I'd rather be in Hawaii...

We actually do have pictures...

2006-06-28T17:16:00.000-05:00

...we just haven't posted them until now.

Over the weekend, I made a pact to myself that I would blog everyday this week. Well, I blew that in exactly zero days. Life got in the way. Work is nuts (even at home), Kelsie is still just 4 weeks old, Cayce and Kyle have both been to the dentist and we are moving in three weeks. Sue me for not posting until now. I actually believe I lost my two readers. Oh well...it'll make for a thin scrapbook someday.

Anyway, Kelsie is still gorgeous. We fell in love with her immediately. Cayce and Kyle just love her. Even Kona (our dog) comes to check on her when she is crying (which isn't that often). She is a gift from God. Well, I know you did not come here to hear me ramble, at least this time. So...on to the pictures:

Kelsie Jayne

2006-06-07T10:25:00.000-05:00

Wow. She is here. Let me just say that this birth was a tad more eventful than the last two. Here are some details...

Kelsie Jayne Patterson was born on May 31, 2006. She was 20 1/4 inches long and 6 lbs 13 oz. She has a fair amount of blond hair and blue eyes. Mom was amazing during the delivery and felt no pain (Thank you Epidural). What a difference seven years makes. When Kyle was born, they thought you needed to stop the epidural close to the end, so that Jennifer had enough feeling to push. This time the doctor let the medicine flow, so she pushed and felt nothing.

I'll give you both a second to recover. My head is spinning a little just typing it...

Anyway, Kelsie is beautiful. She has ten fingers, ten toes and all the parts seem to be in the right place. Well, all but one.

As Kelsie emerged, our doctor pointed out something called an omphalacele (ohm-faa-lo-seal). Basically, part of her intestine was sticking out through the umbilical cord. It was about the size of a golf ball. This is not normal. We learned that they are not dangerous (at least in her case) and that omphalaceles need to be repaired by a surgical procedure. We also learned that it could have been much worse. Many kids with these types of birth defects have all of their intestines or other organs protuding. (Again...head spinning) We are actually very fortunate.

Remember, she is about 40 minutes old when we learn she needs surgery. Now, for those who do not know, we live in Abilene (for now). It was not comforting to learn that there is not one person in that city who can fix this problem. She has to be flown to Fort Worth. Immediately.

This is not something you want to hear 45 minutes after giving birth.

But, it was what it was. Kelsie and I hopped aboard "Teddy Bear Air" and flew to Cook Children's Hospital in Fort Worth. We got there when she was about six hours old. That to me, is amazing in itself. Once we were there, the nurses and doctors poked, prodded and actually reduced the defect so that it was as big as a raisin. Dr. Sidebottom (you can't make that up) told me that she would most likely have surgery on Friday, but otherwise, she was healthy.

Well, to make a long story short (too late), Kelsie's surgery wasn't until Monday, she got Jaundice (awesome) and had an IV in her head. What a great weekend for her, huh? Anyway, Monday's surgery was quick, easy and painless and the doctor said she is as good as new. She is eating like a horse and everything seems to be working. We should get to go home tomorrow (Thursday the 8th).

What have we learned? God is good. We already knew that, but he proved it once again. He has given us more than we could ever want. He worked through the doctors, nurses, our parents, friends and extended family, who were just amazing this past week. My wife is the greatest woman in the world. She had a baby on Wednesday and rode to Fort Worth less than 2 hours later. She has been unbelievable this week. Cayce and Kyle have been spectacular children during this ordeal. They can't wait to have their baby sister home.

And why not...Isn't she beautiful??

What I did on my Summer Break

2006-05-26T05:53:00.000-05:00

My last post was March 2nd. That's almost three months. However, it was hardly a summer break. Just a break from blogging, I know you both missed me. Here are some highlights from those three months.

1. Kyle started and finished a little league baseball season. He was a Diamondback this year. (If either one of you remember, he was a Padre last year). This year Kyle decided he wanted to be a catcher. He went and asked the coach and became the starting catcher (that was easy...). Now, usually, in the lowest level of little league, all you need is a backstop with arms at Catcher. Kyle worked hard at being a great catcher though. I really hope he sticks with it. I will say it looked odd for the tallest kid on the team to be the catcher. The kid is a beanstalk. It was a fun season and they got a lot better during the year, let me tell you. That first game, they had no clue what they were doing. By the end, they were throwing out runners at home and hitting the cover off of the ball. I cannot wait until next year.

2. I finished my career (at least this portion) at ACU. It was a great job for 6 1/2 years. I owe them a lot for preparing me for my new gig at Lipscomb. I worked there longer than I have worked anywhere (so far), so it was a little strange cleaning out the office. To put it in perspective, Cayce was 2 1/2 and Kyle was 14 months old when I started there. They are now 9 and 7 (with another one on the way). This time in Abilene has flown by. I have made and will keep many friends. It is pretty bittersweet. But I digress...

3. I started my new job at Lipscomb. Holy cow. What a great opportunity. God has done some amazing things in my first 8 weeks there. What's funny is that people told me it would take 2-3 years to make some of the changes I wanted to make. Well, folks, I am here to tell you that God breaks down barriers. Actually, he steamrolls them. With his help, our organization has made some significant changes to make us successful. I am really excited about what God has in store for us in Tennessee. Plus, the frequent flyer miles are racking up. Hawaii, here we come.

4. Major League Baseball season started. I forgot to make picks, but I would have been wrong anyway. As of now, the Rangers have a two games lead and the Rockies are 1/2 game out. I know, I know the Rockies will drop out, but the Rangers look pretty good. Last's nights game was ridiculous. Down 7-0, Barajas hits a slam, Kinsler hits two homers and then Nevin wins it with a walk off in the 9th. Classic. I love the picture on this website. I can't wait to take my kids to a Ranger game.

5. Oh yeah, the baby. Actually, this is about the biggest thing going on. My wife is so amazing. This pregnancy seems to have lasted 15 months and she is doing great. It's all coming to an end though. In fact, I was in Minneapolis earlier this week (very cool town) and was supposed to go to Nashville to work until Friday. Bad idea. I headed home Tuesday with the notion that we may have this baby this week. After two trips to the doctor saying "Let's induce!", they finally told us we will induce next Wednesday the 31st. Kelsey Jayne (unless we spell it Kelsie) will be here within a week!

I guess that catches both of you up, somewhat. There is a pretty amazing story about finding a house in Nashville, but I will wait until next time to tell that.

I just won't wait 3 months to do it.

Classix

2006-03-09T10:08:00.000-06:00

Ah, the frivolous post.

This will be mindless, meaningless and will have no impact on your day. But it sure will be fun to type.

Yesterday, my old college roommate, Steve Crockett, sent me a link to a website that took me back to college. Was it a link to photos of old college friends? Was it a link to someone's blog who I haven't thought of in years? Was it a reminder of how much I love ACU (even though we are moving...)?

Nope. That would be meaningful...

The website he sent me is called ConsoleClassix. On that site, you can play practically every Atari, Nintendo, Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis game available. Everything from "Adventure" to "Yar's Revenge" and everything in between. Talk about a blast from the past. We played a ton of Nintendo when we were in college. Hours and hours of the greatest games ever. Sure Xbox and PS2 are great, but this is greatness.

What a great site. I had forgotten about half of these games and never played the rest of them. Sure my kids make fun of me for these games with awful "side-scrolling" graphics and bad music. But they are the games I grew up with. There are some funny memories associated with some of these games.

However, you can't do this kind of blog entry without a list. So, in honor of my friend, Steve Crockett, I give you my top 10 Atari and Nintendo Games of all time.

10. Karate Champ.

Karate Champ was one of those games no one ever admitted to liking. So I won't do it either. I hated this game, but strangely couldn't stop playing it.

9. Kaboom!

Kaboom! was a game from the Atari era that was a blast. All you did was catch bombs in a bucket of water. Simple. Stupid. Addicting.

8. Solomon's Key

Exceptionally underrated game. Very easy and yet really, really frustrating. My friend David Hancock would play this game all night while listening to "White Lion", yet he is completely normal...

7. Mike Tyson's Punch Out.

How many of you remember beating Glass Joe? How about Bald Bull? C'mon, be honest...Mike Tyson's Punch Out was a great game. Maybe should be top five...

6. Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt

I may get challenged on this, but Super Mario is not a top five game. I know it started a string of games, but it's my dorky list. Not top five. Duck Hunt, however...

5. Legend of Zelda

I don't know anyone that didn't finish this game. That is how sad we were in the early 90's. Anyway, I showed Zelda to Cayce (my 9 year old) last night and she laughed and said it looked ridiculous. This morning she asked me to play it when she gets home from school. Ridiculous? I think not.

4. Pitfall

My wife's favorite game of all time. That is probably why it made it this far up the list. I love her. Well, that and the fact that he made a "Tarzan" sound when he swung on the vine... Greatness.

3. RBI Baseball

My friend Garrett can still hum the music that plays during the game. Nolan Ryan and Tony Armas were sick. Bob Stanley and and Jose Oquendo were not. I cannot tell you how many hours I spent in Chad Land and Mike Harris' room in Mabee Hall playing RBI baseball. I loved being the Red Sox and taking on the Mets or Angels. But I think my all time favorite RBI Baseball player was Kirby Puckett. I loved that guy.

2. Contra

Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, Select, Start. Need I say more?

1. Tecmo Super Bowl

This was and still is the greatest video game of all time. You can have Halo. You can have Madden. I love this game. My roommates and I would listen to Led Zeppelin, Del Amitri and Journey every night and play this. Nothing brought more joy and more anger than Tecmo Bowl. Bo Jackson and Christian Okoye were awesome. So were "QB Bills" and Joe Montana. The Browns, however, were terrible. Great memories.

So there you have it. The definitive top ten. You also got a bonus look at the nerd side of me.

And it didn't even cost you any rupees...

Tennessee Jed

2006-03-02T11:57:00.000-06:00

The Grateful Dead once sang:

"Tennessee, Tennessee, there ain't no place I'd rather be,
Baby won't you carry me...back to Tennessee."

Well, I guess officially I've never been in Tennessee enough to be carried back, but it is a good lead in nonetheless.

Both of you will be happy to know that Jennifer, Cayce, Kyle, Unborn female baby and I are moving. To Tennessee. Nashville, actually. You may say to yourself, "WHAT???" If you are saying that, then this blog is for you.

I predicted to my wife on New Year's Eve that I believed I would have a job change in 2006. Little did I know that God had sooner rather than later on his mind. On January 10th, I received a phone call from Ricky Holoway, a good friend of mine and the Director of Admissions at Lipscomb University in Nashville. I had talked to him about doing some consulting at Lipscomb this year. He said to me, "You know that consulting we talked about? We will do it one better. We want you to come work here." In my mind, I laughed. There was no way we were moving to Nashville. Boy, was I wrong.

But, I decided I had nothing to lose and that the chances were exceptionally slim that I would actually get this job. So after an interview in Abilene and two in Nashville, the unthinkable has happened. I have accepted a job running enrollment at Lipscomb. Wow. They even called it an Associate Vice President position. That made my friend, Mike Shanks laugh. "You?", he said, "Are you sure they interviewed you? Have they met you?" He instills a lot of confidence in me, obviously. (For what it is worth, I shudder and kinda chuckle when I hear him called "Doctor"...so I guess we are even)

Anyway, God was all over this process. We threw all kinds of obstacles in the way of taking this job. He removed every one of them. We aren't even moving until after the baby is born (which was the biggest of all obstacles). It has been truly amazing to see God's hand at work. It has been a whirlwind two months.

So, we are moving. It should be a very interesting time in our lives. We think we will love Nashville. However, I do know that I will never see my friend, Craig Fisher ever again. He never goes to Nashville. Just ask his old roommate, Brandon Scott Thomas. Even with that, I am really excited. There is a ton of work to do. Lipscomb is a school with unbelievable potential. That is a big draw for us. We hope that we can make a difference in Nashville. We will need God every step of the way, trust me.

Kyle and Cayce are so excited about moving. They were a little hesitant at first, but it didn't take long for them to warm up. In fact, the second I told Kyle we could regularly go to Titans and Vols games, he immediately wanted to leave. At least I am raising him with his priorities straight. Geez...

We will really, really miss Abilene and ACU. But it is fun thinking about the journey that God has led us on up to this point as he "carries us back to Tennessee."

By the way, can you quote the Grateful Dead while talking about God??

2 to 1

2006-02-03T16:34:00.000-06:00

Well, we know.

