I'm Grounded...

O.K. -
Here is the short version of the story. Last night I broke our wireless router at the house, by accidentally putting it in a ceiling fan. Don't ask. Now my wife and I are working towards getting our finances in order and have made a commitment to not use our debit cards and to check and clear all purchases so that we can keep track of what is being spent and where. Well, after I broke the router, I needed to replace it and took Abby and off to Radio Shack we go. I used the debit card and didn't tell Mar about it and when asked about the new router, told her that it came with the new computer because I didn't want her to worry about the cost of the replacement,(stupid and wrong, yes, I know). Anyway, this morning as Abby and Mar were getting ready for the day, I here Abby start her discussion with, "Hey Mom. Guess what Daddy and I did last night..." from that point it was a moment by moment description of the few hours that we spent together, including the trip to Radio Shack and the details of the new router.
As you can guess, the morning got a little tense from that point. I appologized to Mar and then to Abby to set the kind of example that I hope her to follow. In order to further drive my point home for Abby, I asked her and Mar to come up with a suitable punishment and that I would take my licks, just as I would expect Abby to.
So, Abby came up with the punishment. This will be my only post for the next 7 days, because I am grounded from my computer. I hope you all enjoy this post. I will be back next Monday.

Remember, the truth will set you free.

Thanksgiving...The Aftermath

Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone. Dinner was fabulous, the Cowboys lost and so far everyone is still talking to each other, for the most part. So if you had to rate the day, I believe we would call this year a success. So now what...Oh yeah, Christmas! Yesterday, I spent the majority of the day outside, cleaning leaves and hanging lights because apparently that makes it easier to celebrate the birth of Christ if you have colored lights on the house. I am still trying to figure this one out. We will carry on teh traditions, meaningless though they may be. The JW's are here. I have to go.

Thanksgiving

Today is the day that we have set aside to give thanks for all of the blessings and provisions that we have received. Although I do believe this to be the actual intent, let me give you a run down of what this day will actually look like...
My beautiful wife, our daughter and I will leave our dogs in the house by themselves for several hours. We will make the three block trek to my in-laws house where if history serves true, drinking has begun early and is in full swing previous to our scheduled noon arrival time. We will then sit around and speak pleasentries to a variety of the 29 people scheduled to attend this years festivities. By the way, of the 29 folks in attendance, Margaret, Abby and I are probably the only three to accurately recognize God's blessing and provision in our lives. So most of the thanks for the day will go to the invinter of the distilling process as well as the fine Irish men who discovered that the easiest way to endure several hours with family is to self medicate. So we are off, with anticipation of socio-political arguments and stories that we have all heard so often they are emblazened on our psyche. Happy Thanksgiving!

Refusal to Worship

In his book, "The Problem of Pain", C.S. Lewis penned the following words...

"A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word “darkness” on the walls of his cell. But God wills our good, and our good is to love Him (with that responsive love proper to creatures) and to love Him we must know Him: and if we know Him, we shall in fact fall on our faces."

Worship is a large part of my life. I engage personally on a daily basis in various forms, I participate coorporately on a weekly basis and I offer my time to provide a worship experience pretty much whenever it is requested. Even though Lewis' words should not be new, they are certainly a refreshing reminder that God is who He is with or without our participation in His design.
Late last week I was reminded at how small I truly am. The truth of my smallness, bewilders me when it comes to God's glory. Regardless of how small or temporal I may be, My sole purpose is not to be successful or to leave a legacy or to change the world. My purpose is simply to worship. I am designed to know, love and respond. Fortunately, when I am not pulling my weight it does not change or diminish God's glory. In fact, I belive that it exemplifies it even more. So in my temporal, small world, I have been purposed to the highest call of the universe...to worship.

Will you join me?

I will say that I am not one to generally call folks out on accessorizing. I mean, I am one who chooses to be comfortable regardless of what I am doing. I would go for comfort above and before all other options available. Frankly at 280lbs, comfort is really what it is all about. So what is the big deal? Hat or no hat? Does it really carry the magnitude that we have apparently offered it. Paul Simon has never been a fashion icon in any sense of the word, nor in any generation he has been a part of. Hats are accessories. Nothing more. Although I do agree with Kaz, not many can carry of the Yule or the Kojak with the appropriate style necessary, there are those who just feel more comfortable with the protection that is offered by one of the many varieties, be it the baseball, trucker, cowboy or whatever...Hat. I will say this, if you are going to wear it onstage...Commit. Either do it or don't, but if you have to remove it, it should probably come off in the middle of some smokin' solo and should probably be tossed at some adoring fan so that the memory of that particular night will live on in said adoring fans heart and mind until eternity.
Actually, I don't really have an opinion. Plus, hats are getting expensive.

Xena - She's scary!

Xena - She's scary!
Originally uploaded by theloudmonkey.

This is Xena. Xena was my Christmas present to my wife two years ago. Xena thinks she is a Great Dane. She sleeps with us and eats underwear as a midnight snack. Tucker thinks she is funny, because he can chew on her head and she runs away, barks and comes back. it's pretty entertaining.

Tucker - The best dog ever

Tucker - The best dog ever
Originally uploaded by theloudmonkey.

This is Tucker. We rescued him from a shelter and he is the best dog ever. He is a complete baby, but he is my baby.

Alrighty. I have been forced by my own mind to move my blog here to where all of my cool friends keep thiers. I know, I know. You should never do something just because someone else does. I can't help it, I am weak! Help Me.