A Quick Update

I got Maggie a little precious moments figure thing of a teacher at her desk and a See's Candy gift certificate. She liked that very much. She got me some of the greatest books ever. There are three of them. The first is a Bible Dictionary with definitions of the words used and the Greek or Hebrew pronunciations with a quick description of their usage. The second and third books are commentaries for the NIV Old Testament and New Testament. They are awesome and filled with information of every verse. I'm extremely happy to have them.

So you all know, Maggie and I are leaving to go to Hume Lake Winter Camp with the youth group Thursday through Sunday. It looks like a lot of fun. We, along with a friend of ours named Scott, will be councilors at the camp. I ask for your prayer for all of us because we always need it and this is Maggie's and my first time being councilors. I'm not sure whether it's Scott's first time or not, but just go ahead and pray for him too. I'm certain it will be a great time and we'll all grow closer to God, so just pray for a ministry of the Holy Spirit to be present within us and all the leaders at the camp. Don't forget to pray for the kids either. They need prayer for their ears and hearts to be opened and for their ministry to each other.

As you all can see, I posted a news thing from KHouse.org up there at the top of the page. It's Christian and I like the site and Chuck Missler.

Alrighty then. You all have an excellent New Year if I don't post till then.

Christmas Time is Here

The season has finally arrived and tomorrow is the big day. Maggie wants to wait fifteen more minutes and open presents, but I told her we have to wait till morning. She's sometimes too cute for her own good. I can't let her open the present I got her until Christmas morning, otherwise the morning would come and she'd be sad cause there wouldn't be anything to open. I'm excited about tomorrow as well. I can't wait to see the expression on her face when she sees what I got her and I can't wait to see what she got me. I'm really looking forward to spending the day with my family and eat prime rib....mmm. It's my favorite time of the year.

Only problem with this time of the year is that I haven't had time to do much lesson planning for Sunday, but I have confidence that I can get it done. Friday is a day off and that is where I'll catch up on things.

We saw the Return of the King today and I must say that it is the awesomest movie I have ever seen in my life. The effects were brilliant, the story delivered a power packed punch, and Legolas is awesome. We saw it today with Mike. It was his third time seeing it. His first time seeing it was in IMAX theatre down at the Edwards by the Mills. I envy this accomplishment, but seeing it on our local screen was still good enough for me. Really awesome movie and I recommend it to everyone to see; and if you don't like it, don't tell me, cause I'll think you're a psycho for the rest of your life.

Alrighty then. Well, I hope you all have wonderful Christmas days and take time to remember who it's really all about. I love you all.

Prayer

People please, I need prayer for spiritual strength and wisdom. I can't say what it is that I need it for, so this is an unspoken prayer request, but specific in it's direction. Just so you know, my faith is not in jeapordy or anything like that. Thank you all.

Men's Breakfast

Well, I did the men's breakfast thing yesterday and it went really well. I was dang nervous beforehand, but once I got going, the nervousness went down to about half. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, I gave a message yesterday morning at the church's men's breakfast. It was basically on living your life for God and not allowing yourself to stop growing for Him. It went well I think. They listened intently, they laughed at my jokes (They actually laughed!!), and by the end of it, I felt I had gotten the point across. It was cool, but I had a heck of a time staying on my outline. I ended up kind of winging it because I lost my place, but I eventually came back around to the conclusion. Anyway, I'm happy that's over, but I really enjoyed it.

Got Half the Lights

Well, I went to Target last night and of course they didn't have the lights that I needed, but I got smart and asked the guy helping me to put a call through to the Target in Apple Valley. They ended up having only half the lights I needed, but that was okay because they were the mini multi colored chasing lights, and those were the ones I needed the most. The front of the house looks okay even though the larger ones don't go all the way across. This should do fine. The Target people made it clear also that they didn't plan on re-ordering any more lights this Christmas season. So, that settles that and so ends my pursuit of lights.

Oh, and I figured out how to link to a really great debate we were having on Roland's blog before it archived. Take a look: Here. The words of Roland that sparked the debate were as follows:

wired

My body is in such a state of joy from being stuffed with Carl's Jr tonight that I'm wired and doubt I'll get a good night's sleep. I worked a 9 1/2 hour day today and I sure could use it too. Tomorrow won't be much better. Shopping season is here. My store is in a slightly upscale neighborhood and the amount of money that people drop there boggles my mind sometimes.

That reminds me. There was even more good news about the economy today. I just love how everything that is good for the country is bad news for Democrats.

posted by Roland at 11:40 PM

Christmas Concert and Tree

I forgot to mention Saturday night and the Christmas concert. For those of you reading this that don't know what I'm talking about, we went down into Azusa and watched and listened to Azusa Pacific University's choir sing. I must say that that was the most enjoyable performance I've seen from them yet. We go every year and it's always a great experience, but this time the jazz band made a special appearance and really "jazzed" things up. The bass player was the most impressive. He moved up and down the neck of that giant bass and danced while making an awesome sound. So yeah, the concert was great. Afterward we went to Benni Hannah (uncertain of the spelling). It's Japanese food prepared right in front of you. Great show and great food. The only thing that let me down was that there was just not enough fried rice and the steak got cut into giant pieces. That's not the greatest thing when you only have chop sticks. Makes it very hard to cut the steak. Anyhow, we spent the evening with family and had a heck of an enjoyable time. I look forward to that every year and this year gave me even more to look forward to.

In answer to my mother's question pertaining to the tree: no, we have not yet had time to pick one out. I think that next weekend will be the appropriate time, unless something else is planned that I don't know about, or we're just to dang busy, or Jesus comes back. So, hopefully next weekend will be our moment of dead, dirty, and spidery tree adoption. There's just something about having a real tree though, it's just better that way.

