Say Cheese

Here's a few pics from this Christmas:



The grandkids gather as Grandma reads a story. Pictured are (back row) Hannah, Kelby, and Cora, and (front row) Grace, Tanner, and Brennan. Elijah was off toddling about somewhere. The whole "storytime" idea went a lot better than I had anticipated. In fact, I thought it would be a complete disaster. But look at them, they were actually interested. Way to go Grandma!



"Cheeeeese!" We get three distinct reactions to the camera with our boys. Brennan will pose himself with little or no instruction and stand for pictures as long as your batteries will last. He's photogenic and he knows it. Ever ready to pose for a distinguished portrait, Brennan takes this very seriously and is always eager to see the results.

Tanner is painfully self-conscious when having his picture taken. If left to think about it he'll tense up and thus the best pictures of him are always the ones that are snapped immediately. When you count, the pressure gets to him and he tries to force his smile by moving his face around one muscle at a time. It looks like he's smelling something foul or he's planning his escape, as someone does when they hear something offensive or frightening but feel that the only safe thing to do is to smile politely.

Elijah loves the camera almost as much as Brennan. He wants to get in the middle of the picture and he repeatedly says "cheese" until the flash goes off. In fact he'll start saying cheese as soon as he sees the camera and he's saying it in the picture above. Of the dozens of pictures we have where Elijah has his teeth bared, they all capture him saying "cheese."

Next year we'll have Graham in there too. We're looking forward to new family pictures as previous versions have not really had the whole family. Next Christmas all six of us will pose for a picture… each in our own way, of course.

Locked In

We had our lock-in at the church last night. It went really well with some 70 kids or more (about 80-85 people overall). We had a concert, a 3-on-3 tourney, movies, video games, board games, food, ultimate frisbee, and lots of other stuff going on. I made it until about 3:30am before I went home to sleep. Jay-rod and our youth sponsors did a great job.

Random Thoughts 12/30/05

• For those of you scoring at home, I officially passed 300 posts this week.
• Would you believe that it is illegal to throw snowballs in Topeka? The mayor is hoping to strike the law from the books and prevent overcrowding the prisons with wayward children. Read the article here.
  
• Uncle Sam wants you… to invade Canada! There's actually a website promoting this idea (tongue-in-cheek I think) and selling t-shirts with that very slogan! They site says, "the surrender will come quickly, they're French after all!" In reality, the U.S. did have a plan to invade Canada called War Plan Crimson, which was drawn up in the 1930's. It was part of a plan to fight the British (War Plan Red), assuming that they would want to invade the East Coast. We would respond by capturing Canada and Jamaica, which would become a permanent part of the U.S. These plans were de-classified in the 1970's and it seriously offended many Canadians (wonder why?). Some of our neighbors to the North are still leary about Ft. Drum, NY and Ft. Lewis, WA, two of our largest military bases near the Canadian border, but the Pentagon does not comment on current contingency plans.
• We have a lock-in tonight at the church for the youth group. I'm not going to try to go all night; that's why we hired Jay-rod!
• Have you jumped the couch lately? "Jump the couch" is the Dictionary of American Slang's 2005 Slang of the Year and means to exhibit strange or frenetic behavior. It refers to when Tom Cruise jumped on Oprah's couch like a deranged monkey. Nothing says love like public buffoonery. Personally I liked the Army's teasing nickname for rear-echelon troops who don't do any fighting, "Fobbit" From FOB (Forward Operating Base), it means someone afraid to leave base. Past wars had nicknames for these guys that can't be repeated in polite company, so this is a huge improvement.
• It looks like the Saints will be back in New Orleans next year. I guess that's good for Louisiana but I feel like the NFL missed an opportunity to put a team in Los Angeles, which is a stated goal they have. Who are they going to move now? The NFL says they won't expand, so the team has to come from somewhere. Everything else being equal they ought to move the Vikings to LA. That would be the second purple and yellow team from Minnesota that makes no sense whatsoever in Los Angeles (the other being the Lakers). Then you can move the Vikings to the NFC West (with Seattle, Arizona, and San Fran) and move St. Louis to the NFC North (with Green Bay, Detroit, and Chicago). Think about it! It's perfect.
  

Long Time…

We had a visit today from an old friend we haven't seen in a couple years. Bryan C. and his wife came by for lunch and we had a chance to catch up on things this afternoon. It was really great to see them since they live in Oklahoma and as ministers, neither one of us have a lot of weekends off. Shannon and I sure love to entertain, I just wish more old friends had the time to drop by.

