Things I love- Fall 2009 Edition

So, lately I have been attempting to make more of an effort to appreciate daily the amazing creation that God has given to us. So with that new mission plus the fact that I had a lovely (literally) 5 hour drive from Nashville to Auburn to enjoy the creation and sit with my thoughts I thought I would include this post so everyone knows how amazing our world is!
Things I love:
1) Crunching in fallen leaves (when I am a REAL grownup with a house I want a yard full of hardwood trees so every fall I can go out in my own yard and crunch around in the leaves all I want- even if it means I have to rake 3 times a week!).
2) The first hints of fall (when the leaves are just about to change, when the wind blows and you can smell autumn around the corner, when the days are still warm but the nights are chilly)
3) When the trees explode into fireworks of fall colors (often I will make an explosion sound when I see an especially gorgeous tree).
4) Watching things grow...2 examples
(1) the maple tree planted in our yard (boy will I miss that tree when we move). It came to us after a hurricane which blew the seed into a potted plant on our apartment balcony in Birmingham and in just 4 years is now taller than Jason and turns the most gorgeous shades of red in the fall!
(2) my friend's daughter Meg- every time I see this adorable baby she has grown and changed in so many ways. Isn't it amazing how God makes us so that we are always growing and learning? I mean, we could have just come out knowing everything, but I love it that even in our final days we will still be learning! It is nice to have this reminder in a little baby. I wish as adults we could mature and learn as much in as short a time as children.
5) Football- I love going to the games, tailgating, watching great games on tv. I realized on my drive today, though, that what I enjoy most about football is enjoying this with OTHERS. I think it is just a great bonding experience to have a (hopefully) common goal to share!

Well, there are a few things I love about this time of year...and just in general! What do you appreciate? What parts of creation do you appreciate this time of year?

Bueler? Bueler?

I think our blog is sounding a lot like Ben Stein's character these days. Anyone? Anyone? (BTW- SUCH a great movie!) Wow have we been neglectful! Sorry dear bloggers...all two of you! Anyway, so an update on our life:
house- still for sale, but we are still okay with that (otherwise we'd be homeless!)
my new job- great!...many stories to tell (parents are a crazy group of people)
Jason's job- going well still- he has now learned how to use a tractor and has somehow incorporated his love of duck hunting into his job
Toby- compared to this time last year, a very calm dog! He is on his way to being a very good little (or big- he's almost 90 pounds!) duck hunter, Jason is a great dog trainer and all this duck training has helped Tob become a much calmer dog (when labs have a purpose or mission they are calmer because they know what their job is- kind of reminds you of people, doesn't it?)
life in Auburn- with the students back it takes longer to go everywhere now and WalMart is now a forbidden place considering how crazy it gets this time of year with all the students. Also, the grocery stores apparently don't plan ahead and are out of things I want/need because of the students (sadly, I yelled "stupid students" one night in the grocery store because I couldn't find my pasta...I am lame, I realize that). On the bonus side Jason and I know lots of cool freshman (or just new to Auburn) students this year and are looking forward to feeding and loving on them this year!
That's about it- we will do better with the updates (Jason is here and he says he HAS been blogging- but for his work blog!).

Do you remember?

Do you know where you came from? Do you know why you are the way you are? I ask those questions because I think those are 2 basic questions that we as Americans cannot adequately answer. How many people liked history class? C'mon, raise your hands. That's what I thought-not very many. I'll admit it, I didn't like it either. However, I learned a lot from it.

You see, today in America there are children growing up who have no idea who Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, John Adams, or Adam Smith were. To them, Benjamin Franklin is the guy who flew the kite with the key on it and got hit by lightning. They have no idea he was a key player in the formation of our nation.