I went to Target yet again tonight in an attempt to find more of the same Christmas lights. Need I say that I found none? Well, I found none. I asked about them and they told me that there would be a shipment coming in tonight and that tomorrow would be my magic day. I can walk in, go to the Christmas light section, and get the Christmas lights I need. Pray for me. I ended up going to both Targets, and Wal Mart looking for them. I came to a conclusion tonight: the worst Target is not as bad as our Wal Mart. I must have faith now that tomorrow is my Christmas light day. By the way mom and dad, Margaret at Golden Gate Chinese says that since you guys don't come in anymore she doesn't like you either. :-)

Christmas Time

Well, the night is young and I'm ready for bed. Maggie's already sleeping on the couch, which is a bad thing. She's nearly impossible to wake up. Oh well. We got a Digital Video Recorder, which is like TiVo, but for Dish Net. It's pretty awesome being able to pause, rewind and never miss any show I want to see and it was all free thanks to autopay. All you have to do is be signed up with the top 100 or more and have autopay enabled for your account and you're set. So, we pause it every time we need to get up, then resume and watch till the commercial, at which point we just fast forward back to live mode or the show again. It's pretty cool. I recommend it.

So, it's Christmas time and Maggie and I are brainstorming about what to get everyone. It's not a huge deal, but there're just so many people. There's Mike, Leah, Cyndi, Mom, Dad, Maggie, Maggie's Mom and Dad, her nieces and nephews, and whoever we picked from the drawing. I drew Maggie's brother Jeremy, which is easy. So, pray for me that I don't rip out my hair, go into convulsions, and break down into shock trying to figure out what to get people. We're pretty good though. We've figured out what to get for about 20% of the people we have to shop for. Not bad, but 100% is ideal.

Best news of the week, we put up our Christmas lights. We didn't have enough strands however, so I need to make a trip back to Target insanity to find more. We went last night in search of more, but found nothing but pushy people and empty shelves. Oh well. Maybe tomorrow. I just didn't feel up to it tonight. I don't take crowds well, especially rude crowds.

Okay Fine, An Easy Question

What's your favorite color?

Christian Question

20 If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22 Of them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and, "A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud." 2 Peter 2:20-22 (NIV)

So, what do you think about once saved always saved?

Christian Question

I was listening on the Christian talk stations today and during my listening a question came to mind. How involved are Satan and his demons in our lives? Are they constantly tempting us, trying to make us stumble, or is it mostly human nature that's causing us to stumble? Just a question. You guys let me know.

Mini Vacation

We're back from Arizona. It was a great trip, spent with great people. Becky and Roland were excellent hosts and the joy of having "another" Thanksgiving dinner was enough to make the entire trip worth it. We sat in only about 45 minutes of bumper to bumper traffic on the way out there, the rest was smooth sailing, but the return trek was long and tiresome. We spent nearly an hour and a half in five to twenty mile an hour traffic. It was worth it all though. We're home now and it's only 8:30. Pretty good time for leaving just a little before 2:00 and hitting so much traffic.

We saw THE FUNNIEST MOVIE EVER MADE this weekend as well. Bruce Almighty is the best movie of the year so far. I have never laughed as hard as I did in that movie. If you have not seen it, no joke, no kidding, straight seriousness, SEE IT. I now know what they mean when people say something was "side-splittingly funny." I had something like two uninterrupted minutes of pure laughter. I'm sure my face was blue from the lack of oxygen, but I couldn't stop laughing despite the pain and the black out that ensued.

Anyway, more on other stuff at a later date. Maggie and I have to unpack.

Hey everyone, I just wanted to tell you all to have a happy Thanksgiving. Maggie and I will be going to Arizona on Friday and coming back Sunday. We're spending a little Thanksgiving time with Becky and Roland. So, have fun y'all.

Well, it's been awhile, but I'm still here. Maggie left today to go an ACSI convention for VVCS. I'm alone now. We spent yesterday together and saw the Phantom of the Opera, which was awesome, and then we went to the New York Grill, which has pretty dang awesome food, and I wore a tie. Today, we both went to church, then we came home, we ate, and then she left to go to Anaheim.

I then went to her mom's to help her with her website project (The Site-which isn't actually the site, but we had problems, so this is a facsimile). We worked for seven hours on it, trying to get it all worked out and then up to the internet. Ultimately, we couldn't figure out how to make the earthlink site (Earthlink Site) work. It just wouldn't allow us to update it. It's editing program has to be the worst I've ever seen. But, the site is virtually completed now and hopefully the server is just delayed on earthlink, so it'll be up and working soon.

So, anyway, I'm home now, and it's past 10:30, so I think I'll go on to bed now. G'night all.

Well, I spent most of my night brainstorming on story ideas. I first, began to write a story about a guy who has serious commitment problems called Tim Eligible. It should be a semi-funny, romantic book. It's geared for Maggie and her kind. My second actually came from an idea I had when I was about fourteen or fifteen about a guy who's family and friends have all died and every friend he makes thereafter dies as well. He tries to commit suicide multiple times, but cannot die. He ultimately fears any relationship he enters because he's afraid that person will die. Interesting ideas. We'll see where they go.

Do not question the Monkey Riders from the Saharan desert, for you know not who they are or from whence they came, for they are great in numbers but small in size, heroic and legendary, yet unknown and mysterious, ambitious and loud, yet seldom are they seen, and rarely are they heard. The Monkey Riders rest for no one and no one has ever seen them rest, yet they can ride all day and all the way across the desert back and forth. Their speed is to be reckoned with, and also is their strength. The leopard and the lion cannot compete. It is your duty therefore never to question these mystic creatures, for they cannot give you your answer and nor can I.

They do not speak your tongue, but they do understand your words. They cannot be bribed, or swayed, or once delayed. Every one has his secret, but no secret is known. They take their time while riding to reflect and ponder on riding, for it is their life’s sole purpose and their one and only desire. They are enlightened and never frightened. They dare not approach another being, but tease them all the while. At dusk till dawn they are withdrawn, away from those that search to find, but are so sadly blind. They leave the remnant of great fires and feasts and all the legendary beasts. Seen by travelers from far and wide, the gathering looks abandoned, old, and very cold. Weeks or months or even years have passed since one was in that place, and this is how we know they stop and stay awhile, but no more is known but what I’ve told you and all that I have shown.

