young chuck norris

no description necessary...

baby nephew

We have a new baby nephew, Collin Matthew! He was born Thursday evening to my brother and his wife - their second. Some of you know or remember their daughter, Sidney, who was the flower girl in our wedding.

earthquake

I will remember this day forever! Everyone has an earthquake story, so here's mine:

At about 4:30 am, our dog Harper wakes us up, like any other night... like he needs to go out. Lyndsey and I are negotiating who gets to take him out when the window in our bedroom starts shaking violently (we have old, rattly windows). Lyndsey freaks out that someone's trying to break in, and has her phone out ready to call 911... I keep saying, "It's just the wind, it's just the wind...". Then we realize that we can hear other windows in the house shaking.... WEIRD... She immediately said it was an earthquake, but I stuck to my wind story. Until I woke up later and watched the news... I didn't feel our house shake at all, but it sounded like the windows were going to bust out!

The animal stories I've heard are the most fascinating. Our dog woke us up not two minutes before it hit; could have been coincidence, but I don't think so. When it was over and I did take him outside, I noticed that it was eerily quiet, except for some dogs or coyotes howling in the distance (again weird). On the news, a lady called in and said that the birds were singing before the earthquake hit, but she noticed them stop and silence fell for a few minutes.... then the quake hit. How freaky would that be? When I got out of bed about an hour later, sure enough the birds were back to singing like crazy.

random Harper pic

Look closely, this one's tricky.... it appears that Harper is licking his paw, but the truth is that Harper is asleep... It is very common for his tongue to stick out a little when he sleeps, but this day his tongue was out AN INCH...

Naked Economics by Charles Wheelan

I recently finished "Naked Economics," by Charles Wheelan, and I dug it. Economics and its theories don't usually bring to mind words like "excitement" or "fun", so this guy tries to explain some of its theories through events in human history. Very interesting... For example, he would start out by describing a time or people in history and something interesting that happened over time; then would explain exactly what happened from the point of view of the economist...

Economics are at the heart and soul of human existence. As societies develop and evolve, there is a science that dictates how fast they can grow/develop in a healthy and non-destructive way (i.e. market regulations, etc.). I will definitely follow this one up with "Freakonomics" and "Undercover Economist."

lyrics: "Gazing," by Future of Forestry

Have I mentioned that I like these guys...? My FAVORITE!! Enjoy.

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From this blessed morning
My love constant has been pouring
Pouring out like rivers to Your heart
Glory bells are ringing
I can't keep myself from singing
Singing out like rivers to Your heart

Oh, Lord, I have found my place in this home, this home inside of You
And here, my Lord, I can see Your face
In this home, this home inside of You

Like a child I'm gazing
Into wondrous grace
For You have been the love that fell like sun upon my face
Like a child I'm gazing
Into wondrous love
You're taking me to places that my heart is dreaming of

Broken I was crawling
And You saw my tears were falling
Falling down like rivers to Your heart
When my world was folding
God, You saw my prayers were flowing
Flowing out like rivers to Your heart

Hear the sacred songs that touch the earth and the sky
See them rise until they move like stars within Your eyes

mascots

Mascots are always good for a laugh or two....

Books

I had lofty ambitions for my book-reading this year... I had two books done when January ended and things were looking up and up. But I just finished my third..... "Naked Economics," by Charles Wheelan. Good book! I'll post something on it shortly...

Meanwhile I'm starting my next, "Everything Must Change," by Brian McLaren. Time to buckle up and get challenged...