My wife and I have been blessed with 2 children so far in our lives. Cayce, our 8 (almost 9) year old daughter, and Kyle, our 7 year old son. They have been a joy, a terror, and a blessing all wrapped up in one.

Now, the tie will be broken on June 11th.

I always battled the idea of three kids. First, you move into 5 passenger vehicle stage at all times. My Jeep has become very impractical. Second, you have the whole middle child thing. Third, and I believe most important is what I call the "Roller Coaster factor". There are no roller coasters designed to carry three passengers. All of them either hold four or two. Guess who gets to ride by themselves in this equation. That's right. Dad.

However, I have warmed to our life with three kids. It is going to be fun.

Anyway, I know both of you are getting angry with me for waiting this long. On or around June 11th, Jennifer, Cayce, Kyle and I are having a...

Girl

We saw the sonagram last Thursday and it was amazing. We then sealed the result and met a bunch of our friends for ice cream that evening. We let our kids open the envelope in front of everyone so they could share it with many of their friends. Cayce jumped up and down and Kyle was bummed. Yep. Kyle and I are surrounded. Even our dog is a girl. I pulled him aside and told him that us guys are going to have to stick together. He thought that was cool and is now pumped that it is a girl.

So there you have it: Our final score (we think):

Girls, 2. Boys, 1.

Oh yeah...I have a blog

2006-01-18T10:47:00.000-06:00

Have you ever had good intentions? Something you want to do but can't seem to make time for? You know, like cleaning the storage room or the junk drawer? Or buying socks? Well, I have intended to type a blog for a while now. I know both of you are thrilled I'm back, so let's catch you up.

-------------------------------

We get to see a Sonagram and find out what flavor of baby we are having next Thursday. I think it will become quite real at this point (however, my wife would argue it feels pretty real to her!). It's interesting because both of our kids want the opposite of what they are. I think they like the idea of being the only boy/girl in the family. Being an only child, I have no idea what that means.

Adler's concept of birth order (children take on certain characteristics depending on where what order they were born in) is interesting to me. However, I think that, if this linked table is any sort of accurate, God assigns characteristics based on the final order. In other words, my youngest son Kyle, has always had a middle child attitude. Is that because God knew he would end up being a middle child? I don't know, but at least it is interesting to me (but probably not you...)

-------------------------------
People keep telling me that an Ipod is the great electronic device on the planet. I may agree with that, but Satellite Radio is a close second. This was really the one thing I got for Christmas and my birthday (spaced 6 days apart thank you), and believe me it surpassed expectations. I chose Sirius over XM and I couldn't be happier. What amazes me is that I can have the same radio station from Denver to Abilene without ever losing signal. No more "Clayton-Raton, New Mexico" static (anyone who has made that drive knows of what I speak). But the programming is really good too. It alerts me when the Mavs or Vols are playing. It lets me know when one of my favorite songs comes on. I could definitely do without Howard Stern...but I just don't turn it there. But if you ever thought about Satellite Radio...go with Sirius. You will never listen to local radio again (or listen to commercials!!).

This message paid for by absolutely no one.

-------------------------------

Football season is just about over. Actually, it is. The Patriots got knocked out by the worst team possible. (Denver) Peyton Manning is out. The Cowboys didn't even make the playoffs. So what do we get? A Seahawks-Broncos or Panthers-Steelers (or some combo) Super Bowl. Yawn. In fact...looking back...what an awful season. I just can't bring myself to say the words "Seattle Seahawks - Super Bowl Champions". Yuck.

Oh well, bring on the NCAA Tournament. (Go Gonzaga!!)

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I just got done taking my first college class in 13 years. I decided to take a "Behavior Modification" class through the Psychology department. And no, I don't need to modify my behavior. I took a short course to gauge my interest in going after my Masters in Psychology. It was very interesting.

I think I would be a much better student now. From what I understand, older students usually are. The cool thing as that I had real life experience to relate to whatever we were discussing. I wouldn't have cared one bit about it at the end of college. I loved it.

And yes, I am leaning toward getting a Masters. I just wish I could go to the Masters after I finish my masters.

-------------------------------

And finally, Joel Quile published the best blonde joke I have ever read. It is absolutely awesome. Check it out here.

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Well, you both can count the days until I post again. The over under right now is 60 days. Place your bets.

Tagged by Fish

2005-12-16T08:39:00.001-06:00

Thanks to Craig Fisher, my blog drought is over. I've been tagged...

My instructions are to answer the following questions with lists of 7:

List 7 things to do before I die:
1. Baptize my kids
2. Go to the Masters
3. Hug my Grandkids
4. Play Golf at the TPC Sawgrass
5. Learn to play the guitar (working on that)
6. Go to Europe
7. See a playoff system in College Football (I may live to be 1000)

List 7 things I cannot (or will not) do:
1. Touch a Fish
2. BASE jump
3. Like Alabama football
4. Go Running
5. Play Golf Well
6. Change the oil in my car
7. Sing a Solo in front of a group (I will in the car however...)

List 7 things that attract me to my spouse:
1. The way she looks (she's unbelivable)
2. Her smell
3. The way she cares about people
4. She is an awesome Mommy
5. She's hilarious
6. Her laugh (and she thinks I am funny...)
7. The way she will watch football with me and critique the play-calling.

List 7 things I say most often:
1. Point, ACU! (not really...but close)
2. um...yello?
3. That's awful.
4. Go get your shoes and socks on.
5. Good job, now...run the ball!
6. Where are the buttons? (TV remote)
7. I'm going to need you to...

List 7 books or series that I love:
1. Harry Potter
2. Jimmy Buffett Books (A Salty Piece of Land, A Pirate Looks at Forty)
3. Lord of the Rings
4. Wild at Heart
5. The DaVinci Code (It's Fiction, people!!)
6. ESPN Magazine and Bon Appetit
7. Max Lucado Books

List 7 movies I would watch over and over again:
1. The Usual Suspects
2. Star Wars (all but Episode I...I can stomach II and III)
3. Fletch and Fletch Lives
4. Lord of the Rings
5. The Incredibles
6. Dazed and Confused
7. Office Space

List seven people I would love to join in:
1. Michael Lewis
2. Jeff Cozort
3. Matt Ritchie
4. Brock Paulk
5. Michael Mercer
6. Grant Boone (write anything really...)
7. Joel Quile'

Thanks Fish!

Don't quit your day job...

2005-11-19T07:44:00.000-06:00

I had a "Major League" moment yesterday. You know, the movie with Charlie Sheen and the Cleveland Indians winning the pennant? Hopefully both of you have seen that movie. It's one of my favorites mainly because of the greatness of Bob Uecker. He plays Harry Doyle, the radio voice of the Indians. He makes me laugh every time I watch that movie. Classic.

Anyway, there is one point in the movie where he is broadcasting and he flips it to his awful "color commentator" for analysis. The exchange goes like this:

Harry Doyle: "Monte, anything to add?"
Monte: "No."
Harry Doyle: "He's not the best colorman in the league for nothing."

So, here's the connection.

Yesterday, ACU's volleyball team played the first round of the Regional Tournament against Central Oklahoma. Now, on occasion (big matches), either David Bacon (longtime voice of Abilene Sports) or Lance Fleming (ACU's Sports Information Director) will broadcast the Volleyball Match on the radio. This was the case yesterday. Except yesterday, yours truly was the color commentator during the broadcast on KYYW.

Now, you see where this is going.

I've never done radio. Obviously. I have no training in broadcasting. I provide color commentary while watching football in my living room, and that constitutes my experience in the field.

Anyway, we do the open of the broadcast and it goes pretty well. Then we get to the game portion. It seems to be going okay until this. Here is the world class broadcasting exchange:

Lance Fleming: "Looks like the ball was tipped on the left side. I didn't see who tipped it, did you, Corey?"
Me: "No."
Lance: "Ok. So, Central Oklahoma will get the point then and will serve."

BRILLIANT! All you could come up with was..."no."???? Give me something...resembling...anything. I could almost hear my friend Garrett laughing at me. It was classic. Awful and embarrassing, but classic.

So, I do not plan to quit my day job anytime soon. By the way, the Wildcats won the match and now play in the NCAA Regional Semifinals. That is awesome. And hey, ACU is 1-0 with me as Color guy. That has to mean something...

Tribute

2005-11-13T22:57:00.000-06:00

I just added a new link to Craig Fisher's blog. I thought I had added that a long time ago, but alas, I hadn't. I also don't use the word "alas" often, so this was a chance to do that too.

I saw Fish in Chapel at ACU a week ago Friday. It was great to see him. He was here with his old roommates, Stephen Bailey and Brandon Scott Thomas for ACU's Filmfest. It's not often I go to chapel and see people that I was in school with. So it is a welcome surprise when it happens.

Anyway, Fish is one of the greatest guys I know. So, in honor of my new link to Craig Fisher's blog, here are 5 exceptionally random things I semi-remember about going to college with Craig Fisher:

1. Craig drove a 1988 Z24 Red Chevrolet Cavalier. I however think I could be iffy on the year (I wanted to link a picture..but there are none. Wow.)
2. Fish, at one time in his life, could not get enough C&C Music Factory.
3. He would eat Taco Bueno every meal if it were humanly possible.
4. He was the best dancin' white man I knew. He even had the white man's overbite.
5. And if I remember correctly, Craig Fisher is "the exception". Trust me on that.

On a serious note, Craig was one of those guys who had a huge impact in my life without actually knowing it. He was a mentor to me without even trying. He is a great friend. He is above all, a man of God.

Seeing him last week reminded me of all that.

Fish, I pray God's blessings on you, Beth Ann and your boys. Here's to you my friend.

Now, the rest of you go read his blog...

Randomness

2005-11-07T22:58:00.000-06:00

I think my favorite posts are those with no direction at all. No common theme. No witty title. Just hit and miss, soup to nuts kind of topics. So, here goes. A few different things wrapped up in a nice little blog...

--------------------------

The NBA started last week. Here are my picks.

Wait...I don't care. It's football season. Call me in 7 months.

--------------------------

Halloween was fun. Kyle decided that since he couldn't be a perfect Darth Vader (in other words, the Helmet wouldn't cover his entire skull), he would be Harry Potter. So we got the glasses, the robe, a wand and the lightning bolt scar and we was a perfect Harry Potter. Cayce went as Guinevere and the hot pink cast looked great with the rich purple and red robe. We were proud.

There is a neighborhood where it seemed every kid in Abilene was trick or treating. However, this year's candy stash was a little lacking. We now have more suckers and bubble gum than we can shake a stick at. What happened to Reese's? Snickers? Three Musketeers? It's like everyone got together and said "let's get the awful candy pack at Wal-Mart". However, suckers are a lot better than the worst Halloween Candy of all time:

Bit-O-Honey.

Enough Said.

--------------------------

ACU's Volleyball Team clinched the Lone Star Conference South Division Title last week. They are now ranked 11th in the nation. We host the Lone Star Conference Volleyball Tournament this weekend.

ACU's Football Team defeated two ranked opponents in a row earlier this month. They are going to very tough over the next few years.

ACU's Women's Basketball Team was voted to win the conference. For a team that was picked to finish terribly last season, they made it to the Regional Tournament. They have exceeded expectations over and over and will be fun to watch.

All in all, ACU's athletic program is a lot of fun to be around. We consistently win and have great rivalries with some of the other schools in our conference. You know me and sports, it is a lot of fun to be around winning programs year in and year out.

There is nothing funny about this part of the post...nor any part for that matter.

--------------------------

Who came up with the keyboard smiley faces? You know...

:)
:-)
;)
:(
:/
:0

there are lots more. The list goes on and on. Do people really need to see semi-colons and parenthesis to know I am joking? Have we become this dependent on computers?

These things are terrible. Now, we have people making entire pictures from little symbols on the keyboard. Trucks, chickens, people, you name it. People try to be artistic with their keyboards. Are we this bored as a society?

--------------------------

Oh yeah. Small piece of news. Maybe you knew, maybe you didn't. My wife, Jennifer, is pregnant. She is pregnant to the tune of ten weeks worth. We finally told our kids last weekend. They are a little excited. However, after the miscarriage in the spring, they are very careful not to get over-excited. Cayce is actually worried about her mom.

I guess this a good lesson to learn for them. Like it says in James, God is in control. We should begin every plan we make with "Lord Willing". He is the giver of all things. Cayce and Kyle now know this. They now say, if God is willing for us to have a baby, what will we name it? Good lesson early in life.

