Well...

we played Coffee Amici tonight.

Hopefully, there will be some photos to come...

-rc

Not a bad idea...

www.GodCan.com

..just save yourself the 4 bucks on the deluxe "God Can" (better yet, just save the $3 on the regular one) and just pray.

I can't seem to rank this idea up there with all of the companion materials for the "Prayer of Jabez," well...maybe I can. It seems I did.

Not that I'm against tools for prayer, or prayer in general for that matter. In fact I love prayer, and if you'd like to buy one, that's fine...

...I just may giggle a little bit...

A few things I learned last week...

There are times when life makes you stop. Such was last Tuesday.

So, here's the list (just in time for Thanksgiving):

1. I love my wife.
2. I will never be able to pay her back for all her love and care she's shown over the past few days.
(I scared the sh** out of her)
3. My son rocks. He's so funny!
4. I can't ignore the fact that I'm not as young as I used to be.
5. Despite the fact I feel like an outsider when I'm home for holidays, my family truly loves me and has a high level of regard for A. and me.
6. I have great friends.
7. There are too many people depending on me for me to be cavalier about my health.
8. I have a lot to be thankful for.

A special thank you for to each of you for your prayers, phone calls, and visits. I cannot begin how to tell how much the time each one of you spent with wifey and I meant to us and sustained us over Tuesday and Wednesday.

I am eternally grateful...

Loved every minute of it...

"You want to beat Ohio State. I got one more year left. I'm going to get them next year."


This was said on top of other rich commentary and declarations such as:

"There's nothing special about that defense."


and...

"You know, but if we played them again, it would be a whole different game. Guarantee that."

--Mike Hart following last year's game

O-H freakin' I-O, my brutha...

Keep yo' mouth shut...

I tend to agree with the caption of this photo...

"Celebrating the death of somebody you disagreed with pretty much makes you a dick."

The article you'll find this in can be read here.

The apostle Dwight K. Schrute

Call me crazy, but can anyone else hear Dwight's voice reading this verse found in Deuteronomy 25:11-12?

11 If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, 12 you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.

Maybe it's just me...

An interesting article

A great web site for reading some interesting Christian perspective is at the Third Way Cafe (link here). I was sifting through some of the material today I ran across and article titled "Christ and the New Atheism." (read the whole thing here).

Overall, it was a very thought provoking article, and it comes from a perspective that seems to be open to dialogue. There are a bunch of authors gaining recognition as the New Atheists and in a series of books are throwing out some ideas that if I really honest are more fair then they ought to be.

Here's a snippet:

The basic arguments of the two I read (Harris and Dawkins) are very similar. First, they note that religion and the irrational belief it inspires stand behind much of the conflict in the world and many of the atrocities of past centuries (the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Holocaust, the September 11 terrorist attacks).

Faith, they claim, ignores evidence and common sense, making a believer capable of great evil. Second, they argue that the world can be more satisfactorily explained by science instead of a supernatural designer and that an appreciation of the difference between good and evil does not require scriptural basis. Third, they propose an alternative approach to spirituality; Dawkins admits to a “pantheistic reverence” and Harris advertises the mind-opening possibilities of meditation. Ultimately, though, they serve less to outline a worldview than to attempt to destroy another.

Not having read their books I cannot vouge for the accuracy or fairness of the synopsis. But pretend the author of the article is right. Would you be able to finish by saying:

Disciples of Christ stand opposed to most of what the New Atheists assert. We proclaim not only the existence of God but also the imminence of the kingdom of God. We accept the mystery of parts of our faith, including the Trinity and the afterlife. But we miss hearing a prophetic word if we ignore them entirely, no matter how stridently secular the mouthpiece. The rise of New Atheism presents us with an opportunity to assess our failings and refocus on our priorities. The best counter is not another slightly more shrill argument but a searching look at ourselves.

They're lots in between these two statements in the entire article, but I think that overall, I can see how people can make the jumps that these "New Atheists" do. We'd more likely be able to enter into dialogue with folks if we tried to see the truth in critique rather than counter-attack with a volley of 'shrill argument.'

I'd love some feedback, I thought the article was great...

November CD of the Month

A slight change of pace from last month...


This month is Anberlin's "Cities." This is a rock album with a very distinct style. It's hard to describe, but it's solid from top to bottom. I enjoyed it. Hope you do too...

Not even lying...

McDonald's has the Monopoly game going again. I recently scored Park Place. If you, anyone in internet land, get's Boardwalk I will split the $$ with you. We'll get an attorney and draft a contract, do it right, and bam--done--

Seriously...

Not even kidding...

My childhood! Revived in a fun way...

Yes, after searching high and low, I've found a place where one can play the orignal "Oregon Trail" online. I absolutely loved this game, and it should come as no surprise after playing it for an entire Saturday, I still love it.

Also available at www.virtualapple.org:

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

Lode Runner

Wheel of Fortune

Got a game you grew up on during computer time on the ol' apple IIe? You'l probably find it here...

...bad news though...

If you're a Mac user it won't work. You must play on a PC. Ironically, it's the only platform that this specific mac emulator will run on.