New Car

Not an actual picture, but it looks almost exactly like it, minus the spoiler.


Okay, so we went to Crown Toyota Yesterday. We walked in, test drove a few cars, decided what we wanted and went in for a 3 hour negotiation. They didn't have exactly what we wanted, but they said they could get the car from another nearby sister dealership with no problem, so we went into negotiations for what we wanted, which was a blue Toyota Corolla S with a manual transmission. I negotiated hard with the guy (his name was Richard). I started by telling him that I had a dad who was in the business for a lot of years, which seemed to intimidate him a little (heh heh). I have to say, negotiation can get pretty nasty. Ultimately though, we came to a deal, assuming that the trade in would be $1500 for Maggie's Acura, we would put down $2000, and the dealership would drop $600 from their $1100 profit. He led me to believe that the Acura would probably come in for $1500 and they would have the car we wanted by the end of the negotiation. I felt confident (mistake) that he could finally run the credit app, so he did. Then he came back and told us that he could only accept $1000 for the trade in. I argued and argued over that, but he just wouldn't budge. I finally told him to go back and try one more time to negotiate for $1500 trade in or to knock down their profit considerably and if that couldn't be done, then we weren't doing the trade in. He came back with another guy (his higher up named Tim) and this new guy explained that they didn't have the car we wanted, but he asked if we would accept something they had in inventory if he gave us an "amazing" deal. We said we'd look and so we did. We ultimately found another one that we liked. It, however, was an automatic ($1000 more) and had the sport package ($825 more), but it was burgundy (what Maggie really wanted) and it was automatic (what I really wanted), oh and a spoiler (another thing I really wanted). So we went back in and Tim took us to his desk, instead of sitting out at the circular tables they had. He mentioned that Richard had told him about my dad being in the business, so they knew I knew how to work it. That was cool, even though my dad only prepped me for about twenty minutes collectively, it was enough for me to wing it. Anyway, I told him that If they could bring the price down to what we were originally going to pay for the first car, that we would go for it. So, he worked it down for us by about $1300, which ended up being about $500 more than our original deal with the manual Corolla. So, I explained that the only way he was going to get us was if he gave us the lowest interest rate possible, took our trade in for $1500, and would give us a five year loan. Well, he came back and told us that we had a deal. The loan was a five year at 5.5%, the trade in would be $1500, and we were finally happy. We ended up only having to finance $13000, whereas the previous deal, with trade in, would have been five dollars under $14000. That wasn't all though. Once we went into finance, they rang us up with a 4.1% interest rate because Maggie's a college grad and offered a 6 year warranty, plus free maintenance, road side assistance, and an extra $400 toward our down for what came out to be $33 more a month. Our payments will be $314 a month. I asked Richard (Who said he'd been doing this for 13 years) if I did a good job, in his opinion, at negotiating, since it was my first time. His response was that I did awesome at negotiating and couldn't believe it was the first car we'd ever negotiated for and bought. I have my dad's prepping to thank for that. Ice water running through my veins...ice water. So, we walked out and got into our new burgundy, sports package, power everything, keyless entry, Toyota Corolla S, and drove away. It was raining when we walked out, which gave us the opportunity to use the windshield wipers (very exciting). Then I couldn't find my way out of the dealership for like ten minutes because they closed the gate I knew about and blocked off two of the aisles I tried to go down, but we ultimately found our way out. So now we've got our brand new car and we're extremely happy. The automatic has enough power and it's just plain better. Automatics hold their resale/trade-in value a lot better anyway. I just don't like manuals that much because they're so much work. While manuals give you more availability for power, I prefer the automatic because you can do other things with your hand and foot, like NOT use them every time you have to move the car. So, Maggie's really happy. The negotiating was hard for her to sit through, because she doesn't like listening to such intense debates, especially when they seem almost threatening, but I didn't think the salesman's life was that big of a deal, cause if it was, he would have negotiated for it. Heh. Anyway, it's late, and I have to work tomorrow. So, I love you all, take care, and we'll go for a drive sometime.

Well, tonight we bought our new car, and it's awesome. It's a Toyota Corolla S automatic. It's a really nice looking red. We spent many many hours of negotiating and it's a long story. I'm too tired to explain it all tonight, but I'll fill you in tomorrow.

Well, tonight Maggie and I attended Thursday night youth group. It was pretty dang fun. I'm encouraged about being able to lead it. If Maggie and I are led to do it, then I think we'll have a great time. Have a good night ya'll.

I have changed my comments so that they're in order from oldest to most recent because that's the way everyone else's is set up and it confuses me. :-)

Well, last night I completed the Sunday School lesson I've been planning. I'm happy I got it done so early. I am however, desiring to create more lessons. So, I will probably begin another lesson now. It's really weird. It seems like whatever chapter Maggie and I read, or whatever verses I go over one night, the next day, someone on the radio, or Pastor Al talks about it and all my little questions get answered or my conclusions get confirmation. It's pretty cool that my studies seem to coincide with a lot of the random calls to the Christian talk shows. That's happened quite a few times.

So, Sunday's lesson is on leadership. The kind that goes by setting an example that others will follow and look to. The verse I chose to use as my master verse was 1 Timothy 4:12- Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity. This verse is awesome. It was directed to Timothy from Paul because Timothy was young compared to the church leaders he visited, but it applies so well to our youth of today. This goes hand and hand with a point I had in my last lesson, "The Bible is Timeless." It always applies to our lives. I've heard the argument that it's just an outdated piece of literature that holds no guidelines applicable to today's trials and living. What a bunch of bunk. So, I basically dissected the verse so as to clarify its life application. I broke it into "speech," "life," "love," "faith," and "purity" and gave a description of each of their meanings. I think it'll go well. I'm feeling confident that the Holy Spirit will fill me and the words will be there when the time comes. Luke 12:12 "for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say."

