The Lakers got smoked last night. Fortunately for me, I was at a fabulous dinner party with friends from Melisa's office. We had some awesome cuisine and some great conversation. It is so neat that when we go to her office parties, that it is the same as hanging out with real friends who care. Jason and Darren...you and your families rock!

Anyway, back to the Lakers, I didn't even check in on my phone to see what the score was. I knew they were going down. I was shocked, however, that they got beaten by such a massive margin. They just didn't want it as badly as the Celtics.

This year was a transition for me. I kind of became a Lakers fan, which is really weird. Growing up in Chicagoland meant that I was a Bulls fan for so long and hated the Lakers. But it has been almost eight years since I lived in Valpo, and life goes on and good changes come. But it is still weird to live in California.

One thing I vow to never do is give up my love for the Michigan Wolverines. I hope that passion for Michigan football never dies.

Labels: Life

I don't know if any of you have tried to rent or buy a dwelling in Southern California, but the listings are hilarious. They remind me of "personal ads", where people sort of "stretch the truth" about who or what they are.

In SoCal, this is especially true. I've come up with a translation system for those of you who are looking to buy or rent that you can use to truly understand the condition or characteristics of the unit.

• Quaint = This shack is ancient, yo.
• Gorgeous=This place isn't super-ghetto
• Bungalo = This place is tiny, yo.
• Spacious=This place is just little bit bigger than a bungalo
• Craftsman=We cemented in few rocks and 4x4 pillars in front of our double-wide to make it look like a craftsman home.
  
• Private Patio=You've got a 3' X 10' slab out there for your gas grill to sit on.
• Garage=A building so scary looking and old that you'll figure your car is safer outside.
• Breathtaking Views=You can see a sliver of the foothills between the other two apartment complexes on a low-smog day.
• Good Schools=You'd better rent a cheaper place to save money for private schools.
• Affordable=This place is only a half-a-million dollars.
  

Labels: Life

Hey everyone. I'm sorry that I've not posted in a long time, but I haven't really been in the blogging mood lately. I've taken a break from being plugged into the web, and kind of just trying to keep up with life in the "real world". My blogging and twittering have been lagging, that's for sure.

Sometimes I just get fed up with the internet, and all of the news that really doesn't mean much. I blame my buddy, David, for that. He preached at Live Oak on Sunday, and hit the nail on the head. He basically said that we Christians put too much trust in electing earthly leaders instead of trusting in our Heavenly leader (Father). David, you are right-on.

New, politics, and music haven't captured my attention much lately. Actually, I've been paying attention to the Lakers a bit, and keeping up with their efforts to win another NBA title. I've also been catching up on my sleep, which is always a challenge for me. I've got sleep apnea, and I go through seasons where I don't get the right amount of sleep and I suffer a bit from that. I've been really having a hard time sleeping lately, actually.

I'm looking forward to a three-day weekend. I've been working hard lately, and an extra day off will be awesome. I'm also looking forward to Sunday. Melisa and I just got back from Worship Team practice, and we had a blast. We've got a great set of songs for Sunday, and I think it will be an amazing time of worship. I hope you can join us.

I'll try to do better at blogging, so stay tuned. I know that I have a group of faithful readers that have been patiently waiting for more of my random thoughts. I'll get back to it as soon as I can.

In the mean time, I'll be heading to Lousiana a week from tonight. Sheri will be doing several concerts at St. Charles and Baton Rouge and the band will be there! I'm so excited to be doing another round of events with Sheri! I'll have to stock up on the Peach Rings for Drew!!

In case you didn't know, Melisa and I traded in the Xterra for a Toyota Matrix. We needed to save some money on the $4/gallon gas, and we got a smokin' deal on a brand new car last weekend. I'll try to shoot some pics of the new whip over the weekend.

Labels: Life

It must be the weekend, because my brain is worked. I had a big, multi-tasking week at work, and I rewarded my hard work with a quick nap on the couch when I got home. I need to recharge a bit before heading out on the town with the unofficial "Three Saints And A Sinner" fan club tonight. The cool cats are playing at "the Gem" tonite, and it should be a good time.

Tomorrow my wifey comes home, and I'm sure she has a lot of great stories to tell me of her trip. I'm pretty sure all she will need her blanket and the Tivo remote on Saturday night. She's got a lot of American Idol and The Bachelor to catch up on.

I finally got a listen to "God Of This City", the latest cd from Passion/Six Steps Records. It was a solid record, but not the best they've ever done. But wow, "Let God Arise" and "God Of This City" are two amazing songs, and I hope to put these into my rotation of songs at Live Oak.



I've also been listening to Bloc Party's latest disc. Good stuff. Lots of energy, and I love the guitar sounds. The next thing I'm going to demo is Leeland's latest.

The weather was HOT today. I stepped out of my office at about 11 AM today, and it was like a furnace blast! Earlier in the week I was awakened by cold air blowing in the window, and now it's about 85 in my room. It finally felt like summer is right around the corner.

I had better get ready to head out to the rock show. I'll be live from the Gem on my twitter feed. You can check out updates here.

Labels: Life, Music

Yesterday I got busy at work, and didn't take a proper lunch break. It was almost 2PM, and I was tired and hungry. I wanted something cheap and fast, so I headed over to McDonald's to take a couple of hits off of their $1 menu.