Why does this matter? It matters because without knowledge of your past you have no way to define your present. You just wander around making decisions on the spur of the moment and falling prey to anyone who presents any idea to you because you have no basis to defend your current stance. This is where we are in America today. We slurp up any idea or principle anyone presents to us as long as they say it in a nice way or look good while they're saying it. No matter if it is detrimental to our freedom or way of life, heck, they sounded good saying it so it must be good, right? Wrong! Hitler sounded good to a lot of people at first, so did Mussolini, Guevara & Castro. I think we all know how that turned out, or maybe not since we don't know history.

Today we have people falling prey to TV pastors who promise to heal their ailments, as long as you send them a check. We have people placing all their hope, freedom, & faith in political ideas. We have people surrendering control of their money all because somebody promises to give them more if they'll just give up what they have first. There are people that actually believe George W. Bush flew the planes into the twin towers, if they remember that event at all. There are people that deny the holocaust in the face of insurmountable evidence!

I cannot understand these people. I cannot tolerate these people. We must teach these people. They must understand the past because we are on the verge of repeating its mistakes. Those mistakes will cost people their lives. My children will know and my children will understand their past. Yes it's uncomfortable and it's not pretty but it's a story that must be told. We cannot be ignorant of what got us here, whether good or bad.



On this week of our Independence Day I urge you to go back, take a minute, and reflect on our history. Reflect on our founding fathers, their beliefs, and their sacrifices. Their sacrifices didn't involve whether or not to get a plasma tv or a luxury car. They involved lives and many of them lost theirs so that we can live in freedom. In no way, shape, or form can we allow that to be forgotten. It must be remembered, it must be honored, and it must be taught. Freedom is in my blood. It is in my soul. It is ingrained in my very being and I will die before I give it up. We've already surrended too many of our freedoms. America, let's not lose it all.

Fast Forward Weekend

Not that the weekend is over yet (yay!) but I am inside the hotel room in Charleston, South Carolina to get out of the heat for a bit. So here is the past 24 hours:
-wake up before 5 a.m. central time
-work all day
-drive 6 hours from Columbus, GA to Charleston, SC..an easy and uneventful drive (praise the Lord!)
-arrive at our AMAZING hotel at 11p.m. eastern time where Jason was waiting for me
-wake up and get a grande tea from Starbucks in the hotel lobby
-go for a run and explore the city near our hotel
-go to the farmer's market across from the hotel and get a yummy breakfast of Nutella and strawberry crepe for breakfast (yum!)
-went on a carriage ride tour of Charleston
-went to the market and "window" shopped
-saw the tall ships at Harbor Fest
....so, it has been a busy last 24 hours but I am so thankful for a fun weekend away!

PS- I forgot to mention that while at the Farmer's Market I ran into some girls that go to Auburn and had a "war eagle" moment! And stay tuned for more stories about broken dresses, crazy rain, MORE yummy food (because why else go on vacation if it is not to eat your weight in delicious food?), and God's perfect timing/miracles in the form of a taxi!

Walk This Way

So, in case some of you don't know about ARM (Alabama Rural Ministries) I will enlighten you. This is an awesome ministry that serves families in need in rural Alabama (hence the name!). ARM achieves this by helping families repair their homes, providing day camps for children during the summer, etc. BUT, this post is about ARM's "Walk Across Alabama". A group of sure footed folks are walking across the Black Belt of Alabama (from Tuskegee to Livingston) to raise awareness of the condition of poverty housing in Alabama. This is an amazing endeavor and Jason and I got the opportunity to participate with the walkers in a work day in Selma this Saturday. It was an awesome blessing to us to be able to serve and I hope by blogging about it more people will know about this great group of people! Please pray for the walkers but more importantly, pray for the people they are raising awareness for! I am not sure how to put captions under the pictures, but these are the pictures: Lisa Pierce (Executive Director of ARM), David and Jason (dirty but still smiling), the sort of "before" picture of the house (note the size of the brush pile), the "after" picture (we had 3 other piles going at this point because this brush pile got too tall), the Edmund Pettus bridge (site of the historic civil rights march)