Random Thoughts 12/29/05

• 5500 hits! Thanks for reading my blog. God bless you in the new year.
• Guess who is running for governor next year in Pennsylvania? Lynn Swann, former Pittsburgh Steeler and NFL Hall-of-Famer. His website is www.lynnswannteam88.com and his formal announcement is coming up next week. I've heard Mr. Swann give political speeches and commentary and I've never been anything but impressed. I really hope he wins. Read a brief bio of him here.
• There may have been a brief attack of common sense. According to a recent poll, 64% of Americans believe the NSA should be able to use wiretaps to listen to phone calls. When you're talking about hostile operatives who are trying to harm Americans… uh, yeah, go ahead and wiretap them. It's not like you're talking about Watergate (which is completely unacceptable), this is war. And the President has the Constitutional right (and responsibility) to do this. Most people understand this.
• I'm finishing up the Chronicles of Narnia (I'm just about to start the seventh and final book). I'll post some thoughts about it next month.
• FOX News has been doing several reports this last week about the decline of Christianity in Europe. Churches are empty and being sold. Europeans are militantly secular, openly jeering anything religious. Muslims, mostly non-integrated to European society, are increasing at alarming rates. But it's not just the decline of Christianity, it's the decline of Europe. Consider the low birth rates and the legalization (and promotion) of abortion, euthanasia, and suicide pills, and we may see the eclipse of white, Christian Europeans in our lifetime. Some European countries have such low birthrates that they are rapidly shrinking (mighty Russia may shrink to less than 25 million people in 100 years -- about equal to the population of the New York Metropolitan Area). Nearly all Eurpean nations are below the replacement fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman (that means they're not replacing themselves). In the U.S., New England has a low, European-like replacement birthrate, but the rest of the country is well above what's necessary (I'm doing my part) and we have significant immigration to boot. While Europe shrinks, America grows.
  

You Light Up My Life

This Christmas was supposedly the year of the widescreen tv and the iPod. But I'm finding myself fascinated with an invention that's been around for forty years, LED lights. The gift I received at church (meaning the gift I stole from someone during the latter stages of the game we played) was an LED flashlight. It's really cool; it runs on AA batteries and is extremely powerful. I couldn't be more pleased with it. Then yesterday I went and got a little reading light that clips to a book. It has two little LED lights and will probably last just about forever. Both gadgets emit a bright, cool bluish-white light. Neat-o.

As far as a new television is concerned, I can't bring myself to pay $1500 bucks or more for a tv. We have a tv that works, so until they switch over to digital broadcast in a few years, I'm going to wait. Hopefully I can wait even longer than that.

And I love our little iPod. Sure, it's not as flashy as some of these new video iPods but I like it for long car rides with the kids and for mowing the yard and exercising. It backs up my hard drive and I listen to some podcasts on it; I'm pretty content with it.

I would be ok with going a few more years before buying anymore expensive gadgets. I like the ones I have… unless of course they come out with an iPod with LED lights… hmmm…

I'm Back

Whew, the holidays were busy but we had a lot of fun. With all of the family activities, I actually went long spans (ok, hours) without reading the news or blogging or checking my email! See, I can quit any time I want to! *facial tick*

But fortunately I'm back reading, studying, emailing, and blogging during each of the little breaks in my day. I'll report on how the boys' Christmas went and comment on what's going on in the world in upcoming posts. I have some good pictures.

God bless and thanks for reading.

Random Christmas Eve Thoughts

• I went to see Craig before his foot surgery Friday. I walked in the surgery center and told the nurse I was looking for Craig and that I was his minister. She leaves to check on them and tells Sonya and Craig, "There's a guy here looking for you. He says he's your minister but he looks like a bouncer." Well… uh… that's a first. Usually, people only protest that I'm too young. Maybe I need to smile more.
• We're opening presents today with the boys. Brennan and Tanner are pretty excited but Elijah doesn't seem to get it yet. I made a little five-day countdown calendar for the boys and we've been crossing out each day until Christmas. That helped focus them a little on the idea that Christmas is a particular day and not just whenever it's snowy outside.
• Dustin got to go to the Chiefs game today. It's 45 degrees and raining; hope he has fun.
  