I talked to Joe, my supervisor, today about the stuff being stolen out of my truck. He wasn't mad. He just said, "Well, I'm not going to say anything more than 'you know to lock the bins now' because I'm sure you've already beat yourself up about it enough." And that was awesome. I didn't get written up, I didn't get made fun of, instead he was just matter of fact and cool about it. I'm actually very relieved.

Mike called me earlier and was talking about hanging out tonight, but I had to leave work and grab my stuff, so I told him I'd call him back. Once I called him back however, I got the answering machine. His car broke down today and he said he was planning on taking care of that when I talked to him, so I'm assuming that's what he's up to right now. It's okay though, cause I'm perusing the scripture.

You know, I just typed all that and then did a spell check, and nothing was misspelled. Seriously...I thought perusing would be spelled wrong because I've never actually typed that word before and it looked funny to me, but no! It was spelled right! I'm thoroughly impressed with myself tonight.

Well woohoo. I forgot to lock my truck bins last night on my work truck and someone came and cleaned out all my tools. I'm not terribly upset because they were all crummy tools, but I am upset that someone would do that. I'm going to buy a gun.

Stew tonight and it was good. Maggie is a great cook. I'm so happy that I don't ever have to lie about her cooking to make her happy, like some wives require. All her food tastes great, so I just tell her the truth. I do however have to remember to tell her though. Sometimes I forget to let her know and she then has to remind me to let her know how good it was. I try to remember more now though. Anyway, good night. It's about time for bed and I'm very tired. Tomorrow is an off day. I plan to work on the Sunday School lesson on leadership (setting an example for others to follow) and call my dad and see if he wants to do lunch or something. We'll see how it goes. I need to quickly ask for your prayers on a few matters. First, I need prayer for guidance on the preparation for the Sunday School lesson. Second, Maggie and I are planning on buying our first new car this weekend and we need to be cut-throat, ruthless negotiators. Third, for an unmentioned request that I will share when the proper moment comes. Alright, that about covers. I just got the call from my dear wife that she's ready for bed, so now I will sleep. Goodnight everyone.

Well I must say that I was very pleased with myself today. I delivered a power packed lesson. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to do much more than just repeat what I had written, but I had so much to say and I never said it all. I was amazed at how easy it was. I believe that the Holy Spirit was with me today. Thank you so much for your prayers and keep it coming!

Okay, I finished up my final loose ends for the Sunday school lesson tomorrow. It's on the key points of Christianity. Hopefully it goes well. I have a ton of scriptural support and a bunch of good notes to go on. I think it'll go well. As for what's been going on? I went to Six Flags yesterday and it showed me how old and fat I am. I was tired after the first two rides. If anyone knows a personal trainer that wants to train me for free without me having to do any real work, let me know. I need to get into shape really bad. Well anyway. Next weekend Maggie and I are going to buy our first brand new car. Pray for us.

Ok, now it did.

Testing. My blog isn't posting.

I know I don't post nearly enough, but I just haven't seen the time lately. I received my evaluation this week and passed my probation. The eval was a little hard in some spots, but Joe (my supervisor) explained why he said it all. He evaluated me on my overall year's performance, which means that the things I've since improved upon made it onto this eval. He gave me a raise and told me I was doing a great job and that was extremely happy with my work. So, that was good.

Tomorrow I go to Six Flags with my family. Pray for me that I don't fall apart from all the strenuous activity. I'm getting old and frail.

You know, it's really time for a picture on here, so here one is!

Well, Mike is now with the big boys. He's crossed over the 100 mark on his blog visits. I'm proud.

Wow, amazingly, it posted my entry. I'm so happy!

Well, I'm sorry everyone for being such a Nazi enforcer of blog writing and then not writing myself, but things have just been full lately. I actually wrote the day after we ate at Maan Fu, but the web site dumped it and I hadn't saved it anywhere, so I got discouraged and gave up. That was Saturday night. I basically wrote how great a time I had. About how the cook tried to throw shrimp into my mouth by flipping it off his spatula and at me, but it missed every time, but I didn't care cause I was going to get a whole bunch of shrimp out of it, but then I realized that my dad was eating them all as they ricocheted off of me. Needless to say, I ended up having to throw my sweatshirt into the laundry because it had shrimp damage. I wrote about how they crammed ten of us into an eight person table, but that it was okay because they were just giving us a taste of true Japanese culture. And then, after dinner, we went to Kohls. My dad went out of his way to act like a geek through the store so as to embarrass my sisters starting out by asking if he should walk like a dork or just act like he's blind. It was a lot of fun and my dad is hilarious. I then closed by thanking my parents for the most fun Maggie and I have had in a long time. So, that pretty much covered what I can remember of it. I hit all the important points at least.
I have to say that this cold I have is sticking with me for far too long. It's been over a week and I'm still sick with it. It's not entered my lungs and sounds horrible. I'm going into coughing fits, kind of like the fit I had when I had something get in my eye that one time, and I still have a headache a lot of the time. Just pray for me. Maggie's got a little bit of a cough too, so pray a little bit of a prayer for her too.
This Friday is Magic Mountain. I'm actually looking forward to it. I think that it'll be fun, even though Maggie can't come. If she came, it would make the day perfect, but since she can't, the day will be as great as it can get, I'm sure. Mike is actually being pretty good about his entries, so I'll have fun, and I hope that since you all are going to start praying 24-7 for me and fasting, I should be completely healed up and with a touch of super human strength by that time. So, thanks.
Well, you all have a good night, or day, depending on when you read this. I love you all.

Yesterday night was great. We went out with my parents and had dinner at Maan Fu. It's a great place. They, of course, tried to give a taste of true Japanese culture by cramming six of us together with four other people at an eight person table. It's pretty crammed in Japan too, so we got the real effect. But they prepare your food for you at the table, do tricks, and it tastes great. At one point the trick was to toss a shrimp off a spatula into my mouth. Like five shrimp ricocheted off of me. Some hit me in the face, some hit my sweatshirt, and others just fell short. I didn't mind, cause it was all the more shrimp I could eat, but then I realized that every shrimp that missed, my dad picked up and ate... Dinner was great, and it was really cool for Maggie and I to spend time with my family. We both loved it. Then we went to Kohls and my dad acted like a geek so as to get the maximum embarrassing effect on my sisters and mom. It was really funny. That was some of the most fun I've had in a long time. Those kind of restaurants are my favorite. Thank you to my mom and dad. You guys are the greatest.