We are very excited. Guarded, but excited. It is all in God's timing. This baby, Lord Willing, will have a great big brother and sister to play with. What a blessing!

--------------------------

Alright...I'll let both of you go. There will hopefully be a lot more updates with the baby, the conference tournament, the holidays. You know, stuff you desperately care about.

;)

5-2

2005-10-21T15:43:00.000-05:00

I am still winning, but the score is getting closer.

The score now stands:

Corey - 5
Cayce - 2

I hope this is the final score.

You may ask yourself "What are you playing?" Well, we are not playing hockey, baseball, or or softball. We are definitely not playing basketball, horseshoes or four-square (No spins on Serves!).

The game is: Broken Arms

Yep. My daughter broke her arm on Wednesday night. The second time that is happened to her in her first 9 years on this earth. Ah, the joys of parenting. I would rather have my arm cut off than see her in pain like I did on Wednesday.

Here's the story (I know you both were wondering). Cayce and one of her friends were out jumping on our trampoline. See now, Cayce weighs roughly 45 pounds. Her friend weighs roughly 90. Now here is the cool thing about Physics. When a kid double your size jumps on a trampoline and you hit the rebound right...well, do the math. You fly roughly halfway to the moon. However, this time when that happens, it seems that the trampoline doesn't quite show up under you in the right spot. Cayce's legs went through the springs and she fell backwards off the trampoline. She did a great job of catching herself...that is until her arm snapped. (Grossed out yet? Wait til I post the x-rays...)

As three kids run in the house saying "Cayce's really hurt!!" I felt my heart drop to my stomach and saw a blur run out the door...this was my wife. I didn't know I could run that fast (and admit it, neither did you). Anyway, since this happened at 5:15 and every doctor's office closes at 5:00, we ended up at the emergency room. Good timing, huh?

Cayce got the express treatment at the emergency room. They do that for kids, I found out. I also found out that 462 people ask her how she broke her arm to make sure she doesn't say "Daddy did it." Anyway, she was whisked off to Exam Room 4.

After an x-ray and about 15 minutes, a doctor comes in and starts talking to us. A nurse immediately shows up at the door and motions the doctor to come outside. I noticed the concerned look on the nurse's face. The doctor says "Are the x-rays here?" and the nurse nods, "yes...get out here." The doctor looks at the x-ray and I hear her say "Wow. That is one for the scrapbook." This is never good. She then re-emerged and told us Cayce would be having surgery in a little while. She had completely broken her humerus bone above her elbow. In fact, the swelling we thought she had in her arm was actually her bone pressing up against the skin. This had to feel below average.

I head outside to call everyone we know and hear the nurses at the nurse's station say "Did you see the x-ray for Room 4? Her bone took a left turn about halfway down. Ouch." This is not comforting.

Anyway, to make a long story short (too late). Cayce's arm was realigned in Surgery and she had two pins inserted into her bone. She will be out 6-8 weeks. Barring a setback she should be ready for the playoffs.

I know, you might be wondering about the score. Yes, I broke my arm five times growing up. The last time was when I was a freshman in High School. In fact, when I was three, I broke one arm and then two weeks later I broke the other one. People at church looked at my parents a little strangely, I am told. Maybe I was clumsy, but I like to think of it as daring and adventurous. You say to-may-to...I say to-mah-to.

There you have it. I am leading 5-2. Let's hope it stays that way.

By the way...anyone want to buy a trampoline?

Random thoughts to start your week...

2005-10-09T21:21:00.000-05:00

Just a few thoughts to randomly kick off the week. Be careful, my mind is a scary place.

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Speaking of Scary. I love Halloween. I admit it. I love scary stuff, carving pumpkins and letting my kids trick or treat. So many parents are anti-Halloween. I just don't get it.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't want fake pools of blood at the doorstep or Kyle (my 7 year old) chasing away Trick or Treaters with a chainsaw (isn't that a funny image), but I dig Halloween. If it is done right and honor is given to God, it can be a fun experience. Can't it? I grew up with ghosts, witches, pumpkins and bats around the house. I am not a serial killer (as far as you know). I just want my kids to have fun with it like I did. Am I wrong? Can you do Halloween while giving honor to God?

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ACU's Volleyball team has now won 31 straight matches at home. They are number 14 in the nation. The nation! That team is unbelievable. We played Eastern New Mexico last Thursday night and dominated them. Amanda Slate hit the ball so hard that when one of Eastern's players tried to dig it out, it knocked her clean off her feet. Greatness.

We played our bitter, bitter, bitter rival West Texas A&M Saturday. I was so nervous. I knew Tennessee and Georgia were playing, I knew it was Texas-OU, but I was nervous nonetheless. Call me crazy.

But nervous for no reason. ACU hammered WT and put us in great position to win the South Division. They dominated them. If you haven't been to a game and have the means, I highly recommend it. It is a blast.

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Is there a catchier song than "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones? I don't even like the Ramones and I can't stop singing that song. Someone help me.

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I watched the replay of Chris Burke's homer to beat the Braves over and over on TiVo. I still contest that the emotion of a big game winning play is one of the greatest things to behold. They showed a shot of the dugout with the crowd behind it as Burke hit the home run. You saw everyone leap to their feet in anticiptation and then raise their arms and jump up and down when the ball leaves the yard. It was a sight to behold. Just another reason why I love sports.

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ACU's Homecoming is this weekend. I'm a sucker for homecoming. I love seeing people who I may or may not remember and who may or may not remember me. It is all about awkward conversations, which are hilarious to me. There will be stories about friends who climbed the walls at Nelson to run through the girl's dorm, playing Tecmo Bowl until 3 a.m. and who had the best prank in Mabee. Homecoming is all about the social/spiritual side of ACU. There aren't a lot of conversations like this:

"Remember Professor Hancock's English class? That was a fascinating discussion of "The Scarlet Letter" we had that Wednesday."

"I know. I will never forget that day we studied Hamlet's Soliloquy. I still have the notes!"

Maybe there are these conversations. I just am not a part of them. Which speaks to my "academic prowess", I guess. Anyway, I can't wait for homecoming. Let the awkward conversations begin.

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Finally, after the best game ever, Tennessee promptly put up a doinker against Georgia. LSU must be terrible, because Tennessee is one of the worst football teams I have seen in a while. No offense. Lazy Defense. Horrible playcalling. It was awful to watch.

That is the thing with Tennessee football. One week you get a great comeback, the next you get squat. It has always been this way. Tennessee never has blowouts. It's always close and therefore always stressful. Plus, their schedule is stacked with strong opponents (I understand that logic) but then when they do get a cupcake, they just squeak by (see: UAB and Ole Miss). But, oh well, I guess you have to take the good and take the bad, take 'em both and there you have...

That is a long way to go for a Facts of Life joke. But I couldn't resist.

I do think Natalie and Tootie could start for the Vols though...

The Music Game - Courtesy of Chris Campbell

2005-09-30T22:15:00.000-05:00

I'm glad that "I know Chris Campbell" because this is just pure greatness. Check out his blog for the 1988 version. Anyway, if you want to do this...here is what to do:

1. Go to musicoutfitters.com and, in the search box provided, enter the year you graduated high school.
2. From the search results, click the link for the top 100 songs of that year.
3. With the resulting list:
1. Bold the songs you like
2. Italicize the ones you hate
3. Underline your favorite.
4. Ignore the ones you don't remember/don't care about.

So, with that, I give you the best (and worst) from 1989:

1. Look Away, Chicago
2. My Prerogative, Bobby Brown
3. Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Poison
4. Straight Up, Paula Abdul
5. Miss You Much, Janet Jackson
6. Cold Hearted, Paula Abdul
7. Wind Beneath My Wings, Bette Midler
8. Girl You Know Its True, Milli Vanilli
9. Baby, I Love Your Way/Freebird, Will To Power
10. Giving You The Best That I Got, Anita Baker
11. Right Here Waiting, Richard Marx
12. Waiting For A Star To Fall, Boy Meets Girl
13. Lost In Your Eyes, Debbie Gibson
14. Don't Wanna Lose You, Gloria Estefan
15. Heaven, Warrant
16. Girl I'm Gonna Miss You, Milli Vanilli
17. The Look, Roxette
18. She Drives Me Crazy, Fine Young Cannibals
19. On Our Own, Bobby Brown
20. Two Hearts, Phil Collins
21. Blame It On The Rain, Milli Vanilli
22. Listen To Your Heart, Roxette
23. I'll Be There For You, Bon Jovi
24. If You Don't Know Me By Now, Simply Red
25. Like A Prayer, Madonna
26. I'll Be Loving You (Forever), New Kids On The Block
27. How Can I Fall?, Breathe
28. Baby Don't Forget My Number, Milli Vanilli
29. Toy Solider, Martika
30. Forever Your Girl, Paula Abdul
31. The Living Years, Mike and the Mechanics
32. Eternal Flame, The Bangles
33. Wild Thing, Tone Loc
34. When I See You Smile, Bad English
35. If I Could Turn Back Time, Cher
36. Buffalo Stance, Neneh Cherry
37. When I'm With You, Sheriff
38. Don't Rush Me, Taylor Dayne
39. Born To Be My Baby, Bon Jovi
40. Good Thing, Fine Young Cannibals
41. The Lover In Me, Sheena Easton
42. Bust A Move, Young M.C.
43. Once Bitten, Twice Shy, Great White
44. Batdance, Prince
45. Rock On, Michael Damian
46. Real Love, Jody Watley
47. Love Shack, B-52's
48. Every Little Step, Bobby Brown
49. Hangin' Tough, New Kids On The Block
50. My Heart Can't Tell You No, Rod Stewart
51. So Alive, Love and Rockets
52. You Got It (The Right Stuff), New Kids On The Block
53. Armageddon It, Def Leppard
54. Satisfied, Richard Marx
55. Express Yourself, Madonna
56. I Like It, Dino
57. Soldier Of Love, Donny Osmond
58. Sowing The Seeds Of Love, Tears For Fears
59. Cherish, Madonna
60. When The Children Cry, White Lion
61. 18 And Life, Skid Row
62. I Don't Want Your Love, Duran Duran
63. Second Chances, .38 Special
64. The Way You Love Me, Karyn White
65. Funky Cold Medina, Tone Loc
66. In Your Room, Bangles
67. Miss You Like Crazy, Natalie Cole
68. Love Song, Cure
69. Secret Rendesvous, Karyn White
70. Angel Eyes, Jeff Healey Band
71. Patience, Guns N' Roses
72. Walk On Water, Eddie Money
73. Cover Girl, New Kids On The Block
74. Welcome to the Jungle, Guns 'n Roses
75. Shower Me With Your Love, Surface
76. Stand, R.E.M.
77. Close My Eyes Forever, Lita Ford
78. All This Time, Tiffany
79. After All, Cher and Peter Cetera
80. Roni, Bobby Brown
81. Love In An Elevator, Aerosmith
82. Lay Your Hands On Me, Bon Jovi
83. This Promise, When In Rome
84. What I Am, Edie Brickell and The New Bohemians
85. I Remember Holding You, Boys Club
86. Paradise City, Guns N' Roses
87. I wanna Have Some Fun, Samantha Fox
88. She Wants To Dance With Me, Rick Astley
89. Dreamin', Vanessa Williams
90. It's No Crime, Babyface
91. Poison, Alice Cooper
92. This Time I Know It's For Real, Donna Summer
93. Smooth Criminal, Michael Jackson
94. Heaven Help Me, Deon Estus
95. Rock Wit'cha, Bobby Brown
96. Thinking Of You, Sa-fire
97. What You Don't Know, Expose
98. Surrender To Me, Ann Wilson and Robin Zander
99. The End Of The Innocence, Don Henley
100. Keep On Movin', Soul II Soul

Things I observed while reading this list of songs:

1. I couldn't italicize Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings" or Donny Osmond's "Soldier of Love" enough to tell you how much I hate those songs.
2. Music in 1989 was 70% terrible, 25% good and 5% lip synced (Milli Vanilli).
3. I forgot how cheesy Tone Loc and Young MC were. Yet, I strangely remember every single word of those songs. Too bad you can't get some C&C Music Factory or Technotronic on this list...then you would just have awful late 80's or early 90's dance music. Where's Scott Mestan when I need him? (those of you who know him are nodding right now...)
4. Yep, I pretty much still like the awful hair metal. Hadn't changed in a month since posting this...
5. I never knew that Cher and Peter Cetera did a duet, but I am pretty sure it was horrible.
6. The people who signed off on Will to Power's version of Freebird should be tortured and then shot. Then we find the band and do the same. Never. Cover. Skynyrd.
7. And finally, how they couldn't David Hasselhoff's song that he sang on the Berlin Wall (as it fell), I'll never know. What was the name of that again?