To learn more about ARM and the Walk Across Alabama go to: http://walkacrossal.arm-al.org/

Quick Update

So many things have been happening lately and no time to blog about any of them (which is fine, it means I have a life away from the computer!). So, to fast forward through the past 4 weeks: graduated with my Master's degree, went on an incredible vacation (saw a manatee, went to the beach, snorkeled, ate a lot of yummy seafood, Disney World, Sea World, home- whew!), had a birthday and am now cringing because I am 12 years away from 40 (by the way, who in their right mind thinks like that?), and started my new job (are people really paying me to play with kids? Awesome!). So- that is our very recent life in a nutshell.

Adding to the Noise

"What's it gonna take to slow us down
to let the silence spin us around?
What's it gonna take to drop this town?
We've been spinning at the speed of sound.

Stepping out of those convenience stores
what could we want but more more more?
From the third world to the corporate core
we are the symphony of modern humanity, yeah"

--Adding to the Noise by Switchfoot

Have you ever stopped and thought about how noisy our world as Americans has become? We have iPods, Blu-Rays, DVD's, CD's, Plasmas, LCD's, LED's (which I'll admit do look awesome), surround sound, movie theaters, car stereos, blackberries, cell phones, iPhones, etc., etc., etc. That list could be almost endless. There are literally hundreds of things in our everyday world that contribute to noise. Sure, I have an iPod. Very few people nowadays don't have an iPod or some other sort of music player, but how often do you use it to drown out other noise? Doesn't it seem a little odd to be using noise to suppress noise?

I work in a job where I am blessed to have opportunities for peace and quiet while I work. Often if I'm in the office the only sounds I have to hear are the clock ticking and my fingers rapping away on the keyboard. Every now and then the phone rings or the radio goes off but it doesn't happen constantly. If I'm out in the woods all it takes is for me to stop whatever I'm doing for a minute and listen. Usually all I hear are the birds. I hear God's creation and it sounds so much better than any of man's creations! It is peaceful. It is restful. It is refreshing. I love it!

I don't think we were meant to live a life of noise. I think we were meant to live a life of connection to other people. Too many times we're in large groups of people but we have no idea what is going on with the people near us. We go to a concert and it's so loud you have to wear earplugs to keep your ears from ringing or even bleeding. It's so loud you can't even understand the words to the songs. What's the point? This happens across the board too. I've been to many "Christian" concerts and left having an appreciation for the musicians talent in playing their instruments, but having understood only about 25% of the lyrics. Are we really spreading the gospel by drowning out the words and damaging people's hearing? I think not.

This past week Meredith and I had a great vacation through Florida with stops in Crystal River, Englewood, & Orlando (Disney & Sea World). We spent a lot of time in the boat at Crystal River (when it wasn't raining) and Englewood. Other than the noise of the boat when we stopped it was generally relaxing. Disney World & Sea World - my goodness I couldn't believe the noise. I've been to both places several times and I can't ever remember a time when it was so loud. The people were loud, the rides were loud, the music was loud, the shows were loud, everything was just noise. It was exhausting. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the trip, but I was amazed at the general noise. Disney was the worst. I had trouble focusing on what was happening where. It was hard to talk to each other standing in line for rides or while eating lunch. It was over stimulation of the worst kind. I guess they're trying for the "wow" factor but to me it was just too much. If we had kids right now I would hesitate greatly before taking them to Disney. I don't want my kids being bombarded constantly with that much stuff. It can't be good for them.

I think our society now has a vested interest in keeping everything noisy. After all, if it's noisy then nobody can hear the cries for help, nobody can hear the shouts of joy, nobody can hear the pleas for the innocent, nobody can focus on anything but themselves. We want it to be noisy because it's easier than having to hear & see the difficult challenges in front of us. It's much easier to be oblivious than to be informed. We are lost in & consumed by the noise.

By the way, consumerism of our society relates to the noise, but that's a whole 'nother post for another day when I have time to think it all out. No guarantees for a timeline on that!