• We have the Christmas Eve "Carols and Candlelight" tonight and church tomorrow (with the gift exchange during Sunday School). My in-laws are coming over after church for presents and enchiladas and we're doing my family's Christmas on Monday. With all the visiting, gift opening, and eating, I may not do a lot of blogging during that time, but you never know.
• I heard that all the major retail stores have finally been pressured into saying "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays". I wonder if we've really gained anything? Businesses are still just trying to turn a profit (and what do you expect?) and now Christians have bullied a lot of secular people during the season of peace and joy. Did that help the cause of evangelism? Does the non-religious Jewish store clerk who is forced to say Merry Christmas against her will now more inclined toward Christ or less so? As a minister, I'm not sure all this fuss was worth it. Oh, well.
  
• Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy your family and your church family! Wear a warm sweater and eat good food. Play a board game and take a good nap. Don't worry about the stuff but enjoy the relationships. God bless!
  

What Wall?

The supposed wall of seperation between church and state may be rapidly crumbling. The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the ACLU's oft-referenced wall isn't there! Read this article on the recent ruling. We have been heading toward a point where anything Judeo-Christian would have been banned as oppressive, prejudiced, and culturally insensitive. Now, maybe the tide has turned.

There's also an interesting little article by Grant Swank on the subject of separtation of church and state.

Merry Christmas!

Rarely Early, Never Late

There are not words to express how thankful I am for the way that God supplies our every need. We were in a bit of a pinch, or at least we would have been very soon, and though we had not said a word to anyone (pride?), the Lord delivered, literally to our front door. For those of you who were involved in being a blessing to us, thank you.

There is a saying that God is rarely early, never late, always on time.

Amen. May I always trust Him and His timing.

Christmas Update

We had a full school bus when we went caroling on Tuesday night; ages ranged from 18 months to 80+ years. It went really well and we finished back at the church with cookies and hot chocolate. Several folks mentioned that they were glad our church still does that sort of thing. I'm glad too; it's the stuff that makes memories.

We had about 120 people at our kids program Wednesday night. Thanks to everyone who helped (Shannon was one of the key folks) and thank you parents for working with your kids. I was really impressed with how much those little guys memorized. It was awesome! Good job Mr. Anderson.

Saturday evening at 7pm is our "Carols and Candlelight." Please bring your family and friends. We'll have lots of singing and, you guessed it, candles! No heavy sermons or tedious ceremonies this time; it should be very "user friendly" for those not that comfortable with church.

Sunday we'll have our worship service as usual, though there will be some minor adjustments for the holiday. At Sunday School the adult classes are having a gift exchange. Remember, bring something you would want to take home yourself, and please keep it at $10 or less.

Merry Christmas and thank you for making your church family part of your celebrations.

John Steuart Curry

Most people, if they've ever heard of John Steuart Curry at all, know him from his murals that he painted in the Kansas Capital Building in Topeka, specifically the one with John Brown holding a rifle and a bible. But Curry, who was a native of Jefferson County, Ks, had other famous paintings as well. A few of my favorites follow:

Baptism in Kansas was the painting that made Curry famous. It represents the influence of the Church in depression era Kansas. Since the artist is local and the subject matter appropriate, I'd love to find a place in the church somewhere to hang a print of this. It just seems like the kind of thing any church in NE Kansas would have, though I've never seen it.


Return of Private Davis from the Argonne is a painting that Curry spent years working on. It represents Curry's recollection of the funeral of a World War 1 soldier in Winchester, Ks. Because of my military leanings and the location of the scene (my hometown), this is the one work of which I'd really like to own a print for my home or office.


Line Storm is probably the first John Steuart Curry painting I can remember and has had the strongest impact on me. A print of this eerie painting was hung in the doctor's office in Winchester where it stared at me while I waited for my sports physical each year, but I believe it's now hanging in a private home. The color of it is so strange that it evokes the same queer feeling you get when a real afternoon storm in Kansas casts a greenish pall over everything.


Tornado In Kansas is said to represent an actual farm a few miles from Winchester where Curry lived and where his relatives still live today. My brother had a classmate that grew up there.

Pro Bowl

The NFL released the rosters for the Pro Bowl in Hawaii next February. Knowing that this is not always the most accurate barometer of who had the best year, there were still some surprises in the list.

• First and foremost, the NFC quarterbacks. Matt Hasselbeck is a good choice, but Jake Delhomme and Mike Vick?! Good grief! What were the other choices? In contrast, the AFC is represented by Tom Brady, Carson Palmer, and some guy named Peyton Manning. That's a night and day difference.
  