Well, I have not entered on my blog in quite sometime. I must say that I've been busy and sick. I haven't been motivated enough to make an entry I suppose. I have to say that it's been an interesting week so far. Thank God tomorrow is Friday. Not to say this week was bad, but I am very tired, I've had a headache since I got sick, and I'm ready for some rest. As you the reader probably know, my family was within the voluntary evacuation, some readers, in fact, are my family. I left work and helped them load up and go to my house. My dad stayed behind for a few reasons. He's dedicated to his work, which is part of my family's livelihood, and he didn't think anything was going to happen. He stayed behind so a guy could come by and pick up his bike, the last one he had to move, but then he decided, because it was clearing up, that there probably wasn't going to be any danger. Ultimately, there wasn't. The day was tough though because my Great Grandpa passed away during the night before, and my mom and grandma didn't get any sleep. It's pretty amazing that I went and saw him out of the blue, and then he went so soon afterward. I had to leave from our visit because I got a call from my supervisor to go onto the computer and keep the water levels as high as possible because of a possible power outage that was scheduled (it never happened). I was covering call that weekend for my co-worker, Sam. I'm not upset for having to leave, it was my responsibility, but I can say that I really didn't want to. My Grandpa asked me to come back more often, I hadn't seen him in months, and I said I would. I really didn't think that was going to be the last time I saw him, but it was. I was feeling extremely sad because he wasn't saved, or so I thought. It turns out, that one of his daughters, who came out to visit a while back, had planned on getting him to get saved. She said she'd call and let people know what happened when she got home, but she didn't call. Well, it turned out that she just forgot to call, but she got him to say the sinner's prayer. He was saved, and I haven't got it in my heart to doubt her. I have to believe that I'm going to see him again, so I know it has to be true. My Grandpa will always be alive in my memories as long as I live, and so will his stories. I think we can just about recite them, so please, recite them. Anyhow, the fire was brought under control, the evacuation orders were lifted, and everything's pretty much back to normal for us. In closing tonight, I just want to say, no matter what you thought Grandpa was guilty of, it's not worth holding a grudge over, and every good thought you have, or had, bring that out, because most of the things that we saw and didn't like were the distortions of age. Not many people understand that age changes a person's personality. My Grandpa showed that old personality of who he really was more than the other things, and I think we all need to remember that part of him. He was a good man, and we need to remember that and all the great times we had with him. I love you all, and thanks for reading.

By the way, if you're wondering why I happen to be posting at this time of the day, I'm actually home sick right now. I have unfortunately caught some kind of a bug. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but I've got a sore (or soar, Becky) throat, and I actually threw up a few times. I have no clue what that means. I think I have a cold, but have just been gagging when I have to cough, mostly because of horrible heart burn at the same time. Hey, thanks for the comments on what you'd do if you knew you were going to die tomorrow. I would probably do whatever I could to not die. I actually would also take my loved ones with me while searching for a cure, more manpower equals more chance of finding the cure, oh and of course, I'd spend quality time with everyone while we frantically searched.

I have restored Mike's link because he has begun writing. I figured maybe he'd get the hint if I took it off. I don't know if that's what did it, but we should all be greatful that he did.

Another day. I'm getting sick on this one though, and I'm not very excited about that. No, I'm sure it's not because of the smoke from the fires since it hasn't really been smoky here at all. I think it's from my dear wife, Maggie. She was sick first, and now, suspiciously, I'm sick.
So let me ask you all a question. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would you do? See you in the comments forum.

I broke the 200 mark today for visits. I'm so proud. I've only had a counter for 12 days and a blog for like 14. I'd just like to thank you all for supporting me and my blog.
Today was an excellent day. Sunday school was one of the most fun Sunday's I've had. We spoke on Islam, but there was just a whole lot of fun to be had. I'm truly a kid at heart, so I have a lot of fun with them. Although, they might prefer to be called "young-adults." Tonight we spent like ten hours (not really) cutting up little strips of paper so Maggie can use it for her science class tomorrow. It was cool. They represent different genes and the kids are supposed to take them and, based off of the genes they are given, construct what kind of a kid they'll have out of a potato. Sounds like fun to me. Anyway, I'm tire now, so I'm headed to bed. You all have a great night, or day, depending on when you read this.

We have quite a debate going on at Becky's Blog. I recommend you all read it. It's under ~ Friday, October 24, 2003. It's about the proposal to make an amendment preventing homosexuals from taking advantage of the Christian institution of marriage. Weigh in.

Tonight we hung out with Mike and Keji, and before dinner, I ran by Well 3 to switch it from running at the site to running off the computer and was able to show Mike the ins and outs of the whole thing. He seemed to be impressed. I was pleased that somebody found my job interesting. Tonight seemed to be debate night. Every little thing seemed to get argued over. I was present for the debate over whether public school is a good thing for some kids. If a kid grows up in a private school, but wants to go to a public school when he or she enters high school, should he or she be allowed to do so? Is public school a good option at all? I'll let all of you comment on what you think about it. The other debate that I was in on was whether or not all fat people can control their weight. My argument was that some really can't. Of course they ultimately can, but at what cost? There are drugs that can be taken, but normal methods such as eating less and exercising don't have any effect. Thus, some people, who can't afford the expensive drugs to shut down the fat collection hormones, can't control their weight. Anyway, you can also comment on that if you like.

Today's lesson learned is the art of argument, or debate. I learned that the true art is to take away more than you took to it. Be open to other possibilities and really hear all the sides. Don't just shut the other side down without thinking about what they had to say. Sometimes you may find that the other side can be right as well.