In the meantime, are you adding to the noise?

More life lessons...

Life Lesson # 1,247: When giving your 80+ pound dog a bath INSIDE, it is not wise to first bathe yourself...you will only end up needing to take another shower.
(This second shower is due to the physical exertion it takes to get an unwilling dog into the bathtub, the amount of running you have to do to catch said dog and put him back in the bathtub, and the half hour or so of cleaning you will need to do to mop up the bathtub floor, clean the walls, toilet, cabinet, sink, and try to get the wet dog fur off of every surface).

Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings' end...

So May is my favorite month (I was born in May, got married in May, graduated high school, undergrad, and now grad school in May...it's a great time of the year). This May marks the beginning of many new things: graduation from graduate school, getting a Masters degree, no longer being a student, turning 20something, celebrating 4 years of marriage, starting a new job (okay, technically that is June 1). The most exciting thing so far about May is that I got to meet Meg! Margaret Abigail Heerman was born March 31 to my friends Bill and Jenn and she is SOOOOO cute! I am so excited for them as they start this new chapter of their lives and also so awed by the fact that just a few months ago we had never met this precious girl and now here she is! God is amazing! So enough talk, just look at the pictures!


On a side note, I learned some very valuable lessons on my drive to Nashville this weekend that I thought I would share:
Life lesson # 3,876: Never try to outrun a tornado when driving through the mountains (or really ever).
Life lesson # 3,875: Never eat Cheetos (baked or otherwise)while driving, especially if you just spent an hour vacuuming out your car. (This life lesson is not to be confused with # 2,014: Eating Cadbury Creme Eggs while driving could be dangerous!)

Addendum

A quick addendum to the previous blog:
I am SOOOO happy that I worship a God who is all powerful; a God who is bigger than any human decisions, a God who will work no matter what we choose to do (no matter whether we use the "right" or "wrong" words, displays, etc). I am relieved that HE reigns over everything. the end. amen. :)

The Cross- Is it important?

One of our friends recently posted her thoughts about the presence (and lack of) crosses in churches. I loved it and wanted to share it with everyone! Thanks Lisa for having the words to say what I was thinking!
From Lisa Pierce:
A sad trend is happening within a small stream of the Christian church. It is most identified with the ever popular contemporary movement and what would be termed “seeker sensitive”. Seeker sensitive church services tend to be designed around making people feel very welcome and eliminating obstacles that make the general church service feel foreign or uncomfortable. Many people are coming back into the church due to these intentional elements. It is exciting to see! But one move disturbs me. That is the removal of the cross in some of these services.

Why does this disturb me? Several reasons. First, Jesus spoke about it so much throughout his ministry- to disciples who did not understand. He admonished them to pick up their crosses daily and follow Him. They simply could not understand this until after Jesus’ death. My faith is grounded in the notion of sacrifice borne from love and a Savior who said, “pick up your cross daily and follow me”. Second, it is the sign of Christ’s fidelity. Although a method of torture, Jesus’ choice to stay on it- to not use His power to come off the cross shows His commitment to the Father in heaven and to us. So, we must continue to carry it and bear it throughout our life. Thirdly, and this is the place that hits closest to home for me…is that in some cultures…it is not permitted. I’ve been in countries where the cross isn’t popular and is considered offensive. During my time in Iraq, we were trained that crosses were not to be publicly displayed among the Iraqi populace.