Thank you Chris Campbell. Now, Bust a Move...

Best. Game. Ever.

2005-09-27T11:38:00.000-05:00

As both of you know, I like sports. Just a little.

There are few things that top the unpredictability of a game. It is fun to watch momentum swing from one group of athletes to another. It is cool to see a crowd react to something positive or negative on a field or court. It can be such an adrenaline rush to watch your team win. It is the ultimate reality show.

There are not many times that I sit and watch a game with no emotion. My friend, Garrett, tells me I look like an idiot when I watch football. He is dead on. Man, I wish he could have seen me last night.

Very few things get the "Save Until I Delete" designation on our TiVo. This got one. This is why I love sports.

Last night, during the Tennessee-LSU game, there might have been a little emotion. I was angry, depressed, sick, laughing (at awful offensive plays), apathetic, hopeful, fired up, worried, negative, elated and joyous.

Tennessee roared back from a 21-0 halftime deficit and a 24-7 score at the beginning of the 4th quarter. I was pretty resigned to a loss and an 0-2 start to conference play. However, I should have known...

I had seen this before. In 2000, I attended my first Tennessee game in Baton Rouge. Tennessee, much like last night, was quickly down 24-6 and then down 31-15 in the 4th quarter. They clawed back with two touchdowns and two 2-point conversions to tie the game and send it to overtime, where they promptly got hammered. LSU scored with their first possession (first play) in OT and then stopped Tennessee four straight times from the 8. It was a long bitter drive back to Abilene.

It was eerie how much last night resembled that game. UT was awful in the first half and the crowd was going ape. They played "Tiger Rag" every five seconds and those drunk cajuns went insane. Tennessee regrouped at halftime and started making plays, ultimately sending the game into OT. UT won the toss (just like 2000) and went on defense. LSU chose to go the direction of their student section and band. However, this time, the Vols stopped them (after a scary first down play) and made them kick a field goal. Tennessee promptly ran the ball down the Tigers' throats and won the game. Did they really just win? Unbelievable.

When Adam Vinatieri kicked the game winning kick against the Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI, I laid in the floor with my arms in the air. No screaming. No jumping. Just disbelief and elation No way New England won the Super Bowl! New England?? The same thing happened last night. Laying on the floor...arms in the air. No way did UT just erase a 21-0 defecit. LSU had never blown a 21 point lead in Baton Rouge in 112 years. 112 years? Disbelief and Elation.

This is why I love sports.

Save until I delete.

My other job...

2005-09-16T10:30:00.000-05:00

Three years ago, ACU's Volleyball Coach (who is a friend of mine) called and we had the following conversation:

her: "Would you be interested in calling our games?"

me: "What do you mean calling your games, you mean like on the radio?"

her: "No, I mean as the PA Announcer."

me: "You actually have one of those? Oh wait, you mean the guy who was terrible last year, he is not doing it again?"

her: "Mercifully, no."

me: "Sure, I'll do it. Why not?"

So, I am now into my third season as the PA Announcer for ACU Volleyball. I am the "Voice of ACU Volleyball", if you will. Is that something I should put on a resume? Probably not...

Then last year, Shawna Lavender (wife to one of my best friends and the ACU Women's basketball Coach) asked if I wanted to do their games. So I gave that a shot.

I'm not going to lie to you. I love it. I get paid to sit there at courtside, watching sports, calling the game and playing music during timeouts. How great is that? It's even better that our Volleyball Team is nationally ranked and our Basketball Team should be (They are awesome). It is a blast. We never lose at home. It's a good gig.

However, I know that I am not the best PA Announcer ever. I miss calls. I make mistakes. I know that everyone in the stands thinks I am a dork. I know my friends make fun of me. How do I know this? They do it to my face. I made one mistake in my first game and I am still living it down. It's actually pretty funny. But I don't care. They can laugh at me and I won't change anything. I love what I do.

When I first started calling games a friend of mine reminded me of this story. Norman Archibald (now the Mayor of Abilene) had called ACU games as long as I could remember. He was pretty good, although sometimes he went a little over the top (like I do on occasion...). During a men's basketball game in the 1980's, we were playing a conference rival and a fight on the court broke out. Both benches cleared and Norman started screaming "Stay off the Court! Stay off the Court!". We all looked at each other because, well, no one was going on the court. The players in the midst of their melee stopped and looked over at him. He stopped the fight. I'm not sure, but I am guessing he still gets ribbed about that a little.

Anyway, my other job may not be glamourous. It may not be popular. It may even be funny to some people. But, I love it.

Plus, you never know, someday I may stop a fight or get to be mayor.

'Tis the Season

2005-09-08T10:14:00.000-05:00

As Phil Collins and Genesis once sang: "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight"...

Tonight marks one of the best events of the entire year. As both of you know, I am a huge sports fan. Last Saturday saw the kickoff of the College Football season (which I enjoy immensly). But, tonight...

That's right. Patriots-Raiduhs. The NFL is back. I can breathe again.

Don't get me wrong. I like baseball a lot. Even enjoy a good Mavs game every once in a while. But for my money, football is the one sport I would take to a desert island.

So, in honor of the greatest sports season around. I give you my fearless NFL predictions for 2005. (If you remember, and I know you don't, I'm terrible at this. I picked the Twins to go to the World Series for crying out loud.) Here we go:

NFC East - Eagles
NFC North - Vikings
NFC South - Panthers
NFC West - Rams
NFC Wildcards - Seahawks, Cowboys

AFC East - Patriots
AFC North - Ravens
AFC South - Colts
AFC West - Chiefs
AFC Wildcards - Jets, Steelers

NFC Championship - Vikings over Rams
AFC Championship - Patriots over Colts

Super Bowl XL - Patriots over Vikings (by three of course)

Everyone on the planet (that cares) is picking the Eagles or Colts. You keep doing that...Belichick will just keep winning Super Bowls.

Let the season begin.

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On a sadder note. I found the following story on the internet and I learned that Monday's retirement of Jerry Rice really only means one thing to my college buddies and I...

We have reached the end of an era. There is no longer anyone on an NFL roster was on Nintendo's Super Tecmo Bowl.

Here is that clip...

It looked like Jerry Rice would be the one, and perhaps he still will be, but as of Monday he officially relinquished control of deciding the age-old question: "Who will be the last Tecmo Bowl player remaining in the National Football League?" There had been only a handful of candidates on the table for a number of years, including such notable mainstays as Lee Johnson, former punter for the Cleveland Browns, and Rice's one-time teammate, Tim Brown. But in the end, it all happened rather quickly:

July 18, 2005 - Tim Brown signs a one-day contract to retire as an Oakland Raider
August 23, 2005 - Sean Landeta, seemingly out of the running, is signed by the Eagles
September 3, 2005 - Eagles activate Dirk Johnson and release Landeta
September 6, 2005 - Jerry Rice announces his retirement from the NFL

So Jerry wins right? Not so fast. The Eagles picked up Landeta because their starting punter, Dirk Johnson, had undergone surgery for a hernia and was a question mark for the regular season. When it became clear that Johnson would be able to play, Landeta was released. However, might another NFL team find themselves in a situation this year (or next...) where they could use the services of the NFL's all-time leading punter? A roughing the kicker here or a strained hamstring there could strip Mr. Rice of the one record Randy Moss can't audaciously claim he will take. Jerry will undoubtedly suffer through many a sleepless night until his claim to the title can finally be sealed, but...at least for now...he is offically pencilled in the books as The Last Tecmo Bowl Player in the NFL.

So here's to you Mike and Chris Shanks. Here's to you Steve Crockett, Jim Brown and Jim Newhouse. Here's to you David Hancock and Scott Hinshaw. Our tributes to players like Bo Jackson, Bernie Kosar and Gil Fenerty have come to a close. The era has ended. Yes, we were addicted and sad in college...but the memories were greatness. It is time to put this portion of our lives behind us forever...there is nothing on Sundays to harken us back to wasting many, many hours in front of a stupid video game.

Now...if only they would put Christian Okoye in Madden '06.

Not sitting...Standing!

2005-08-25T10:23:00.000-05:00

There have been so many things that I have wanted to share from the teaching time at T Bar M Family Camp. I hope I can do that over time and that God will give me the words to do it justice.
Our teacher was a guy named Todd Wagner. He is the pastor at the Watermark Community Church in Dallas, TX. He painted the picture I will share in a moment. Before that though, I want to plug something that Watermark is doing.

I have always struggled with being in the Word. I have always wanted to read the Bible through in a year, but have never found a good plan. Watermark has a good plan. Its called "The Journey" and it is a day by day reading that leads you through the Bible in one year. Here is the cool part. They send an e-mail reminder each day with the chapters to be read and a link to their website where you can download a daily thought by one of their members. These thoughts give a new slant on what you just read, a few thought provoking questions, and a tip on how that member studies the Word. It has helped me (especially lately) to not just read God's Word, but really be in it. I am daily working on transforming my life (and fail a lot!), and this really helps. Check it out.

Anyway, here is a beautiful picture. In a few places in the Bible (Hebrews 12:2, Colossians 3:1, etc.), there is this image of Jesus being seated at the right hand of God. This is an awesome picture of a Father and Son. I often imagine God with his hand on Jesus's shoulder just loving his son. (It's the father in me) But, check this out.

In Acts 7, Stephen has just finished his berating of the Sanhedrin. I mean he lit them up. Here are the final verses of Acts 7 in which Stephen pushes them over the edge:

⁵¹ “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. ⁵² Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, ⁵³ who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

⁵⁴ When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. ⁵⁵ But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, ⁵⁶ and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”

Standing! Standing at God's side! We have all these pictures of Jesus being seated at the right hand of God. Yet he stands for Stephen! I can imagine he is either cheering him on, or he sees that the Sanhedrin is going to kill him and tells God..."Lemme at 'em" (or something to that extent), or maybe he is standing to welcome Stephen home. Whatever it is, Jesus stood.

I had never seen that before. Scripture is so incredible. Things I have heard and talked about 1000 times, and yet my eyes weren't opened until I was 34...God is amazing. Continue to be in the word. Continue to seek God and he will seek you. How cool is that?

Lord, I want my life to be a sweet offering to you. So many times I fail, and yet you pick me up. I want my life to be so moving, so full of you. I want to be like Stephen, seeing Jesus stand at your side. You are awesome.

"More Cowbell, Mr. Bond?"

2005-08-22T20:57:00.000-05:00

Warning! Many of you could care less about what I am about to write. Consider yourself warned.

AMC is showing every James Bond movie up until Pierce Brosnan got the gig in the 90's. I'll admit it. I love James Bond movies. I always have. Every weeknight in August they have shown the original version followed with the Restored Widescreen Version. It is pure greatness. Anyway, here are some random thoughts on the James Bond Franchise.

Sean Connery is James Bond. James Bond is Sean Connery. Both of you would agree with this statement right? Here is the blasphemy part...I like Roger Moore better than Sean Connery. Sure, Sean was the original and most likely the best, but I just grew up with Moore. Plus, Roger Moore was in "The Cannonball Run"...very underrated, very stupid, very funny movie. I know what you are thinking. You haven't seen "Schindler's List", but you have seen "The Cannonball Run"? The answer is "yes...multiple times". Sue me.

Here is how I would rank the actors who have played James Bond. Roger Moore, Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton. I know you were wondering...

My favorite Bond Movie is "The Man with the Golden Gun". Christopher Lee is great in that movie, as is Herve Villechaize. You know...Tattoo from Fantasy Island? That Herve Villechaize. Great Plot. Great Action. Great Movie. This bring up another point. How can Maud Adams be in this movie as a Bond girl that gets killed, and then be a Bond Girl in a later Bond flick, Octopussy? Is this possible? Did nobody raise a red flag? Imagine the casting meeting. "Hey wait! Didn't we kill her off in "Golden Gun"? Yeah, but nobody will remember...except one random guy in Abilene."

The ski scene to open "The Spy Who Loved Me" is the best opening in a Bond Movie. Check it out.

Which movie is on tonight, you ask? "Moonraker". James Bond meets Star Wars. This explains why I am typing right now. It's awful.