Both sides

I went and saw my great grandpa yesterday. He's in a hospice. It was a very sobering experience, cause I'm usually completely drunk. Getting old does a lot of things to you psychologically, but it's a real learning experience. I won't go into detail about the changes he's come upon because I don't feel they properly reflect the true man that he is. I will however ask that you all pray for him that he would find salvation. My mom's talked with him a few times and his responses are like so, "I was a good man," and "Oh yeah, of course." We know he doesn't think he needs to accept Jesus. He's very angry about his frist wife dying still. This was like fifty years ago or so and it still has a hold of him. He doesn't understand why God took her away from him, and none of us are sure that she was saved either. We're having a minister go see him for purposes of salvation. Just pray for him.

While I was there I had him sing a song he'd written as a young man. I wrote down the lyrics.

Oh give me a ladder
a nail and a hammer
and a picture to hang on the wall.
Tell me sure that it's a good strong ladder
for you know that I might surely fall.
Give me a waiter
a couple of glasses
and a barrel of good ole Bab's Ale
and I'll take you to hang that picture
if somebody drives the nail
I don't work for a livin'
I get along alright without
I don't toil all day
and I guess it's cause I'm not built that way
Some people work for a livin' and say it's all sunshine and gain
but if I have to work for a livin'
I think I'll stay out in the rain.

Well, it's been an interesting day. I have to say that I'm probably gonna go to Magic Mountain, but I don't think I'm going to ride anything, because while Mike did create a blog, he did not follow up with more entries. If he can produce something satisfactory by tomorrow evening however, I may change my mind.

I stayed up late last night working on My 5th Column. I wrote a quick article on what I think is wrong with the world today. Check it out. Also, I finally have a page created for Mike. Check that out too.

First, I have to make a correction, the bill to outlaw partial birth abortion has been approved and is now awaiting the approval of the President.

Today Sam, my co-worker, and I went down to Chino to a seminar on pump motors. After about fifteen minutes of technical difficulties between the computer and the projector, the guy presenting, John, finally started. Amazingly, it was the same presentation we already sat through a few days ago. There happened to be four people there in the room and I think Sam and I both felt sorry for him, so we stuck around. One guy ended up leaving. We sat there until some people started coming in saying that his time was up and that they needed the room for their meeting. Sam and I stayed till he was done, while people started congregating by the door talking and creating an awkward pressure to hurry it up for John. I felt bad for him. After the presentation was done and we walked out I joked that he probably thought we were groupies following him from presentation to presentation. Truth is, we thought it was going to be different. Oh well. Funny stuff.

Let's quickly talk on Iraq. The latest controversy deals with the billions needed to continue rebuilding in Iraq.

The argument follows like this: Sure, Iraq is going to require a very substantial amount of funds, but why just give it to them? We need to give it to them in the form of loans. And the other side: Iraq is in great need of funds for rebuilding and since it's a new country, why give them anything other than a clean slate. Besides, what kind of an example would we be if we do as we plan to do and wipe all debts to other countries that were pre-existent, but then instate our own obligation that Iraq pay us back.

Doesn't that seem hypocritical to give money with strings attached, but refuse to acknowledge the prior debts and obligations that existed before the war? I think that a new country, especially Iraq, needs a clean slate to start with. They will absolutely prove to be a good investment. Their oil sales will most likely favor us, which will bring our gas prices down, thereby helping the everyday man and woman with their travel expesnses, which puts more money in their pockets in turn helping the overall economy, and stimulating a larger tax influx. Ultimately, instating loans would strain their economic stability. They're like a small child, just learning to walk, why would we want to place a billion pound weight on their shoulders? Let us do what needs to be done without so many obstacles. The argument for loans seems to have some basis, but it's just a new way to bring criticism on the president yet again. If we do make it loans, other countries will have a field day with Bush, as will the Democrats that pushed for the loan path in the first place. They'll simply lay blame on Bush, back away, and allow the biased media to report what they will. The country of Iraq is progressing speedily and putting such a damper on them from the very out set is simply counter productive, especially when we can spare the money. It wouldn't hurt us, you have my word.


Both sides

In the Revolutionary War there were 4,435 deaths. In World War I there were 116,708 deaths. In World War II there were 407,316 deaths. In Korea there were 25,604 deaths. In Vietnam there were 58,168 deaths. In the war against abortion, 38 million deaths are accounted for in the US alone since 1978. An average of 1.3 million babies are aborted yearly. This is truly an epidemic. We are facing some of the most dire times the world has ever faced in its history. Mass genocide is going on in our country daily, and most of us don't even give it a second thought during our day. We enjoy our lives and never stop to think about the millions that won't have a life to enjoy in the first place.

Today was a big day for those of us that happen to be pro-life. Partial Birth Abortion, or murder, as I like to call it, has been deemed illegal today. I consider this to be a major victory toward the ultimate Roe v. Wade overturn. I have a lot of hope that it will someday occur. I've long despised the right-to-choose movement. I must clarify that there are many evils at work in this horrific practice. There are not only abortionists and uneducated, scared, and many times careless girls who don't want to face the consequences of their actions, but also those who think it's alright to kill the abortionists themselves. I do not prescribe to this method of fighting the evil. As a Christian, it is my strong belief that going through the system is the Godly thing to do. It is also a belief that even these doctors, who commit such a horrendous sin, can be saved by the grace of God just like any other. Therefore, I don't agree with killing them by committing some kind of terroresque attack. We just need to keep praying for the officials we've elected to make a difference, and we must continue making our voices heard on the matters that concern us most. It's terrible to imagine all the sickening murder taking place, but it's also a wonderful idea to think that even though all these innocent children are not being allowed the chance to live, they are instead taken directly to be in God's presence. 1.3 million new additions to God's kingdom a year sounds pretty good to me, but I also have to think that those millions of lives could have made an even larger difference if they were allowed live. The US might be allowing doctors with the potential cure to cancer to be dying, or amazing pastors and evangelists to slip from our world, or even future politicians to miss their chance to change the world. Who knows what kind of a difference those kids could have made, but it is in the past and we must look to the future and to stopping the tyranny occuring every day right in our own backyard.

"Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb, I sanctified thee..." (Jeremiah 1:5)

Any thoughts?

Well, tonight isn't full of time for me to write cause I mostly helped Cyndi get her comments and site meter up. It took a very very long time for some reason. Anyway, tonight was Smallville. I enjoy the heck outa that show. You guys like it?

I really like Tony Snow. He's been substituting for Rush. He's very articulate in his speech. Very impressive show today.

By the way, just so you all know, I respond to your comments in the same place you post them. So, if you said something, I may have responded, so check it out.

Mike just left. It's very nearly bed time now, so I won't go into great depth with this entry. Has anyone heard about that Terri Schiavo lady in Florida whose being starved to death? Today Jeb Bush, though advised not to, stepped up and called for the woman to be given fluids to preserve her life till something more can be done. Go to the story. This is truly a tragedy. Even a dog wouldn't be treated the way this woman's been treated. She shows signs of interaction with the outside world, but doctors say it's only reflexive actions and not really true thought. They say that she's completely brain dead, but I've watched video of her on Hannity and Colmes and am fairly convinced there's something there. I strongly believe that she should be provided with treatment and therapy, just to see if it's at all possible to help her. It's been a major issue on the news lately, especially the Christian talk shows. I'm dead set against such inhumane treatment of a human. If they're staying alive because you're feeding them and giving them water, then they're not on life support. It was her husband's decision to stop feeding her and let her starve to death. I think it's sick, cruel, and cold. Her parents are having the worst time of their lives right now. The husband was given the right to the decision, but the parents are dead set against it. I think that any decent human being would allow the parents to take over the care of her. He's already remarried and having children again. In my opinion, he views her as some kind of an anchor and is desirous to disconnect her from himself. It's a sad story.

Looks like I made quite an entry regardless of the time. Oh well, I said something good for once. It's been awhile.

Welp! I got Mike to do a blog. People! Please be supportive of our latest newbie. He needs encouragement and traffic. Thanks.

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Well, I'm currently breaking for lunch, so I thought I'd say hello to you all. I'm having a relatively quick day today. It hasn't been very interesting, but I don't mind a quiet day once in a while. I'm happy to see that I got so many comments on my last post. I enjoy getting feedback on my "outrageous!" statements. Well, take care all, I'll talk to you later.

Well, I haven't made any entries in a while because I've been so incredibly busy, so I apologize.

It seems that my masterful skills of persuasion, agility in debate, and amazing speechcraft on Mike really just didn't matter at all because he made a deal with me that if I went with him and my family to Magic Mountain then he'd write a blog. It's not my skill at work, but it works.

It really feels like it's just been one really long week. We had to get up early on Saturday so I could take Maggie to the meeting place for her college class's field trip and then Sunday is, of course, church. Yesterday I helped out with digging a trench, backfill work, and fitting a little bit of PVC at the church with Pastor Mike, my father-in-law Jim, and a deacon named Cliff. I felt super invigorated and energized the whole time and then afterward I felt like collapsing and still feel tired. I didn't even get heart burn the whole time, which I've always gotten every time I try to do any physical work. That's the only time I've never gotten it while working, and it was at the church. I think God's trying to tell me something. He might be telling me that I should start a construction company building churches maybe...

I'm thinking about starting some college classes this next semester. I just feel like it's a waste of time for somebody whose already so intelligent, but you need the credentials. You can't walk up to a prospective employer and tell him, "Hi, my name is Steve and I'm a super genius who could work for you if you pay me the right price." It just doesn't work, I've tried and tried. They always say no, and so I ask them, "Is it because you're intimidated since I'm so much smarter than you? If so, it's alright, I'll make sure you keep a good position once I have yours." And they just look at me funny and tell me to get out, or call security. I just don't get it. So, once I have it on paper, in the form of a bachelor's degree, or masters, or Ph.D, then they shouldn't turn me away when I offer them the privilege of hiring me. What do you guys think?

Hey everybody. I'm not going to make another huge entry on my blog tonight, simply because I'm obsessive about it and need to learn to pace myself with it. I just wanted to let all of you know that I had a very easy time on my exam today. I'm sure I'd have aced it even without studying. It was all stuff that I know like the back of my hand. I went through and counted the questions I was positive about and it was 72. I was fairly sure about a whole lot of the others too, but those 72 I'm absolutely sure about. All I needed to pass was a 70 or better too, so I'm happy and relieved. Thanks for your prayers.

Funny picture....

Well, I just got done writing out my lesson for tomorrow's Sunday School lesson. It has to do with Islam. I don't have a book that was written after 9-11, so the book I went off of spoke about purely the religion and not the terrorism. So, this week I'll teach on just the religion and then I'll teach the following week on the religious driving force behind terrorist attacks.

Maggie's gone on a field trip today. I couldn't go because I have that Water Distribution Exam today. I'm dreading it. I studied and I have the math down, but I feel underequipped with knowledge of the terminology and proceedures. I suppose I know it, but I'm just not sure. My Distribution 1 exam was easy because I had a copy of a test to pour over. My co-worker, Mark Zappia and I were taking it, so every day for two weeks we drilled each other on it. By the time the test date came we both had everything on that test memorized. Granted, it wasn't the test that they actually give, but it's supposed to encompass everything that's going to be on the main test. Anyway, I walked in there and took the test and it was a breeze. The two of us did amazingly well. That was well founded confidence that we had walking in and I just don't feel that today. I don't want to try to cram anymore today because that just puts my mind into stress overload mode. So, today is relax and get into the groove time. I want to walk into the exam with a calm attitude. Pray for me guys.

Okay, good job Leah. I'm happy that you posted yesterday. You are forgiven. Sorry, can't think of much more to write, cause it's too dang early.

By the way, very unfortunate turn of events tonight and I'm sorry to report a Red Sox loss. At the bottom of the 11th inning the Yankees hit a home run. My desire to watch baseball seems to be subsiding now.

