physical gratification grow thin pretty durn quickly and eventually one partner or the other starts getting a bad case of Bedroom Boredom resulting in Wandering Eyes Syndrome. Because it's more fun, and more exciting, seeking new sexual challenges and lurid fantasies than it is turning the finger around and pointing to the emptiness inside ourselves as being the root of the problem.
Admiting I'm Broken And Need Fixing is hard. It makes us feel vulnernable and might even be humiliating if we acknowledge something so personal to the wrong person. Still, we have that yearning and desire to be loved and accepted, unconditionally and no matter what, that too often remains unsatisfied and leaves us wondering What's wrong with me?
Please doctor, can you fix me?
---
Another wise thing I heard came from an Ex who was a clinical psychologist.
She told me "Joe, everybody has their stuff" .. and we all do. Everybody's had their share of issues, hurts, frustrations, rejections, "What If's" and "Why did that happen's" going all the way back to childhood, with enough plot-twists to fill a best-seller.
But that only means we're all broken inside ... that's what the world does and the way the world works and no one should feel special, self-important or deserving because of it.
Some of us look for solutions through money & accumulating material possesions, or through porn, sexual escapades, alcohol, drugs, gambling or you name it. We fall into those traps and try clawing our way out because our pain's so severe that if it can't be fixed Right Now, like we see on TV, we forget about finding the real cause and start digging all over again with whatever bright, attractive new shovel that happens to fall into the hole with us ... even if the handle's broken and there's nothing there to hold on to.
Just one more drink, one more lottery ticket, one more credit card or one more new boyfriend on the side.
We wind up digging the hole deeper. And deeper still. But we think The Fix lies with finding just one more.
---
Nothing in this world pre-exists the Creator and none of today's worries, hurts, or anxieties will matter to anyone else 100 years from now. And nothing you write in your diary, lock away in your journal or post on your blog will ever go back farther or be more important than this:
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28
So why do people who feel their lives are out of control continue living as though control might finally come if only they could have just one more?
See ya in a few Sunday Playlist:
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
TPW may have been quoting someone else, I don't remember and guess it doesn't matter. But what she said is this:
"People don't fall in love with a person, they fall in love with how they feel when they're with that person."
Whoa. The subtext here is, "I must be in love because I really like the way I feel when I'm with you. I'm willing to overlook your issues at the same time, because I'm desperately hoping you can fix and make me feel better about mine."
That's why we see middle-aged men who've been married 30 years buying Corvettes soon as their kids are out of college and start running around with teen-aged girlfriends... they feel trapped and are rebelling against their marriages through sheer boredom and the lack of any prospect for a meaningful future (it's also why middle-aged women who feel neglected and left-at-home start exploring romance novels and pool boys.)
The compulsion to fix what's broken inside me is often misidentified as Romantic Attraction and leads us toward partners with their own gritty issues, eventually steering us into relationships that can be hurtful, destructive and co-dependent.
The persistent longing for approval explains why young women become promiscuous, especially at very young ages: Girls hurting inside from fractured notions of their self-worth use boys (and anything they do with them sexually) as a fix, learning from their peers to dress and advertise themselves like prostitutes ... because they're willing to trade sexual favors in return for a man's attention and the illusion of his affection.
Being goal-oriented, young men who've grown up seeing women neglected or abused, whether physically or emotionally, quickly learn to feign emotional affection (or provide young women with gifts ... whether clothes, jewelry or drugs) in exchange for immediate sexual gratification.
Never mind the lie that's happening in-between or the consequences taking place afterwards: young women and girls end up being treated as disposable sex toys and become bitterly convinced that "all men are just alike and only want one thing."
Boys and young men who forget the most important thing inside a woman's shirt is her heart never quite grow beyond an adolescent infatuation with the simple mechanical physicality of sex.
No matter what their age, people who keep trying to heal themselves by sleeping with their partner's issues inevitably leave those same relationships feeling tricked, misled and deceived ... and carry that same baggage with them as they begin each new search for the "right" fix ... always missing that sexual intimacy between a man and his wife is an emotional act designed to affirm their commitment and secure the spiritual bond between them.
Sexual intimacy is meant to build a life-long communion that's a celebration of life. It's a gift given to us not by pornography or romance novels, but by the Creator himself ... to be used only as he intended.
Ooey-gooey infatuation, sexual attraction and physical gratification grow thin pretty durn quickly and eventually one partner or the other starts getting a bad case of Bedroom Boredom resulting in Wandering Eyes Syndrome. Because it's more fun, and more exciting, seeking new sexual challenges and lurid fantasies than it is turning the finger around and pointing to the emptiness inside ourselves as being the root of the problem.
Admiting I'm Broken And Need Fixing is hard. It makes us feel vulnernable and might even be humiliating if we acknowledge something so personal to the wrong person. Still, we have that yearning and desire to be loved and accepted, unconditionally and no matter what, that too often remains unsatisfied and leaves us wondering What's wrong with me?