Timothy Dalton as James Bond doesn't even count. Worst. Bond. Ever. I think they originally tried to get Brosnan for these movies, but he was busy with "Remington Steele". Bad career move for Pierce...bad Bond Movies for us.

And finally, Christopher Walken is the villain in "A View to a Kill" (Duran Duran with the opening theme - Greatness). How am I going to watch him and not think "I got a Fever and the Prescription is More Cowbell"? I can never take him seriously again.

If only Blue Oyster Cult had done the James Bond theme song...

11 and Counting

2005-08-13T09:47:00.000-05:00

About two weeks ago, both of you got to read about my son, Kyle after he turned seven. You read a little about his personality, his quirks and his questions. I appreciate you letting me gush over my son.

Well, I hope you will grant me a little flexibility to do the same thing today about the greatest woman in the world, my wife. You see, Jennifer and I were married 11 years ago today. We have officially entered the second decade of anniversaries. WOW! We have been best friends for 13 years now (we dated almost two years to the day we got married) and it has been amazing.

Once when we were dating, Jennifer bought a journal and listed 50 things that she remembered about the first six months we were dating. She added another 50 after we had known he had known each other a year. We would write notes to each other during class (which explains my G.P.A. after I met her). We would go on dates and then talk to each other for three more hours on the phone. We had a blast when we were dating. But it is nothing compared to our life together as husband and wife.

Our life has been a whirlwind. We moved to Fort Worth (seperately) before we got married. Then we lived in Arlington after we got married. Got transferred to Houston. Got sick of Houston. Moved to Denver. Got pregnant with Cayce. This was all in the first two years of getting married! Every step of the way, God led us to where we are now, even if we resisted it.

Let me just tell you how unbelievable my wife is. My wife is the most caring and compassionate person I know. She serves people as she would serve God. She is truly an others first person. She loves our kids more everyday. She is and awesome mom (and keeps me in check as a Dad!). She is creative, persistent, and a great tennis player. And have I mentioned that she is gorgeous? She is the most beautiful woman in the world. I love her more every day.

So, in honor of my wife, here are 11 things I love about her (not limited to 11 mind you...):

1. She endures my love of football and even watches it with me, asking questions like "Did Ben Roethelisberger throw 17 or 18 touchdowns last year?...I can't remember." - Most men would kill for this.
2. She stops to talk to homeless people and see if she can buy them food.
3. She loves to Mow. - Most men would kill for this.
4. She loves the Beach and the mountains. She could lay on a sandy beach or go camping. Not the Holiday Inn kind of camping...real camping. We don't do this nearly enough.
5. She is exceptionally thoughtful of others. She puts others first.
6. She is absolutely gorgeous, have I mentioned this?
7. She doesn't worry about if I make the bed, leave a half full coke can on the coffee table, or leave my shoes in the middle of the floor. Most men would kill for this.
8. She is an awesome Mommy. She will draw and read with Cayce, play baseball and Xbox with Kyle and sit and listen to me butcher the guitar and say "Wow...you are really getting good!".
9. She thinks I am funny. This makes her great...but it also makes me question her sense of humor.
10. She has created our home to be somewhere that we can have people in anytime. She is an awesome hostess.
11. And finally...she is the best friend a guy could have.

Thanks again for letting me talk about my family over the last couple of weeks. I will have to gush on Cayce soon to keep her from feeling left out!

Now if you will excuse me...I'm going to hug my wife.

Best. Vacation. Ever.

2005-08-08T21:14:00.000-05:00

Well, we are back from vacation. I know both of you missed me. I know I never really said we were going on vacation, but with the number of armed felons who I am sure read my blog, I didn't want to let them know that we were going to be out of the house for a week. At least that is my excuse.

Ah, vacation. Could've gone to EuroDisneyWorldLand. Could've gone to the mountains. Could've even gone to Sea World. We thought of everywhere to go on vacation. So where did we end up you ask? (I know you didn't ask...but you have read this far...might as well keep going) Well, the first half of the week, we ended up in, of all places, Kingsville. Yes, Kingsville. Have you ever been to Kingsville? Hoo, boy. It rocks. Well, even if Kingsville itself doesn't rock, our reason for going there did.

The first half of the week was spent with Jennifer's grandparents in their hometown of Kingsville. They have been married 67 years (Praise God!) and they have lived in the same house for 53 of those. 53 years in the same house! What a blessing! I can't even imagine that. Think of it. Never having to move for 53 years. Never packing a box for 53 years. We can barely stay in a house for 1 year, much less 53. It is amazing. This is the place that all of my wife's family calls home. Mom, Uncles, Aunts, Cousins, they all grew up in this house. It has just always felt like home for them. It really gives you a look into what God means for us in Heaven. We move from place to place, but always have one home. I can't wait.

Anyway, we spent a day at the Beach and Fishing (Kyle's one desire for his birthday). We played Dominos and Cards. We ate at King's Inn...a little hole in the wall fish place that Jen's grandparents ate their first meal as a married couple 67 years ago. They still go there every anniversary. King's Inn is on Baffin Bay in South Texas. Unbelievable fish and shrimp. Makes my mouth water at 9:48 pm.

Here is a couple of pics from this leg of the trip:

The second leg of the trip was spent in New Braunfels at T Bar M Family Camp. Remember, I said we could have gone to DisneyWorld. But Disney has nothing on this place. Just imagine a place where you have amazing Spiritual Teaching, College Kids that take your kids to do stuff while you and your spouse do cool stuff together, food better than a cruise ship, a camp where you stay in a hotel room with hot showers and cool air conditioning. But here is the kicker...every night before bed...Warm Cookies and Milk. Basically everything you would want in a camp, right? Family Camp has it. It is the best vacation our family has taken together.

I will go into much more detail about the teaching at some point. It was convicting, in your face, and powerful. Our "coaches", the college kids assigned to our family for the 4 days, were amazing with our kids. Our kids saw Jesus in these students. We could not be more grateful.

So there you have it. Our vacation in a nutshell. I didn't even get to talk about eating at the Gristmill in Gruene or rock climbing or the ropes challenge course, or blobbing, but I will explain those later. God blessed my family tremendously through this trip. He is to be praised.

Now...to the cookies and milk I smuggled home in our bag.

Profile of a seven year old

2005-07-28T13:47:00.000-05:00

My son, Kyle, turns seven on Saturday. If you know my son (which I think both of you do), then you know that he is absolutely crazy. He is also the most loving kid I know. Kyle loves God, his family, his friends, and sports. He also likes torturing his sister.

When Kyle grows up he is going to be the Riddler. My son asks 4 billion questions a day. Often times, he asks the same thing four ways:

Dad, are you drinking grape soda?
Does it taste like grape?
Is it good?
Do you like grape soda?

This kind of questioning should lead to a great job as a Lawyer or Psychologist.

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I asked Kyle yesterday what his favorite sports teams were. His answers:

Football - "I like the Colts even though you like the Patriots. I'm sorry I like a different team than you. I also like the the Chargers (because of the Lightning Bolts) and the Bengals. I kinda like the Cowboys." (That is what I like about Kyle - he doesn't put all his eggs in one basket...)

Baseball - "Rangers. I like Michael Young. Can I get a Michael Young jersey?"

Hockey - "Dallas Stars. We haven't watched Hockey in a long time Dad. Why?" (a special thank you to the NHL for putting me in position to explain a labor dispute to a 7 year old)

Basketball - "Mavericks. But I kinda like the Lakers. Can I root for both?" (a resounding 'no' to that question)

College - "I know you like Tennessee, but I like Texas. They are both orange so is that okay?"

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Other Kyle tidbits:

Kyle is an awesome kid. He loves people. If you are ever around him he will talk your ear off. But he just loves to talk to you. He makes me feel like the greatest Dad in the world. He would throw the baseball 24 hours a day if we could. He is the human rain delay when it comes to batting. He spends more time perfecting his warm-up than the actual swing. He is scared of the diving board, but fearless about jumping off the side. He loves Tabasco sauce and watching "Emeril Live". He used to be scared of the trash truck, but not anymore. He loves to hold his little wooden cross while he prays at night. He loves God.

He is the greatest son I could imagine.

I love you buddy. Happy Birthday.

Blues in the chord of SRV

2005-07-20T22:40:00.000-05:00

I've been listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan for most of the week. I have found that ever since I started taking guitar lessons, I appreciate those who play the guitar even more. Watching or listening to SRV or Clapton or Satriani or any of the other guitar greats is just ridiculous. They make it look so easy. I never realized how difficult it was to actually hit those notes.

Plus, I figured out something else. It is one thing to learn to play the chords on the guitar, it is completely different to learn to play the guitar. I mean, sure, you can learn to play a song that is written and make it sound a little like they do, but to know what the guitar is going to do when you play it a certain way? That is talent. These musicians are incredible. The music they write is unreal. They were just born with it. I was not born with it. I just hope I don't disgrace the guitar (however...I am an excellent air guitar player).

Anyway, I'm listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan this week and every time I do that I remember the day that Stevie Ray was killed. My friends Christian Brooks and Colin Batchelor held a candlelight vigil in their apartment in Sherrod (at ACU). They kept the lights down and shoepolished "We'll Miss You SRV!" on their sliding glass door. We listened to Stevie Ray for like 8 hours straight in the candlelight. It was quite a day. He was the greatest.

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Since we are on a music discussion (Well, at least I am)...

One of our favorite topics of conversation when our group of friends gets together is music. We come up with things like first concert, best and worst concert, favorite album, the "desert island game", etc... But my favorite questions that have been asked are:

"What band do you like that you shouldn't like or are embarassed about?"
"What band do you dislike that everyone says you should like?"

I love these questions. They are very revealing and lead to comments like: "You listen to Eminem? And Iron Maiden? Wow...I don't think I know you anymore." or "How can you not like U2? Are you insane?"

So I pose this question to you:

"What band do you like that you shouldn't like or are embarassed about?"

Me? I can't really narrow it down to one band. How sad is that? I am embarrassed of an entire genre of music. I am sad to say that I love 80's Hair Metal. Give me Whitesnake, Cinderella, Ratt, Great White, Warrant, Winger...all that horrible 80's Hair Spray music. I love it...and I know no one else does.

Sure I listen to good bands like the Grateful Dead, Jimmy Buffett, SRV, James Taylor, the Stones etc... But every once in a while, I gotta have Cheese Metal by Motley Crue or the Scorpions. I'm not proud of it, but I can't help it.

Alright, it's your turn. All you Britney Spears fans, I know you are out there. You too, Air Supply Fan (Lav). Let us have it. Who are you a closet fan of? It can be very liberating and yet a little embarrassing to get this off your chest.

It's easy. Now you know that sometimes I listen to bands that wore spandex and lipstick. Boy, would my kids be embarrassed. But, I can't help it...I'm old.

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to listen to some more SRV.

Followed by some Poison...

Food Finds

2005-07-12T21:29:00.000-05:00

My good friend Kevin Roberts has an amazing talent.

Name a city. Big. Small. Big population. Little Population. It doesn't matter. Do it now.

Alright, got that city in your head? Kevin can tell you the very best place to eat in that town. And here is the scary part...he's always right. Mention Dallas, you get Gennie's Bishop Grill. Mention Clayton, New Mexico, you get Rabbit Ears Cafe. Chicago? Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak, and Stone Crab. Buffalo Gap, Texas? Lola's Mexican. Everywhere you want to go and even some you don't (see: Clayton, NM)...he has a place to feed your face. I keep telling him that he needs to write a book...anyone know how to do that?

In celebration of my friend (who just was blessed with his third child)...I give you my Top Five Favorite Restaurants:

1. Downstairs at Erics - Breckenridge, Colorado
A hole in the wall sports place (decorated with tons of old pennants...including the USFL!) that serves the most incredible pizza. Your choice of white, wheat, garlic white or garlic wheat crust. I could eat there everyday. It is hands down mine and my wife's favorite place to eat.

2. Perini Ranch Steakhouse - Buffalo Gap, Texas
If you've never been to Perini, you are missing out. The Green Chile Hominy is not to be overlooked and some would say that the "Zucchini Perini" (Sliced zucchini baked in Italian meat sauce with fresh grated Parmesan cheese) is to die for. And the desserts, oh man. Homemade Strawberry Shortcake and Bread Pudding. Now, I'm getting hungry. Oh yeah, the steaks are unbelievable as well.