Well, I'm sitting next to Mike as I write this. He's reading Leah's paper on gay marriage. I found it impressive and right. I'm a little let down by her and with Cyndi however, because they haven't made any more entries on their blogs since yesterday. I couldn't convince Mike to start a blog...yet. So, I have to keep working on him. I don't think he understands how much people would love to hear what he has to say. So, I want all of you to comment on my blog and let him know just how much you'd like to hear what he has to say. Give some positives about blogging that are unique to it. Help me convince him to give it a try. Thanks guys. You're all awesome...except for Mike, but we all hope he comes around to our Blog Cult. I think that blogs are good for putting your thoughts out on the table and gaining a clearer understanding of the way you think. Comments anybody?

Well, I'm currently waiting for Mike to call me. We're supposed to hang out tonight, but I haven't heard from him yet, so I'm writing. It's been a pretty quick week. This weekend I'm taking a test to certify as a Water Distribution Operator Level 2. I hate tests. I'm never very good at taking them, unless they don't mean anything. Today was a quick day out of my quick week. I composed an entire instruction manual on a software program at work with screen shots and everything so that people would have a standard guide to go off of finally. It looks pretty good and I got a lot of compliments on it.

So, the Red China has big aspirations to go to the Red Planet. They haven't actually come out and said it yet, but wouldn't that be appropriate. The sent a guy up the other day for 21 hours or so to orbit the earth 4 times. Impressive, for commies. They didn't want to televise it because they were afraid of a mishap and a bad public image, which they couldn't afford. Very interesting.

By the way, Leah. Don't forget to send me all your papers for the 5th Column. You either Mike.

Well, I'd just like to congratulate all you Boston Red Sox players that visit my site on a daily basis on your win tonight against the Yankees. A nice score of 9 to 6 and a great game. I have to admit that I don't watch much baseball, but tonight's games had to be watched, what with all the talk about curses and the likes. I'll be eager to see the next Sox game. As for the Cubs, I feel badly for your loss, but I knew at least one of the curses had to be real and I had a hunch about the goat one.

I'm happy to say that both my sisters have come onboard and started their own blogs. To my sisters: I'm happy to see substantial posts on your blogs, it seems as though you both have potential for becoming dedicated bloggers. I look forward every day to being able to sit down and read everyone's blogs and then post on my own. It is my mission, currently, (I say currently because it won't be for long becasue I have an incredible success rate when on missions) to convince my best friend, Mike, to find his nitch in blogging. I feel as though he could have a kindred spirit with blogging. He seems like the type that could spew topics of his day, bringing depth and humor to them all the while. He seems anti-blog right now for some reason and I'm not sure why. I know he knows that his thoughts are interesting and provocative, and I know he knows he has the ability to write well, however I think he may think he has no time to do extra thinking, but if he quit thinking about not writing a blog it would free up some time to think about writing a blog. Now, I don't believe in forcing my ideas on others, but this is Mike. Maggie will be my next blogging target.

Hey, did anyone see the new soon to be best seller book come out? Alan Colmes, from Fox News on Hannity and Colmes, has written a book named Red, White & Liberal: Why Left Is Right & Right Is Wrong selling for $24.95 in hardcover. I'm actually interested in hearing what this book has to say. Some of the chapters are titled, "Jesus was a Liberal," "OJ was Innocent," and "Bill Clinton: Our Best President." I have a curiousity that could actually drive me to purchase.

Well everyone, thanks for visiting my blog. Be sure to visit not only my blog, but those that are listed under my links section. With that, I leave you with a fun picture. Find ten people in this illusionary masterpiece. Goodnight all.

Well, today's another day in the can. It's been pretty quiet. I'm trying to get this blog working right. Currently the Comments links are not properly functioning. They don't display the number of comments posted. I hope to remedy that tonight. Try this one out. I was cruisin around the internet and found this. It's pretty funny.

Find the Black Dot.

Well, tonight we went to my family's house and hung out. We watched all sorts of TV. Hannity and Colmes, American Chopper, and the 700 Club. A family friend (Julie) came by and hung out as well. I went to show my mother this blog and when we came out of the office Julie was talking with my dad about "religion" and her motto of separating talk of politics and religion from friends. She seems predisposed to hostile conversation when it comes to such things, which is unfortunate, so those of you reading, give her a prayer.

My little sister, Leah, wrote a paper on the place for GAY MARRIAGE. I have to say that I agree with her anti-gay marriage viewpoint fully. Not because I'm a homophobe, or someone that likes to commit hate crimes, but because I'm a Christian. Unfortunately, in this world today, we are drifting toward a state of sinful entropy. We are ever nearing a moral collapse in society. It is sad to say that the institution of marriage will probably become perverted enough to even allow the homosexual group to marry into each other. Our goal as Christians however is to prevent and prolong the moral degredation of our lives. It's becoming sickening to turn on the television or glance at the magazine racks at the checkout stands in the supermarket!

I also read my best friend's paper on the Ten Commandments issue of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama. I have to say, it's a finely written article and if I can convince him to create a blog, he could post it and I could put up a link for you all to go to to read it.

Anyway, good day overall. It's time for bed now though, so I don't have time to write about all the things I had on my mind today. It's alright though, my thoughts are timeless and can be recounted at any time with maximum freshness. Goodnight all!

I found this incredibly funny. Just thought I'd share.

Bird's Eye View. (You may have to right click and then click "Show Image" for this picture to show up.)

We washed Maggie's car today. While we were in church, a bird that had obviously been seriously constipated for a very long time finally had a breakthrough, but it happened to be over Maggie's windshield. Giant splash of white out, all over the glass. Her wiper blades were out of fluid, so when I tried to run them, it just streaked the, uh, waste, across the windshield. It was such a big splash I believe I only had about 40% visibility while driving. Car's clean now though.

We gave back Becky and Roland's dogs today. They proved to be a challenge, but we decided it was a more than welcome challenge. We actually miss them now. Things are too still tonight, too quiet. Somebody talk to me, or bark at me.

Just testing the new blog. Hello world.