So, here’s my story. Soldiers in Iraq were constantly seeking God’s presence and needing to know He was with us. I was one of those soldiers. On the night of January 1st 2005, we'd only been in country a few weeks. That evening we had the most incredible sunset-like none other I have ever seen. The sky was a deep orange and when I turned something caught my eye. A metal pole was standing behind and above a 10’ dirt barrier. Near the top of the pole, as it protruded from above the barrier, was a broken piece of angle iron hanging loosely from it. But when I looked at it from my angle-it formed a black cross against a blood, red sky. I was stunned! Christ was very present, even in what someone might consider junk or trash. What’s more, it stood outside and above our hedge of protection-ironically called a Hesco barrier. I took a photo and had it painted. It hangs in my living room to this day. Therefore, when churches can simply remove it because it may make people uncomfortable or give them negative opinions of the church…I wonder if we have missed the point. If we ever get to a place where we are told we CAN’T have it-it may change our perspective a bit.

Here are a few other thoughts. As the Christian church slowly gets rid of its crosses we begin to follow suit with Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Mormons who also have emptied their churches of them. They believe it is idol worship to have a cross and that it is unthinkable that the instrument of Christ's brutal murder should be seen as holy or worthy of veneration. Our Unitarian friends do not believe in Christ’s divinity so they do not have a cross. Maybe the symbol is overused, maybe we cannot really understand the depth of its meaning… but I would hope that then the Christian church’s role becomes more of constantly reminding us of what that commitment is and leading us to a consistent and sacrificial call to discipleship- not just ridding their worship space of it. Mind you, this isn’t seeker friendly and it may not be culturally relevant…but Christ called us to something much higher and deeper than that, and His church to be counter cultural-to define the culture...to be authentic in a veneer society-so what does that look like?

Do we even need symbols? No…we only need Christ. Anything can become an idol whether it is symbols, the Bible, or a worship style. But, if you go back to the book of Leviticus that was to describe worship for the Israelites, it is filled with symbols that God Himself ordained. The lamp stands, the almonds from the branch, the Ark of the Covenant, the use of incense and light were all things that God ordained within the Holy Place-and the Israelites were admonished to remember what these meant.

The cross became the most well known symbol of the Christian faith sometime around 250 AD. Before that, what we know as the Ichthys, or fish, was used by the early Christians as their secret symbol and code. In order to know if the person they were meeting was friendly and a follower of The Way, they would draw the sign of the fish in the dirt. The early church was borne and grew out of persecution-something we have no clue about. The cross has been the single most used and consistent symbol of those who follow Christ. Yes, it has been abused. But its meaning and what it represented will always stand true. Before we so flippantly throw it out as not being convenient, not being seeker sensitive, getting in the way of our worship band, or what ever other reasons we name-maybe we should pause a moment and remember that not everyone around the world gets access the way we do. My hope and prayer is that we reflect upon Christ’s sacrifice, his fidelity, and the constant reminder that he told us to pick it up our cross daily and follow Him.

"Pick up your cross daily and follow me"- Jesus

The picture is of the cross in Iraq- January 1, 2005

Deep Social Change

http://www.breakpoint.org/listingarticle.asp?ID=11050

I don't have a whole lot to say about this at the moment because I'm busy but do check it out.

Home (warning: LONG and rambling!)