(you're hearing taps played on a bugle)

It was a sad day, kind of...

For about five minutes of it.

I picked up my lovely wife at work and we walked down Main street in search of a lunchtime destination. Her preference? The Greek Garden. A delightful little place that makes great gyros and is the only place close that does saganaki, or 'flaming cheese' as we call it. It hasn't been back open since the flood. It may not every open back up.

My first choice was Fuzzy Berstein's. A Jewish-Italian style deli further north on Main. They always had a great assortment of sandwiches and soups and the coffee wasn't bad either. To our surprise, the flood wiped them out too. The only thing in their space was a chalkboard sandwich board that simply said, "Thanks everyone. You were the best customers ever."

My sadness isn't because I was hungry and they wouldn't be hooking me up with lunch. Most people that start their own business do it for the love of it. Many of them have their dreams fulfilled by opening a little Greek place or a unique Jewish-Italian style deli. Unfortunately, they had to wake up far too soon...

So, we walked and reached our lunchtime destination. The food was great. Company was the best (love you, baby). And now that my belly's full (from a particularly good sandwich, by the way), I'm sure I'm bumed for the people that lost their little hunk of small business bliss, and less about the lack of good saganaki in the county.

Reason #117 why I love 'The Office"

I'd want to get more than necking out of that effort, too :)

If you don't watch the office, you don't know what I'm talking about...

Sorry?

Sorry, Tribe...

Maybe it's a different Ohio team's year. Apparently, Jesus is a Buckeye...

crap...

Fan-freakin'-tastic...

I wish there was more music like this...

Manny being Manny, yes...but

isn't he mostly right? Wedensday he said this when asked about his feelings about the possibility of being eliminated from the playoffs:

"If it doesn't happen, who cares?" "There's always next year. It's not like it's the end of the world."

Now, as an Indians fan, I appreciate the sentiment. For me, it wouldn't be the end of the world if the Red Sox lost tonight (or in game 6 or 7 for that matter). However, I found this particular statement to be interesting.

Like any fan of any sport, I want to see the players on my teams win or die trying; give all the effort they can (which is 100%, not 110%, thanks). We want to see them fight tooth and nail for victory, and we even see this lived out on the recreational fields of rec league softball games and all the way down to our 4 year olds playing soccer. Win! Win at all costs, dammit!

There's an outcry of "You lazy piece of crap" when we hear athletes, like Randy Moss, confess that he doesn't go all out on every play and he really only plays when he wants to.

I confess I'm one that gives Mr. Moss plenty of crap for that reason.

Is it just me, or is the only time we hear athletes say something like "You know, we play a game and that's all we do" when there's been some large sweeping national or internation tragedy? Then they go out, play, and with everything in proper perspective, everyone enjoys the games for the reasons we ought, because they're games.

Isn't poverty a large, sweeping national tragedy? What about the genocide in Darfur? What about the AIDS pandemic? No athletes keeping their jobs in perspective over these. There's often only a black stripe on a sleeve, or a flag on jersey, or a number or initials on a helmet or sleeve, or a pink bat. No keeping their 'recreationally based' careers in the perspective as they ought.

Manny just did. Although, I'm sure he wasn't trying to. He's more like the airhead you went to school with that got 100%'s on everything (not 110%'s). But, he did hit on something true that no one will look at as truthfully as they ought because there hasn't been something big and tragic to help us remember and give perspective.

They'll just pissed that he seems to not give a crap.

That's just Manny being Manny...

If you love food...

...you'll probably like this:

I did.

Sorry...had to giggle...

There is a town close to Findlay called Carey. And in Carey there resides a high Catholic population--there's actually a shrine there, too. It should also be noted that the Carey High School mascot is the Blue Devil...where am I going with this? I'm going here:

I went to Maria's Tacos to pick up lunch for the family today and walking out of the restaurant was a nun. No biggie. Not all that naturally occurring in Findlay, but she was there nonetheless and probably enjoyed what is the best taco in town. She got into her car and I noticed the ribbon-magnet thing on the trunk said out loud and proud, "GO DEVILS!"

The sight of a nun driving a car with GO DEVILS on the back made me giggle... Not an out and laugh, more like a giggle/snicker really.

I'm done now :)

GO TRIBE!!

In yet another effort to voice my love for the lovable Wigwam-ers of the Cuyahoga, I post this...

YANKEES SUCK! An I am TIRED of the ESPN east coast/big market bias. My Tribe looked awesome versus a collection talent. That's all that those crappy Yankees were, a collection of talent...nowhere close to a team.

Now, we feed the Red Sox the screws (and subsequently ESPN) and get to the series!!

Ahhh....much better...

A new addition

Because I go through CD's much faster than books, I've decided to add a feature I'm calling the CD of the month. If you're anything like me, you tend to get hooked on a CD for a period of time. Then you might move onto a new 'flava' and on and on it goes...

In an effort to accommodate this tendency in myself and possibly others, I'm adding this little feature--located in the column on the right. SO, you may do one or none of the following:

-Give a review of the CD if you listen to it.
-Suggest similar artists to me (and subsequently others).
-Suggest CD's to add to the list of consideration of CD's OTM.

Later...