• What's wrong with Reggie Wayne, Joey Galloway or Anquan Boldin? Are they not popular enough?
• WR Koren Robinson, who was suspended from the NFL and cut from the Seahawks because of his substance abuse problems, is on the list. He went to the Vikings and scored a few dramatic touchdowns, so he'll be rewarded with a trip to Hawaii as a return man.
• Lorenzo Neal finally made it to another Pro Bowl! It helps when NFL Films does an entire show about how good you are. Sorry T. Rich.
  
• For the second year in a row, both Ronde and Tiki Barber will go to the Pro Bowl. They are the only set of brothers going this year (Eli Manning was not selected).
  
• No one from the Titans, Packers, or 49ers are going (and only one from the Eagles), but no Cleveland Browns were picked either, in spite of having a fairly decent defensive team.
• The Chiefs have 0 defensive players going this year but they have five offensive players going, including three offensive linemen.
  

A Fair Perspective

John Scales, over at Strategy Page, wrote an article re-examining the context of the invasion of Iraq. I thought it was especially fair and even-handed. We quickly forget circumstances and important factors after they are no longer at hand. His article starts:

Better than two years [almost three] after the US-led coalition invaded Iraq, defeated its government, and set up a new one, there is widespread disagreement within the US about whether it should have been done and almost universal opposition if not condemnation overseas. Unfortunately, much of the argument between those who supported and those who opposed has been couched in emotional terms, informed by partisan politics, or based on pre-existing prejudices. What is lacking is an unbiased look at the situation as it was in 2002 and at the real alternatives available then.

Read the rest by clicking here.

The Graham Cam

We had a doctor's appointment early this morning to have a sonogram done of Graham. He's doing great and there are no signs of anatomical abnormalities. He's due about April 14 or so.

His brothers were not terribly impressed with what they saw on the screen and Tanner asked if Graham was going to come out now. They were all disappointed but we bought them off with donuts. We're all eager to see him for real and our hearts are set at ease knowing that he's ok.

A Caroling We Go

We went caroling this evening. We had a bus full of folks that went to the homes of some of our elderly folks and it seemed to go really well. Brennan and Tanner played in the snow weaving a web of little tracks through the snow in each yard. Elijah got fed up with the bus ride after about an hour. He wasn't real keen on getting on and off and on again. Next year we may see the two older boys go with Dad while the younger two stay home with Mom.

Random Thoughts 12/19/05

• I voluntarily exiled myself to the couch last night. There are rumors that I may snore just a little, maybe once or twice per night (I've never heard it myself). But I wanted my wife, who has a severe case of pregnancy, to get a good night's rest. It wasn't bad and I was quite cozy, at least until Eli (not quite two years old) woke me up with a slobbery head butt (it was supposed to be a kiss) and a poke in the eye (look Mom, I found Daddy!).
• The President has seen a noticeable uptick in his approval ratings today. A successful election last week in Iraq and some very clear speeches (three in as many days) and people are realizing that a lot of the criticism of President Bush has just been uninformed people venting some hate. He has a plan and always has had one. And more importantly it's working and at an historic pace. News flash: the President is not greatest evil out there.
• I've got my gift for the Sunday School party we're having Christmas morning. And yes, it has a Jayhawk on it! Remember, $10 or less and make it something you would want to go home with yourself.
• Hornets, Penguins and Magic, oh my! There's a good chance that Kansas City will get an NHL or NBA team in a few years. The Penguins (hockey) and the Magic (basketball) are both unhappy in their current cities. The New Orleans Hornets are in a rough situation and may move (make note that our new Arena Football team is actually the old New Orleans team moved and renamed). The 18,500 seat Sprint Center opens in the fall of '07.
• The NFL's Saints may have played their last game in the state of Louisiana. The Saints players made note of this possibility after the game Sunday and the NFL, which has been saying all the right things up to this point, actually makes a decision in January. Considering that the NFL has said that it will not expand beyond 32 teams in the forseeable future but also claims it will put a team in LA within a few years, there does seem to be a strong possibility that the Saints will move. I kinda hope that they do. Nothing against New Orleans, but there were several strikes against that city before it got flattened by Katrina.
• Don't forget caroling Tuesday night at 6pm.
• Ok, I'm starting to think this Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahma-what's-his-face, might be working for the CIA. Last week he said the Jewish Holocaust was a myth and now he's just declared western-style music illegal in Iran; is this guy trying to start a revolution? The ban ought to go over really well with the millions of Iranians under 30 who have DVD players and iPods. The average age there is 24. Talk about a leader alienating both his own people and foreign countries. Good grief.
  

Baghdad Boil

Ok, here's something I didn't know much about until this evening, the so-called "Baghdad Boil." It's actually called leishmaniasis and can be potentially very serious. It's caused by the bite of a sand fly found in the Middle East and has affected many hundreds of US service members.