3. Smith and Wollensky Steakhouse - Dallas, TX
One of the best meals my wife and I have ever eaten. The Prime Rib is bigger than my head. They also make homemade Macaroni and Cheese (trust me) and the best seafood platter you can imagine.

4. Aloha Angel Cafe' - Kona, Hawaii
Found this little gem before snorkeling. Then we ate there the next day too. We each ordered the same thing. I've never eaten anything but breakfast there, but they have the best coconut syrup for your pancakes on the planet. The view of the ocean and the Coffee Beans growing on the trees outside make for an amazing experience.

5. Roy's Waikaloa Bar and Grill ("Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine") - Waikaloa, Hawaii
This is a personal favorite of my wife and I. They change the menu every night. Yep, one night you could eat Swordfish and then never see it on the menu again. Everything from top to bottom is amazing. You don't even have to go to Hawaii to eat there. They have them all over the Southwest (even in Dallas)

One of my favorite things about this list is that I have shared a meal at three of these restaurants with Kevin. Here's to you my friend.

It's no "desert island game", but think about your favorite places to eat. Eating always brings back good memories. Maybe it will brighten your day.

We have been blessed with some amazing cuisine in this country. Be sure and thank God today for the ability to eat and drink.

And pass the coconut syrup...

Desert Island

2005-06-23T15:08:00.000-05:00

Small hiatus from blogging. I know both of you missed me...

It's July 1. That means June is over. Let me be the first one to jump for joy. June, in a word, was insane, wild, chaotic, ridiculous, nuts, crazy, swamped, stressful and/or madcap. (Thank goodness for the Thesaurus) . Here is a rundown of my June:

1. Moved into new house.
2. Ran Junior Scholars for 38 soon-to-be Seniors in high school (you know, the event where someone almost died?). That alone is enough to be "madcap".
3. Went on a family mission trip to Fort Worth.
4. Participated in Passport.
5. Oh yeah, worked my normal job.

This may not sound like a lot to you. Next summer, I will let you do it.

I say all this to say, I need a vacation. Hawaii, Tahiti, Key West, Steamboat, Amarillo...I don't care. Just a few days to rest and relax. So, I am sitting there, dreaming of a vacation and the thought crosses my my mind..."at this point just drop me off on a desert island".

This leads me down an obvious train of thought. If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and you could only take 5 (insert category)...what would they be? So, I am going to include both of you reading this in my little game.

This week's question...If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and you could only take 5 cd's...what would they be?

Let's lay some ground rules. Double CD's can count as one CD, but Box Sets cannot. So Coldplay's "X&Y" can go, but the AC/DC box set has to stay home or count as 4 of your 5 CD's...you have to reaaaalllllllyyy love AC/DC for that to happen. (Chris Campbell...I am talking to you.) Also...no cheating. The IPods have to stay home. It's my game, I get to make the rules.

Here is my list of "Desert Island" CD's:

1. "Hundred Year Hall" - The Grateful Dead
2. "Physical Graffitti" - Led Zeppelin
3. "Barometer Soup" - Jimmy Buffett
4. "The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion" - The Black Crowes (very underrated)
5. "Greatest Hits" - James Taylor

I am also going to sneak AC/DC's "Back in Black" in somewhere. Remember...I get to make the rules.

It could happen someday, so it is always good to plan ahead. Know what CD's you would take to a desert island. It might give you a little piece of mind...

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to look for vacation packages in Amarillo.

Random Tidbits

2005-06-17T10:48:00.000-05:00

My wife's birthday was last Tuesday. She is 26 again...

She insisted that I not do the normal take-her-to-dinner routine. I completely ignored this, got flowers, a sitter and made dinner plans. So, I took my wife to Fuji, a Hibachi style Japanese restaurant here (in the style of Benihana...but not near as clean).

Fuji is very good. The chefs are fun (especially at night), the food is great and you may or may not see a cockroach. These are things that you look for in a good hibachi restaurant. However, every time I eat there, I am reminded of something my good friend, Kevin Campbell, once told me.

"There are stages to Fuji.", he said. "You go from excited to be eating there, to starving while they cook, to satisfied, to feeling extremely over-full, to spending a while "reading" or "thinking" (insert your own "potty" description here). You do this all in about 45 minutes."

It makes me laugh every time I go to Fuji's.

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Today, our office had a big birthday party for our Vice President who turns 40 tomorrow. The Party coordinators thought it would be hilarious to dress in black and give her random "Over the Hill" gifts like pill boxes and seat cushions. They all thought it was original and funny.

It wasn't.

How do you tell people that their idea was awful? You can't. You just have to fake smile and secretly roll your eyes. Actually, my friend Garrett can. He tells people all the time when funny ideas suddenly turn out un-funny. It's a gift of his. But, he's not funny either, so it balances out.

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Started guitar lessons yesterday. I have always wanted to learn how to play the guitar. So two weeks ago, I finally decided that life was too short to keep putting it off.

It's not easy to play the guitar. I'm not going to lie to you. My fingers hurt, my rhythm stinks and I only know two chords (as of now). But I will get better...maybe.

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The College World Series starts today with my beloved Tennessee Volunteers facing Florida. Now that the CWS is happening, the NBA Finals are now completely obsolete. Before now they were only moderately obsolete.

Seriously, I am as big a sports fan as any, but I just hate the NBA for some reason. I love the Mavs. I love the Celtics. But the NBA sucks. It is almost unbearable to watch. I haven't watched an entire NBA Finals game since 2000. And, I loved the NBA in the 80's! I was a huge Larry Bird fan. I loved watching those old teams.

How does this happen? How did I lose interest so quickly? College basketball is amazing to watch. Most of these players played college basketball! Does the money corrupt them? Are the officials that bad? How do good college players suddenly lose their passion? It seems like no one gives a rip in the NBA. Oh well...it's only 6 weeks until NFL training camps open.

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And, finally, there is no greater one day activity in Texas than Schlitterbahn. We went last weekend and it is worth whatever price of admission they charge. Sure the slides are great. Sure, the pools are great. Sure, there was greatness is in realizing I wasn't the fattest person there...that makes me really happy. But my kids loved it. They smiled and laughed and swam all day and then fell asleep in about 4 seconds that night. They experienced pure joy with no worries.

That alone was worth any price.

The Incredible Inedible Egg

2005-06-08T22:41:00.000-05:00

This is my first year running the Junior Scholars Program at Abilene Christian University. Junior Scholars is a five week program where students live on campus and take 6 hours before their senior year in High School. We have 38 very bright, fun students. However, it is not a camp. I have heard it called that 6 times so far. Why would you go to a camp where you have to go to school?

Anyway, we are a week and a half into the session and nothing has gone wrong yet. Everyone gets along. There have been no complaints. No one has even missed class (c'mon, this is supposed to be like college!). Everything has gone well. Too well...

Yep...almost lost a Junior Scholar last night.

One of my kids, we'll call her "Claire" (since that is her name), had a massive allergic reaction to something that she ate. We all knew she had severe food allergies, but obviously...they aren't kidding around. She is allergic to all kinds of foods, especially eggs and milk. She has been very careful with what she has eaten. Campus Dining has been very careful with what she has eaten. They even fixed her a special dinner last night. They made meatballs, steamed rice and plain green beans. Bland, but non-life threatening.

But it seems the pre-packaged meatballs were held together by a thin egg wash. This is bad for Claire. She had an allergic reaction to the point that the EMS guys had to breathe for her. Scary stuff.

So, I rush to the hospital (from across town) and get there only to find out the ER people won't tell me anything and if I so much as go near the doors, they will call the police to haul me off. I proceed to sit down in the waiting area and try to get a hold of her parents...who are in Tennessee. Yep...she's from Tennessee. That is 900 miles away...

As a few of us sit and wait...we continue to pray, and pray, and pray. Finally, the nurse comes out and says, "I'm looking a for a Corey Patterson". My heart drops and I go back while the nurse says nothing. This is bad. After what seemed like an hour we got to the trauma room door. "You can go see her", she says. Thanks for the scare, ma'am. I go in and see Claire...she has been through the war, but God had saved her. Greatness. It was such a joy to talk to her and her parents. We sat together and laughed and thanked God for 5 1/2 hours.

God is amazing. He answered prayers and blessed all of our lives. He has done great work in the last 24 hours. He is worthy to be praised.

But, enough seriousness for a moment...here is my question. Claire is very allergic to eggs. If I cracked an egg over her hand and she didn't clean it off immediately, she would swell up. But, she can eat all of the chicken she wants. How can someone be allergic to eggs, but not be allergic to chicken? Are you kidding? Aren't eggs baby chickens? Aren't chickens grown up eggs? How is this possible? Which brings up that whole "which came first...eating chicken or not eating eggs?" If you were allergic to eggs...wouldn't you be a little hesitant to even try chicken? The human body is a strange thing.

But at least Claire is here to help me answer these questions...Praise God!

Trading Spaces

2005-06-03T13:47:00.000-05:00

We will sleep in our new house tonight.

For those of you that know me, you might say, "I thought you just moved 18 months ago?". You would be correct.

In November of 2003, we moved from our little starter home (circa 1942) and purchased my grandmother's house that she and my late grandfather had lived in since 1985. However, as we lived there for a year and a half, we realized that it would never be "our house". As long as that house was in our family it would have been hers. Now, don't get me wrong, she never said that. But it is how we felt.

Than God started moving...

8:00 pm of Tuesday during Lectureship 2004, there was a knock on our front door. It was raining and dark. The man at the door said that he heard that we might be selling our house in the future and wondered if he and his wife (who were moving to Abilene from California) could take a look. They were just about to sign a contract on a house, but wanted to look at ours. They looked and seemed indifferent. The phone rang 15 minutes after they left (no exaggeration). "We are infatuated with your house. If you want to sell it...we want to buy it right now.", said our mystery house hunter. We pondered during the miscarriage and agreed. God had given them our house, and given us a way to find our own house.

So, we are pondering this whole deal, wondering if we should build or buy or not sell at all. Here comes dear, sweet Gina Lewis (who my wife works with) asks Jennifer out of the blue if we knew anyone who might buy their house. (They were wanting to downsize) We looked and knew immediately that this is what we wanted and we agreed to buy it.

Now, I am not one to say that it is all about us. But, I do believe that God had three couples lined up to relocate and put us all together. It was too perfect to be anything else. Our buyers needed a house for a 7 year old girl and a 4 year old boy...Bingo!...enter our house with a pink and green bedroom and a baseball bedroom. Mark and Gina needed out from under their house quickly to downsize and take care of some things. Bingo!...there we were to buy our perfect house.

There is no explanation for this except...God. He is wonderful and gives us more than we need. I pray that Jennifer and I can use this house to bless the lives of friends, family, college students and those in need for years to come. God is awesome.

Now, if they will only hook up our phones...

Getting Back to Reality

2005-05-27T09:30:00.000-05:00

TV sucks.

Just had to get that off of my chest.

Have we completely run out of ideas for television shows? Reality television continues to take over the world and it just bothers me. How many more ideas can actually be out there? I will admit, I have enjoyed a reality show every now and then. After the Ravens-Giants Super Bowl (still can't believe that happened), I watched my first "Survivor" episode and got unmercifully hooked. I, sadly, have watched most seasons since. I watched "The Amazing Race" this past season, and that wasn't too off-the-charts terrible. I even watched a few moments of this past season's American Idol (I have never watched it before, nor will I again...).

But reality is getting out of hand. Maybe we should get back to our imagination. I saw something incredibly disturbing on Tuesday. CBS has decided to get in the American Idol business..."Rockstar:INXS" debuts this summer.

Here is one writer's description of the show:

Each week will feature taped reality segments focusing on the performers’ relationships and activities, along with a performance competition and weekly elimination. The last person standing will become the lead singer of INXS, replacing the late Michael Hutchence. INXS had a string of worldwide hits in the late 1980s but their success has since waned and the band is best known for Hutchence’s suicide in a Sydney hotel room in 1997. Since Hutchence’s death, the band has experimented with a string of singers.

I have a few questions. Call them...concerns.

Do we really need an entire series devoted to finding a new lead singer of INXS? I mean, are we that starved for fair 80's music? Are we really wanting to go back to the days of "Suicide Blonde"? Did anyone know that INXS has repeatedly tried to find someone to sing? Does CBS really think that anyone will care after this show is over? What if the album stinks? Is anyone going to buy it because "this guy won a contest!"?. Does anyone care that this disrespects Michael Hutchence even a little? I don't think so.

Maybe, I am misguided.