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the concept of "home". I am sure that everyone probably has a different definition of what home is, but to me it has always been something very important and very much at the forefront of my mind...I think largely because I have had at least 14 homes (in the structural sense of the word). Growing up, home was a safe space, an intimate space, where my family and I could be together. (My dad was in the Air Force and being together as a family was something that I cherished very much!) Do you have more than one place that feels like home? I do, and they are not always physical buildings. My house in Auburn has never 100% felt like home, maybe because it is mobile ;-), I don't know. Nor has my parents house in Virginia ever felt 100% like my home (Mom- if you read this don't be sad, I always feel home whenever I'm with our family no matter where it is!). I lost the last physical place that I really felt like was "home" after my in laws sold their house in Wetumpka. My parents house there had always seemed "home" but they moved 4 years ago. My house in Nashville seemed like home but again, I haven't actually lived there in almost 4 years. After getting married it takes a while to go from saying "home" in reference to where your parents live to saying "home" in reference to you and your spouses house. Being with Jason always makes me feel at home. Being with my close friends makes me feel at home...even if we are in the middle of a very public space. When I am at church I feel at home. I guess all that to say is my definition of home is that it is not just a physical dwelling, but the space where you share your life with those who are close to you! However, I think the memories made in a physical dwelling often tie us to that dwelling in a way that makes us miss it when we are no longer there. There are several reasons I have been thinking about home lately. One of which is that Jason and I are selling our mobile home and (many prayers needed on this one!) hopefully buying a house here in the Auburn area. Another reason I have been thinking about home is that I am reading the book A Search to Belong (Rethinking Intimacy, Community, and Small Groups) by Joseph Myers. This is an awesome book that I would recommend to anyone who has ever been involved with a small group! In it the author examines the relationships between four types of spaces: public, social, personal, and intimate. Great, great, amazing, thought provoking book. Read it, seriously. You can borrow mine if you want. However, today I was reading about how in our country the definition and expectation of "space" has changed (from front porches and picket fences, to pre fab houses and strip malls). Just thinking about how our culture is so disconnected (and also feeling guilty that I don't know any of my neighbor's names but 1) I am wondering what my definition (and societies) of "home" will be in 10 years....20 years. How will all my huge, life changing decisions in the next few weeks and months (job, house, etc) effect my definition of home once again. I love being home. Having my home be a calm, safe space away from the crazy world is important to me. But I also want my home to be a calm, safe space to others as well. There really is no deep point here, only that I wonder about all you in blog world and what you think about the concept of "home". One thing I am sure of and glad I know...heaven is my REAL home and this earth is only temporary (on some days I am SO happy to remind myself of this fact!).

Saving Thumper

We do a lot of prescribed burning where I work...I mean A LOT. I will usually be involved in burning anywhere from 10,000-20,000 acres per year. I enjoy the work but it gets old very quickly since it takes 2-3 months of burning 2-5 days per week. That's a lot of smoke for one person to inhale.

Yesterday was kind of a slow day at first so on the first block we burned I didn't have much to do except watch the lines. We were burning around the horse pasture & dog kennels so I was standing on the line between the fence and the burn talking to one of the other guys on the crew. All of a sudden we heard this squealing sound coming from the fire. At this point the fire is pretty calm with flame lengths of only about 2-4 inches so we're within 10 feet of the fire. It turns out the squealing sound is a baby rabbit getting burned by the fire. We both saw it about the same time so I reached down and grabbed what you can imagine was a quite disoriented & scared little bunny. I had seen the momma rabbit run out of the fire right after we lit it but never considered that there were babies in there. So I picked it up and wiped off as much of the ash and char as I could but it still had some small burns on its leg and head - nothing that really broke the skin or should be fatal for the little guy. After I wiped him off I held him for a minute or two trying to decide what to do with him. He nudged his way into my elbow between my arm and my body and calmed down. I put him in a little patch of thick grass that we didn't burn so hopefully the momma rabbit found him last night.

I tell this story because in our society guys are supposed to be tough and thick skinned and not really care about things like baby rabbits. I love my job and I realize our burning does kill some animals but by and large it improves habitat and provides food for those animals that would otherwise not be available. I looked at that rabbit in that fire and without a thought or hesitation I reached right in and grabbed him. I didn't get burned but I never even thought of that until now. I don't know if I had my gloves on or not, it didn't matter. It needed my help and only me pulling it out of the fire would save it. Its mother had left it and it was lost and confused in the fire. It would've stayed there writhing in pain until it died.

I think of saving that little rabbit and it reminds me of what God has done for us - He has pulled us out of the fire and our suffering. He looks down and sees us writhing in pain, burning and struggling, and he picks us up, wipes off the char and soot and protects us. Even when we are abandoned by our families, friends, society, country, whatever, He is there to pick us up. He picks us up, cradles us in His arms, and gives us a new life. What a wonderful savior!

"It's Gonna Be a Bright (Bright) Bright Bright Sunshiny Day!"