As I pulled up to the Drive-Thru, I was greeted by the nice gentleman who asked me if I would like to try an iced coffee. I paused, and said yes! Then he asked me several questions, and I just couldn't understand the fellow. His accent sounded like he was maybe Pakistani, I'm not sure. Once I figured out that he was asking me if I wanted Regular, Vanilla, or Caramel. I asked for Regular and pulled up to the next window. The nice guy with the headset took my money, and seemed kind of angry at me that I couldn't understand his English. Sorry buddy, I tried my best.

I pulled up to the second window, and peered in to see how they were making my beverage. It looked like it was pre-mix. Hmmm, I couldn't really tell. But I expected that "instant" flavor. I slammed my $1 fries and double-cheese burger. That's a $2 deal that is an unbeatable deal. I then unwrapped the straw and got ready to drink my $1.89 iced coffee.

I expected the worst, but my first sip was somewhat surprising. Hmm, I doesn't have that horrible 7-11 instant flavor. Not bad. Ok, I know it's not a Starbucks Americano with four onces of half-n-half, but it wasn't bad. It's about half the price of a Starbucks iced latte, and probably at least half as good. The coffee flavor was a little bit on the light side. If it had a stronger coffee flavor, it would be even better.

All in all, I won't be driving to McDonald's specifically to get iced coffee, but if I happen to be at McDonald's, I might try it again.

Labels: Life

My buddy, David, says that he likes the frequency of my posting.....or should I say "liked"? I've not been posting much lately. It's a combination of doing a lot of other things, boring news and media, and being kind of busy. It's all good. I suppose that blogging isn't really that important.

A lot of my time has been spent with my guitars for the last couple of weeks. I've been learning and practicing a bunch of new songs in preparation for this weekend.

Speaking of that, I'm pretty stoked about this coming weekend. My sister Sheri is flying into town, and my good friend Rhett is flying down from Washington. We are all getting together this weekend to work our way through learning a bunch of songs from Sheri's upcoming CD, and get ready to go out and lead at a few gatherings here and there. Melisa is going to be playing keys and our awesome friend, Drew (recently married to Abbie!) is going to playing bass! This should be a lot of fun, but a lot of work.

Sheri and the rest of us on her team are so glad to be doing our first event together at my home church, Live Oak Vineyard, this Sunday night. It will be the first time that this group of people will be leading together as one unit, so it's nice to begin in a familiar, safe place with people who are behind us.


I wish Joshua could make the trip. We'll miss you, brother!

And I do hope that a good number of people from the Live Oak Worship team would be willing to come to the worship gathering on Sunday evening to worship with us, and pray for Sheri and the team she has drawn together. I think that it would be great for a group of worshipers to come and pray for her as she is on the verge of an album release and beginning a series of events. I know that she cherishes the prayers and support of her extended Vineyard family all across the country.


Not only is he a smokin' drummer, he's a connoisseur of cheesy crackers!

I'm also excited about Sunday. Rhett is going to be able to sit in on drums on Sunday morning. We spent almost four years playing music together and becoming great friends. I miss that guy a lot, and I'm excited to be able to lead worship with him this week! I just wish he could bring his wife, Molly, because it's been too long since we've all had a chance to get together in one place. Melisa and I will just have to figure out a way to make it up to Washington this summer to see all of our Washingtonian brethren instead.


Rhett and Molly.....this picture is way old, but the best I've got....sorry!

I've got to finish up my set list for Sunday. Does anybody have a song on their heart that they really want to sing to God this weekend? Let me know. The set is hardly carved in stone yet.

Labels: Life, Music

This is Melisa's Dijon-Mushroom Chicken. This is my new favorite recipe that Melisa has been making, and I had to take a picture of it. Mmm, mm, good!


View more of my pictures on Flickr

Labels: Life

I grew up in Indiana. I am...a Hoosier by birth. I used to watch and play basketball day and night. My dad put up a basketball hoop for me at all the places we lived growing up. But somewhere along the way, I lost interest. I'm not sure why, exactly.

I've tried to get a little excited about March Madness this spring, but it's not working. I'm too excited that Formula 1 and Indy Car are getting started in March. I'm just too much of a racing guy now.

It is interesting how something that seemed so important to me just years ago is not something I care to follow a any more.

Question of the day: What are some old interests you don't follow any more, and what new interests have you picked up?

Labels: Life, Sports

Sheri (my sister) reports this morning:

It's a stormy weekend here in Atlanta - I've never heard it thunder for like 24 hours nearly non-stop. crazy.

My wife has a lot of family in the Atlanta area, but everyone is OK. The Georgia Dome had part of its roof ripped open! Crazy.

Update 11AM: Sheri called, and a tornado just blew over their house. She said they are in the clear now, but we were praying for their safety. Let's all pray that these storms calm down!

Labels: Family, Life

Harvard lecturer Tal Ben-Shahar offers some simple steps to being happy....some are new-age-y, but most are right on. What I agree most him on (as he said in later segments) is that the American rat-race is the reason so many of us struggle to find balance and happiness. And as a Christian, I find that the combination of career and the distractions of the American lifestyle are in direct contradiction with a lifestyle of Christian discipline that includes enough quiet meditation.

Labels: Christian Life, Life

Wow, I'm sitting on my couch and relaxing after a long day of work.....at home! I've been so busy lately that it seems like a vacation to have an evening off. It's great!

I should get some extra sleep tonite, because Melisa and I are hoping to be able to catch The New Hotness tomorrow night at The Roxy! Our buddy, Jared, is the drummer for the Hotness, and we haven't been able to catch any of their recent shows, mostly because I've got such an early work day. But the time has come to see these guys rock out, and the Roxy is one of our favorite clubs.

Labels: Life, Shows