Don't get me wrong..."Listen Like Thieves" and "Kick" were great albums. But come on, lead singers define bands. Only in very rare cases (see Van Halen and Audioslave) can you replace a very distinct lead vocalist and be successful. INXS is not one of those bands. Hutchence was a pretty good singer. His death was a tragedy, but INXS died long before he did. CBS cannot make INXS cool again. I firmly believe this.

What's sad is that this is a brilliant concept compared to "Nanny:911", "Super Nanny", "Hell's Kitchen", "Big Brother", "The Cut" and others. Add all of this to Psychic crime dramas, CSI: Tuscola and news magazines and you have exceptionally un-riveting TV. Sadly, I actually don't think reality TV will stop until they show an actual death on primetime network television (all you network execs reading this...don't get any ideas).

Why can't I invent a TV that only shows what I want to watch (basically sports and well, sports)? Somebody explain to me why I can't just have the Food Network, ESPN, the Travel Channel and the NFL Sunday Ticket.

A la Carte cable...what a great concept. Somebody needs to invent this. I'm serious. No more reality shows. No more crime dramas. No more steamy shows about housewives. Give me food, sports and world travel.

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to listen to "Kick".

At the Movies...

2005-05-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

In the wake of Star Wars: Episode III opening tomorrow, I was in a discussion with my friend Aaron about great movies (I have not declared Episode III great, but I am excited...). As we discussed the Original Star Wars trilogy our discussion moved to the current Star Wars trilogy. In discussing "The Phantom Menace", he said it was hard to see "Schindler" (from Schindler's List, obviously...) as Jedi "Qui-Gon Jinn".

He, of course, was referring to Liam Neeson. However, I did not know that. How did I not know that? Well...I didn't know Liam Neeson was in "Schindler's List", because I've never seen "Schindler's List".

That's right...I've never seen "Schindler's List".

Aaron, needless to say, was shocked. "How could you not have seen that?" and "Are you crazy?" followed.

So I started thinking. What are some movies that I have never seen that I should have seen? Actually, I can think of a lot.

I haven't seen:

1. Schindler's List (obviously...)
2. The Green Mile
3. The Shawshank Redemption
4. The Godfather
5. Apocalypse Now
6. Deliverance (Thank goodness...)
7. Platoon
8. Citizen Kane
9. Meet Joe Black
10. A Christmas Story
11. Monty Python's Life of Brian
12. Groundhog Day
13. Saturday Night Fever
14. Goodfellas
15. Hitch
16. Dodgeball
17. Tommy Boy
18. The Natural

Yep, never seen any of those. There are more, but I am drawing a blank. But, think about it. What are some of the movies that when you tell people "I've never seen _________" do they think you are nuts? Which movies were you supposed to see that you didn't?

Nothing beats my good friend Mark Lavender. He has never seen Star Wars. This blog has now officially come full circle...

The Trojan Horse

2005-05-12T10:08:00.000-05:00

I believe I may be sharing too much...but it is too funny not to share.

My daughter, Cayce, is 8 years old. In my opinion, she is very smart. She retains things very well even when you do not think she is listening. She loves school and is very engaged well she is there. If there is a project (like building simple machines) she wants to be the best...without Dad's help. Right now, Cayce's second grade class is studying Greek mythology and things in history that happened in that region. She has dived right in. She reads extra books on mythology and asks questions and more questions.

My wife called me Tuesday and told me this story...

Cayce and her friend Emily (who was over to play) were playing in the back yard when Cayce cut her heel. Being the grown up girl that she is...Cayce decided to fix her own wound. She went into the bathroom looking for band-aids...

My wife, meanwhile, is working in my son's room packing his stuff up (we are moving in a couple of weeks...). All of a sudden, Cayce and Emily appear. Cayce says, "MOM! Why didn't you tell me we had these? This is what we are studying in school! Can I take them for show and tell?"

My wife looked in horror as she looked at her daughter. She was holding...

"Trojans"

Then...Emily says, "Are those condoms?"

Gotta love awkward conversations with eight year olds...

Decade of...well, you decide

2005-05-06T13:47:00.000-05:00

After reading Chris Campbell's post about his 14th birthday, I immediately had about 1,000 80's flashbacks. Then I laughed at him talking about Walkmans and Stadia tennis shoes. Chris, that was hilarious.

I began to realize that any good 80's conversation has to have one of the following three themes:

1. Music
2. Movies
3. Clothes

These are the themes that define the 80's. They make it a decade both worth remembering and forgetting at the same time. I both love and hate the 80's. The 80's seem to keep singing "Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone)" (That song courtesy of Glass Tiger)

I just pray 80's fashion never comes back. I don't think I could take it. If I have to pinch roll my jeans, wear bandannas, shop at J. Riggings, wear sunglasses with curtains on the sides, own parachute pants, double tie and change the colors on my Kaepas, fit snugly into my red cordouroy OP shorts, buy Girbaud jeans, put Pennies in my loafers, wear a "Coca-Cola" shirt, change the band on my Swatch, put on Aramis or Polo "Green" Cologne, turn up my collar, wear my "Member's Only" Jacket (Light Blue!), tie my sock tie, or wear my knitted sweater vest over a white t-shirt, I think I'd have a heart attack.

I would however gladly wear Jams again...but that's just me.

Church Chat

2005-05-04T16:24:00.000-05:00

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had some pretty heavy discussions with folks regarding religion, the Church, Bible topics and the return of Christ. I really don't know where this post will go so bear with me...

Church Specific Writings

In discussing some of the New Testament books with some of my reunion friends, we started talking about how much of Paul's writing was church specific or cultural. It seems that whenever we talk about women's roles or worship or "the assembly", we tend to pull one or two verses out and say they were meant for us. We sometimes do not analyze the entire text. For instance, in Ephesians where wives are told to submit to husbands, do we read down where slaves are to submit to masters? Does that mean it is okay to have slaves in 2005? Of course not. I know there are many of Paul's teachings that apply today, but are there things we take too literal? We know some of those writings were meant to strengthen those early churches. So how do we use that stuff now?

This is not a new concept to you, I realize. But exactly how many of Paul's writings were really church specific? I started wondering what he would write to the congregation at Highland. Would he call out some teenagers for passing notes or dressing scantily? Would he say something about having Jack and Jill Maxwell drawing during worship? (I hope not!) What would he call us on? It is an interesting thing to think about.

Hellfire and Brimstone

I grew up in a very conservative Church of Christ household. We went to a very conservative church most of my youth. There were many Sundays that I heard that we should not use instrumental music (in fact, I heard someone say "We in the Church of Christ have got it right"...oh dear). I heard "turn or burn" sermons. I was taught the evils of pornography and alcohol. We sang hymns and met at 6:00 on Sunday night (5:00 if your church was really committed)

Many churches in 2005 are a lot different in my opinion. We sing a ton of praise songs (Greatness!). We preach the love of God. We preach missions, justice and compassion. All good. However, in the goodness that is taught do some people miss the daily living guide? Many of you (okay both of you) reading this may take this wrong. I don't want to go back to the "you are sinners and are unworthy" kind of teachings. But is a support group for divorce or alcoholism or porn addiction enough? Do people realize they need help? How can we help them do that?

Accountability groups are a start. But how do you ensure that a huge church like Highland makes everyone accountable? Look, everyone on this earth could be condemned (just ask my great-aunt's church...). Only Jesus was blameless. But why would you be condemned? Doesn't that make the grace of God and Jesus' sacrifice even more perfect? How can we help each other? I know sermons against porn aren't the answer, but how do we make people aware that 40% of the men who sit in church with you next Sunday have viewed internet porn in the last 3 weeks? How can we help?

I sure don't have the answers...I guess you can call that "wrestling" with God.

My Wife's Aunt and Cousins

Jennifer's cousin got divorced a few years ago and married a great guy. Doug is loving, funny, a great dad...everything a girl would want. He is also a very religious man. He just believes something completely different. He has worked on Denee (his wife) and her Mom (my wife's Aunt Earlene) and they believe in this school of thought now too.

You see, Doug is a Pre-Millenialist or Preterist. Preterism is the idea that some or all prophecy has been fulfilled in the generation alive when Jesus preached. In other words, it has been fulfilled in the past. It takes the divine inspiration of the bible seriously and literally. Some people came up with the idea that some of Jesus prophecies were wrong, so, in order to counter these arguments preterists believe that Jesus prophecies were fulfilled in this (His) generation, most notably by the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. They believe sin and the evil one were destroyed at the cross and that we are living in the established kingdom of God.

But the problem in our minds is: if sin was destroyed at the cross, why do I still struggle with it? Yet they have explanations for that. They can explain anything away.

Wow. You talk about hard conversations to have. You see the real problem with talking to them about it is that they believe in many of the same things we do. They use scripture as a reference and their points aren't way, way off (except the obvious). It would be easier talking to a Muslim, because they have no knowledge of the Bible or it's teachings. Jen's family is very knowledgeable. That is why it is so scary.

Why am I telling you this? Just to get you to say a quick prayer for us as we deal with this new challenge. Pray for God to give us patience, understanding and truth. Pray for the deceiver not to get a foothold. Thanks.

Well, that about does it. Not sure what that accomplished, but I just needed to ask some questions. All I know is that God is Good. That is the great and eternal truth...

"Some Hither, Others Yon"

2005-04-28T13:36:00.000-05:00

Just like the old Blackie Sherrod columns, this one has no direction...just a bunch of random stuff. Or as he liked to say..."Scattershooting while wondering what ever happened to Ron Springs." Enjoy!

Reunion V

Thanks to my friend, Jarod Cox, I realized that we use Roman numerals to count reunions instead of "Super Bowl Numbering". Thanks, Captain Obvious.

Last weekend was unreal. We had an absolute blast. Got 10 hours of sleep over 2 days. Played awful golf. Prayed with each other. Learned things about medicine I never wanted to know from Paul Watts. Ate great food. It was an incredible weekend. I just pray that each of you (well, both of you reading this) will have the same kind of experience with old friends soon. It is truly a blessing.

4 and out?

Watched my first two NBA games of this season on Tuesday night. My friend, Bart Herridge would curse me. But, what happened Tuesday is exactly why I don't watch the NBA. My two favorite teams, the Celtics and Mavs, both lost in the closing seconds and I just got mad. I don't need to do that. Maybe if I rooted for teams that have actually done anything since '86, it would be different. But they just let me down. Plus, the basketball isn't really that good. The most entertaining thing is just watching Michael Finley and remembering how much he looks like '80's icon, Billy Ocean. I love that.

Anyway, at least for the Mavs, it looks like it could be trouble. So, once they are out and the Celts lose...Basketball season will be over again. Thank goodness we have baseball.

It's a Crayola World

Kyle's first Coach Pitch Baseball practice is tonight. He is now a proud member of the Padres which means he is already better than Ryan Klesko. But, we got the note that said, "Kyle has been placed on the Padres. Their team color will be 'Sand'". Is sand really a color? What happened to brown? I understand that "brown" may not be descriptive enough. You might have to expand on that. But couldn't you say "light brown" in that case?

Has J Crew really had that much effect on the world? Where did normal colors go? Everything is Sand, Kelly, Rose, Ivory, and Port. Now I have to explain to people that will come to the games that we are the team wearing Sand... The only time you should wear sand is when you go to the beach. Sheesh.

Game winner

As, I was walking out to the car yesterday, my friend Aaron said "congrats on your game winning homer". Yep, I did it again. I beat the Reds in the bottom of the ninth. I have to admit, that never gets old for me. For someone with a name you don't hear everyday, I get a kick out of hearing Peter Gammons talk about how great I am. I won't lie.

And Finally...the NFL Draft

Is there anything more overdone than the draft? I think this just shows how huge the NFL is. The fact that a lot of these guys in a few years will either a.) be on different teams or b.) out of the league faster than Tim Couch never ceases to amaze me. So many people pour the entire lives into the draft (see: Mel Kiper, Jr.) only to get most of it wrong. It is really actually pretty funny. It's your world NFL, everyone else is just playing in it.

Thanks, Blackie for the idea of "Scattershooting". We miss you...

A Time to Laugh and A Time to Cry...

2005-04-21T17:29:00.000-05:00

It's Reunion Time...

About five years ago, my good friend Israel Lewis sent an e-mail that said this...

Hey Guys
Much like MLK, I have a dream
The Lord has blessed us far too great in our friendships not to enjoy them more. The emails are great but we need a yearly reunion.