Please doctor, can you fix me?
---
Another wise thing I heard came from an Ex who was a clinical psychologist.
She told me "Joe, everybody has their stuff" .. and we all do. Everybody's had their share of issues, hurts, frustrations, rejections, "What If's" and "Why did that happen's" going all the way back to childhood, with enough plot-twists to fill a best-seller.
But that only means we're all broken inside ... that's what the world does and the way the world works and no one should feel special, self-important or deserving because of it.
Some of us look for solutions through money & accumulating material possesions, or through porn, sexual escapades, alcohol, drugs, gambling or you name it. We fall into those traps and try clawing our way out because our pain's so severe that if it can't be fixed Right Now, like we see on TV, we forget about finding the real cause and start digging all over again with whatever bright, attractive new shovel that happens to fall into the hole with us ... even if the handle's broken and there's nothing there to hold on to.
Just one more drink, one more lottery ticket, one more credit card or one more new boyfriend on the side.
We wind up digging the hole deeper. And deeper still. But we think The Fix lies with finding just one more.
---
Nothing in this world pre-exists the Creator and none of today's worries, hurts, or anxieties will matter to anyone else 100 years from now. And nothing you write in your diary, lock away in your journal or post on your blog will ever go back farther or be more important than this:
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28
So why do people who feel their lives are out of control continue living as though control might finally come if only they could have just one more?
See ya in a few Sunday Playlist:
Mighty to Save - Hillsong
just me, personally
My PH in Africa got a little sore with me because I didn't bring along a high-tech digital camera, apparently like other clients do, to take lots of pictures in the Selous. All I took with me was a pocket-sized Nikon 35mm that could easily be confused with a disposable point n' shoot.
Not sure why it bugged him so much nor whether he'd understand the reasons why a "professional photographer" wouldn't take along the best camera he could find.
One of my favorite all-time quotes comes from David Lynch's movie Lost Highway. Not far into the film, while police are on the scene investigating the arrival of a mysterious VHS tape on the doorstep of a suburban couple's home, one of the detectives asks Bill Pullman, "Do you own a video camera?"
Pullman answers uneasily, "I like to remember things my own way."
That's what it comes down to, and the reason I wasn't burning up megapixels during my stay. I've seen video shot during my hunt and what I saw on the screen wasn't in any way at all like what happened. And nothing like what I remember.
----
Several great quotes from Lost Highway. Here's just a few:
"This is where mechanical excellence and one-thousand four-hundred horsepower pays off. "
Fred Madison: [angrily into the phone] How did you get inside my house?
Mystery Man: You invited me. It is not my custom to go where I am not wanted.
Fred Madison: I had a dream about you last night.
Renee Madison: Yeah? What was it about?
Fred Madison: You were in the house, calling my name, but I couldn't find you. Then there you were ... but it wasn't you. It looked like you, but it wasn't.
Pete Dayton: I want you.
Alice Wakefield: You'll ... never ... have me.
Pete Dayton: What's going on?
Mystery Man: It's been a pleasure talking to you.
Al: Do you know what I think?
Fred: What is it? What is it that you think?
Al: There is no such thing as a bad coincidence.
Not sure why it bugged him so much nor whether he'd understand the reasons why a "professional photographer" wouldn't take along the best camera he could find.
One of my favorite all-time quotes comes from David Lynch's movie Lost Highway. Not far into the film, while police are on the scene investigating the arrival of a mysterious VHS tape on the doorstep of a suburban couple's home, one of the detectives asks Bill Pullman, "Do you own a video camera?"
Pullman answers uneasily, "I like to remember things my own way."
That's what it comes down to, and the reason I wasn't burning up megapixels during my stay. I've seen video shot during my hunt and what I saw on the screen wasn't in any way at all like what happened. And nothing like what I remember.
----
Several great quotes from Lost Highway. Here's just a few:
"This is where mechanical excellence and one-thousand four-hundred horsepower pays off. "
Fred Madison: [angrily into the phone] How did you get inside my house?
Mystery Man: You invited me. It is not my custom to go where I am not wanted.
Fred Madison: I had a dream about you last night.
Renee Madison: Yeah? What was it about?
Fred Madison: You were in the house, calling my name, but I couldn't find you. Then there you were ... but it wasn't you. It looked like you, but it wasn't.
Pete Dayton: I want you.
Alice Wakefield: You'll ... never ... have me.
Pete Dayton: What's going on?
Mystery Man: It's been a pleasure talking to you.
Al: Do you know what I think?
Fred: What is it? What is it that you think?
Al: There is no such thing as a bad coincidence.
Curious and curiouser - The Boomerang Effect
Last night I was rooting around under sofa cushions looking for spare change, and look what I found.
It's a genuine AVCLUB-issue Spyderco knife. Just like Boomerang, the one Ken used to have ... with one big difference: this one's sharp as a muke-skinner's razor.
I'll bet Ken's gonna want one just like it.
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