Here is a brief explanation from the Mayo Clinic, but what I saw tonight didn't look nearly as bad as the picture on that page or any of the other examples I found on the internet.

This is an article about the condition as it affected the first few rotations of troops home from Iraq by early 2004.

This page is from the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USCHPPM) and has several informative links on the subject. If you're a wiki-nerd like me, here's the direct link to wikipedia article on leishmaniasis.

Please pray for our men and women who have these nasty sores on their hands and faces. It's painful, takes a long time to heal, and, in the case of one version of disease, can be very serious.

Casing the Brigade Colors

The new Arena Football team in Kansas City, the Brigade, revealed their new uniforms Friday. My first thought: Carolina Panthers. Hey it could be worse.


The Brigade starts playing early next year and I've heard that arena football games are a blast to watch live. It would be a pretty cool event, especially for the youth group or something.

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I've enjoyed reading Paul Lukas' articles about sports uniforms called "Uni Watch" (look on ESPN.com or slate.com). He notices a lot of the trends, historical details, and little details about uniforms that I've always noticed too. For example, here's a bit about what the referees wear in the NFL:

In 1941 the league switched to baseball caps and, interestingly, a color-coded system of vertically striped jerseys: The referee's stripes were black and white while the head linesman wore red and white, the umpire wore orange and white, and the field judge donned green and white. Everyone went to the standard black-white design in 1945, the same year officials began wearing uniform numbers, and the league's basic officiating uni has remained relatively constant since then.

I think it's interesting how teams put their outfits together and how some teams never change their look while other teams follow whatever is the latest fad. I appreciate the teams that are more conservative and traditional (Chiefs, Colts, and Packers) and I like the reasonably retro look (Giants, Jets or the powder-blue Chargers). I'm not a big fan of uniforms that are designed by shoe companies (Broncos) or the all black look (Jags, Ravens, Falcons, Saints). In fact, it's usually a bad idea to match your dark colored jersey with the same color pants (are you listening Eagles and Seahawks?).

But who gets my vote for the "Stevie Wonder Ugliest NFL Uniform of the Year" award? (Drum roll please…)

And the Stevie goes to… the Cincinnati Bengals.


Yuck. Nice team, but the uniforms… c'mon. Really now… make it stop. The whole thing is a bit much, but somebody was asleep at the wheel when it came to the sides of this uniform. I mean look at it. Can you say train wreck?

Random Thoughts 12/17/05

• There are two ways to view President Bush: He's either an honest man in a difficult situation getting little or no help, or he's a corrupt and reckless man that has played out his own nefarious agenda. Naturally about half of everybody was assuming the worst this week when they heard that the President was spying on Americans. Here is President Bush's reponse Saturday morning, you decide for yourself if this is part of his "evil plan."
• We're getting another good snowstorm; poor Tanner. We are going to have his party this evening, but now we're not sure anyone can make it.
• Shannon was having a pretty rough day yesterday and so we stayed in last night, missing the surprise birthday party of a good friend. I know it was the right decision for Shannon's health, but the party would have been more enjoyable. You see we decided to watch the War of the Worlds remake, which was probably not as good as the original movie version. WARNING: Spoilers below (highlight with your curser to read)

First of all the underground thing was a dumb idea. These huge machines were underground this whole time and we never noticed them? Why put them there in the first place? If the aliens had the ability to put them there a million years ago, why not just take over the planet then? It just doesn't make sense. Second, what was with the machines sucking human blood and then spraying it everywhere? Besides being ghastly, it didn't make a lot of sense. Were the people being used as fuel or food or something? And if they were, why did the aliens kill a billion people in the first few days? Isn't that destroying a their fuel source? Why wouldn't they be more careful about capturing or even farming humans if they need them for some reason. Hasn't Spielberg ever seen the sci-fi series V? At least that made some sense.

• Speaking of Tanner's birthday party, it's pretty telling when you say it begins during the second half of the Chiefs' game and people balk at that. Nice. Heaven forbid we interrupt a football game for Tanner! Grrrr…
• The snow is getting worse as I write this. I hope it doesn't dramatically affect worship tomorrow. We have some of our college kids who are home for Christmas and will be part of the worship team tomorrow. And after hearing them practice, I know nobody would want to miss it.
• If only every American had to take economics 101. Here are ten economic myths from 2005 that the mainstream media likes to promote. Some of these are common sense if people would just understand some basic principles of economics and some history.