I just wanted to say HOORAY! for the warm weather (70+ degrees today)!!! I have never despised winter so much as I have this year (has it been colder? am I just getting wimpier about the cold the longer I live this far south?) and I am so So SO happy to have warm days and sunshiny weather! Usually February seems like the coldest winter month, but I am glad that weather.com is predicting 60's and 70's the rest of this week! Join me in rejoicing in the warm weather and go frolic in a field somewhere! ;-)

Ouch, are you ready for gameday?

Bringin' pain in the name of the Lord!


Of course the original idea came from this commercial. This has got to be one of the best Super Bowl commercials of all time. I just wish they had done more of them.

By the way, the Super Bowl commercials this year were definitely sub-par. The E-trade baby commercials were good and one of the Doritos commercials was good. It seems like there was one other that was kinda funny but nothing that really made you fall out laughing. I guess it's the economy, but c'mon folks, we expect funny!

View from the Top of the Mountain

As I've expressed here before I am very happy that I am done with classes and that my time in graduate school is coming to an end. For several weeks now I've had it in my mind to write this blog but just now decided to sit down and write it (feeling moved to write after listening to Josh Agerton talk on Sunday about our continuing efforts to move our lives from self centered to God centered). Last semester was stressful and busy and I was angry and disappointed with myself for letting the craziness of school interfere with my relationships with my friends, my husband, and most importantly my relationship with God. Last semester I felt like I was in a valley, in darkness from the shadow of a mountain that was impossible to climb. In this low place it was hard to see why I was there. I knew that there was a reason, but it is hard for me to be patient. Now that I have made it out of the valley and to the top of the mountain that was grad school(not by my own strength, though!) I can see more clearly all the work God was doing in me, even as I was having trouble making time for Him. If God was like grad school He would have failed me miserably in my efforts last semester, but instead, just like in every other facet of my life, God loves me no matter what and uses the bad parts to grow me! God's love is so amazing to me! I do not think we can ever fully comprehend the depth of His love for us, and I find it hard to put into words how it feels to be loved in the way that only our Savior can love us. I think all I can say it HALLELUJAH! It is amazing that I am actually able to be thankful for last semester now! Standing atop this mountain I know that there will be many more valleys but I also know that no matter how deep a hole I go in my Creator's love will reach!

No shoes, no shirt, no format

Ok, so it occurred to me this morning on my drive into work that I have no idea what I really want to do with this blog. Of course it's not just up to me because it's from both Meredith and I, but I have no set format here, no set topic, no set schedule. It really just happens as I feel like writing something about anything. I thought for a little while I would really commit to keeping this thing up on a regular schedule but that's not happening and it probably won't. So yeah, if anybody is actually reading this don't give up on it. I'm not resigning by blog authoring authority but I am admitting to myself that I can't/won't keep this thing up on a regular basis. Yeah, so, enjoy all that.

Meredith - your turn for a blog post! (PS - I think everyone is bored with mine)

Totally Wicked!

This is just ridiculous but really cool! I don't have it in me to do this kind of thing but mad props to the fools that do.



wingsuit base jumping from Ali on Vimeo.

I am indignant!

Motorists' habits spur call for tax increases

This is the kind of stuff that really sends me into a blind rage. I cannot understand in anyway why somebody would think this is a good idea. Are we not taxed enough? If you don't believe we are taxed enough name one thing you can buy or one transaction you can make that in some way, shape, form, or fashion the government does not have a tax or fee tacked onto it. Sure, gas prices have dropped a lot now, but how is that any kind of reason to raise taxes on people? I am spending anywhere from $200-250 per month less in gas now than I was a couple months ago but that sure doesn't mean the government should be entitled to any of my money! GRRRR! I gotta stop now before I start breaking things and using language I shouldn't.

And don't even get me started on the wording of this article - as if it's somehow my fault that the government refuses to balance their budget and cut costs like I have to do when times get tough!