We had talked about this a couple years back and one of you idiots dropped the ball. So here is the plan. Since Beans & I are with child I say the sooner the better (before baby).

What about 1st or 2nd Friday night in March we meet for dinner at Dave-N-Busters, then head to a hotel for the night. We crash at a hotel that has a hot tub to relive ZAMBIA then take off after breakfast.

Just my first thought. Let me know what you guys think. And also forward this to anyone I have left out. If anyone knows the whereabouts of Housie Brad Ballard he would be welcome

Hope we can get a date
IL

And so it was born... Five Years ago this week, we scrapped the Dave and Busters idea and 6 guys got together at a friend's house near Lake Whitney, Texas and laughed, played golf, reminisced, and had a blast. Since then it has grown to 11 guys and we plan on meeting together through the years (this is Reunion V - we use "Super Bowl" numbering...). It is such an amazing group of guys and we all have such a weird intertangling of our lives. Just to name a few:

- we all went to ACU together and some of us were roommates (off and on)
- 9 of us grew up in Abilene and went to school (again...off and on) together
- 10 of us were in club together (I'm the "outsider" in this aspect)
- some dated the same girls
- some were in each other's weddings
- some played soccer together

And the connections and shared experiences go on. But the one amazing thing to me (that we talk about every year), is that each of us has a different occupation. We all have such different gifts from God, but we are one. I know you are wondering...so here is the breakdown:

1 artist, 1 opthamologist, 1 in real estate, 1 dentist, 1 psychologist, 1 family practice doctor, 1 attorney, 1 accountant, 1 youth minister, 1 coach, and 1 in education.

Our lives are all so different, yet we have so much in common. We believe God is using our group to make a difference in many phases of life. I ask for his blessing on my friends and their lives.

Our reunions are filled with discussion, sharing what is happening in our lives (we set aside specific time for that), golf, poker, crying, eating, and much, much laughter. It is truly a blessing to have these guys in my life. God is good.

So, tomorrow, I will be heading to Lake Whitney for "Reunion V". I will be getting together with 11 of my very best friends in the world.

And to get another glimpse of Heaven...

What a Tangled Web my Mind Weaves...

2005-04-15T10:55:00.000-05:00

Do you ever have to explain how you got to a certain thought? I have to do that all of the time. I will be sitting in the car, talking to my wife about one subject and then 30 seconds later ask her the most random question ever. Now...it's not random. I have a perfectly good correlation between our last topic and this new topic. I just have to explain it. Usually, the conversation sounds like this:

"Jen, let me explain...we were talking about Patio Furniture and I wondered if Ikea carried patio furniture and that reminded me that Ikea was in Houston (on I-10) and I thought about our apartment in Houston and how our old dog (Murray) used to pee on that carpet all the time and that is why I asked you if you thought Murray was still alive."

See now? Doesn't that make sense? It does to me. I do that all of the time. It is just how my mind works.

I also have to explain how I can remember certain random dates and events. Unfortunately, they are usually tied to the sporting event that happened at about the same time. This drives my wife crazy. I can't help that the first thing I remember about meeting her parents was watching the Cowboys beat up on the Bears (27-14...last week of the 1992 season). I will probably always remember her cousin Brock's anniversary (they got married a couple of weekends ago) because it was the day of this year's Final Four. I can chronologically place events in my life by who won championships in major sports those years. That just becomes a point of reference for me. Again, it is just how my mind works.

I'm just glad my wife loves me. Because no one else could put up with that. How do I know she loves me? She told me so during Week 11 of the '92 NFL season.

Man...I need help.

What my dog teaches me about God

2005-04-12T13:26:00.000-05:00

This may be one of the silliest things I have ever typed. And yet, it makes perfect sense to me. I hope it does for you...

As you may know, we have a new dog. She is smart, sweet and chews on everything. I love her and yet sometimes she drives me crazy.

But as Kona (our dog) continues to live in our house, she becomes more loyal, more obedient, and more loving. She loves to sleep in my chair. She goes nuts when we come home. She is goes even crazier when she hears us getting her food. She depends on us for everything. She can't eat unless we feed her. On a cold night, we give her a warm place inside to sleep. She is hyper and happy when we are around and sad and crying when we aren't. She can't stand to let us out of her sight. She curls up in my lap and feels relaxed and safe. She trusts us enough to obey when we give her simple commands.

But as she slept in my lap last night...I started thinking about how our relationship with our dog should be exactly how our relationship with God should be. We need him to feed us. We should curl up in his lap, trust him and feel safe with him. We should always keep him in our sight. We should trust him enough to obey even the simplest of commands. God is our master and we should desire to be with him at all times. Nothing should make us happier than to be with him.

It might be a silly concept, but God works in mysterious ways. Maybe this is a good way to "train" me.

God, help me to be loyal. Help my unbelief and increase my trust in you. You give me all I need, help me to never to take that for granted. Continue to teach me in mysterious ways. You are so amazing, I want to give all of my life to you.

Yep...I have Baseball Fever

2005-04-07T10:07:00.000-05:00

Following my last post, I started thinking...do I really like Baseball again? Turns out the answer to that is a resounding "YES". How do I know? I found myself screaming at the TV and and being distraught as the Rangers left the bases loaded in the first inning. Man, I have problems.

I tried to watch the whole game, but fell asleep in the 6th inning. I woke up in time to see Hidalgo give the Rangers the lead, then fell back asleep. Woke up to see Erstad tie the game, watched through the middle of the 11th and then fell asleep again. I woke up at 3:15 in the morning with the TV on some exercise commercial. It was very surreal. Then I saw Soriano's game winning HR this morning on ESPNEWS...What a game. The Rangers are so much fun to watch. (I think most of the time, I will even stay awake for it.) Texieira is unbelievable. Young is a machine. Blalock and Soriano are amazing. Even Ryan Drese and Kenny Rogers pitched great the last two nights. I like how Showalter goes Lefty, Righty, Lefty, Righty down the lineup. This is going to be a fun season...

Mark Texieira is beginning to replace Todd Helton as my favorite current player. I love watching him play. Sadly, Frank Thomas is still one of my favorites...can't bear to part with my autographed Frank Thomas baseball and baseball card, even though he isn't very good these days. Oh well.

Anyway, in no particular order, here is a list of some of my favorite players I have watched over the years. Some good, some bad, some Rockies:

1. Frank Thomas
2. Todd Helton
3. Nolan Ryan
4. U.L. Washington (the toothpick!)
5. Mike Schmidt
6. Kent Tekulve
7. Mark McGwire (pre-steroids)
8. Dante Bichette
9. Steve Beuchele
10. Ron Cey
11. Andres Galarraga
12. Willie Stargell
13. Dave Concepcion
14. Rusty Greer
15. and now...Mark Texieira

There are many more...these are just some of my favorites. It's a warped list isn't it!

Hope Springs Eternal

2005-04-04T15:37:00.000-05:00

Today is Opening Day of Baseball Season. Usually, this means nothing to me because I am a football guy. But something about this year has me chomping at the bit. I'm going to try to put my finger on it...

It's not the Red Sox. I have already grown weary of their title. My guess is that they won't even make the playoffs this year. Everyone is so Red Sox crazy, it's almost sick. It's definitely not them.

It's not the Yankees. Because, well, I can't stand them. 'Nuff said.

It's not the Cubbies. Even though, as my good friend Todd Self says, "you play for them!" I admit, I do like the Cubs...but it just not the same without Ron Cey and Ivan DeJesus. Man, I'm old.

It's definitely not the Rockies. Even though they are my favorite National League team. I can only name one player on their team: Todd Helton. Wow...gone are the days of the Bronx Street Bombers of the mid '90s. They just plain stink now.

It could be the Rangers. I love that team. Teixeira, Blalock, Soriano, Cordero, Young, David Hulse...wait. Anyway, even without David Hulse, I love that team. This could be the year.

It could be the Twins. I'm a sucker for the small market teams. Royals, Marlins, Twins, Yankees...you know the teams that have little to no payroll? George Steinbrenner makes me sick. Put up your checkbook already and develop some talent.

I got it. It's definitely...Little League Coach Pitch Baseball. Kyle kicks off in three weeks and he (and I) couldn't be more excited. That kid loves Baseball. He has me fired up about all levels of Baseball again. We can't wait.

So there you have it. Hope is springing eternal over baseball again in the Patterson household, thanks to my 6 year old son. I love that kid.

So with that, here are my picks for the upcoming season:

AL East - Evil Empire
AL Central - Twins
AL West - Angels
AL Wild Card - Rangers, Baby!

NL East - Braves (for like the 152nd straight year)
NL Central - Cardinals
NL West - Padres
NL Wild Card - Marlins

AL Champ - Twins
NL Champ - Marlins

World Series Champ - Marlins (3rd title in 8 years...unreal)

So mark it down. Florida in 5 games and Kyle hits 3 home runs in Coach Pitch.

Play Ball!

Grab Bag

2005-03-28T10:49:00.000-06:00

Here are some random, non-funny tidbits from Easter Weekend:

Worship at Highland yesterday was amazing. We were blessed to get to man one of the tables with physical symbols of the cross that were set up in the front. It was amazing to feel the weight of the crossbeam and the splinters that most likely tore into Jesus' back. Children's eyes lit up when I told them that he did it just for them. It was such a blessing to me, I hope it was for them.

Val Durrington did it again. Every year he sings "Arise, My Love" at Highland's Easter Service and every year I tear up. Thanks a lot, Val. I still remember riding in Val's truck when I was a junior in High School hearing him sing Kansas' "Carry on, Wayward Son" at the top of his lungs. I knew he was destined for greatness. He is amazingly talented. Thanks, Val, for sharing your gift with us.

Our Easter present to our family: A Dog. We finally got our Blue Lacy. I am really biased, but she is the best dog ever. We were going to get a boy, but I caved and fell in love with her. She is the runt of the litter, but I guarantee she will be smarter than her brothers and sister. I was pleased to find out that being the runt means you will just be a little smaller. She is eight weeks old and hasn't had an accident since Saturday. She is brilliant.

The Arizona-Illinois Regional Final might have been the best basketball game I have ever seen. I never thought anyone could top Duke-Kentucky in '92, but this might have. What a game.

Anyway, that was pretty much Easter Weekend. Did I mention our dog is brilliant?

50

2005-03-24T10:26:00.000-06:00

They started it. I'm just continuing it.

I have read a few other blogs (stemming from Brock Paulk's Blog) that recount things they have done and things they have never done. I love that idea, so I am shameless ripping it off. So here goes...

50 Things I Have Done

1. I have been married for 10 years
2. I have had children for most of those
3. I have climbed a 14,000 foot peak in Colorado
4. I have been to Hawaii
5. I have poked a stick in flowing lava at Mount Kilauea
6. I have been to Las Vegas and New Orleans
7. I have needed a shower after going to Vegas and New Orleans
8. I have been to Billings, Boise, Portland and Seattle
9. I have caught a shark off a pier in Galveston
10. I have attended the NCAA basketball Tournament's First and Second Round in Tempe, AZ
11. I have been to a College Football Bowl Game
12. I have broken into the old Drake Hotel, the Old Hospital on Highway 80 and Abilene Christian High School to play basketball. (I think the statute of limitations has expired)
13. I have chased people with a chainsaw (no chain, in a haunted house)
14. I have walked the 18th fairway at Pebble Beach
15. I have locked Koy Roberts outside of the house during our Annual Reunion. (He was bitter...)
16. I have met Troy Aikman (twice)
17. I took Tom Landry's drink order
18. I was present for Kenny Rogers' perfect game
19. I have been the announcer for a live sporting event
20. I have met Del Amitri (very underrated band) and subsequently been placed on the guest list for their next show.
21. I have eaten animals for dinner that had been alive that very day (fish in Hawaii and deer fajitas in Junction, Texas)
22. I have caught a touchdown pass in Texas Stadium
23. I have thrown a touchdown pass to my son in our front yard
24. I have watched the Tennessee-Alabama football game from the field at Neyland Stadium
25. I have hung my legs over the edge of Hermit's Peak in Las Vegas, New Mexico
26. I have been in a serious car accident (and protected by the grace of God)
27. I have had dinner with Barry Switzer (some of you would say..."Why?")
28. I have rappeled out of a 3rd floor dorm window
29. I have streaked across ACU's campus
30. I have been to two NASCAR Races. One of them (in Phoenix), we had garage and pit passes. We got to meet and hang out with my wife's distant cousin, Terry Labonte, got to watch the race from the pits and go to church with the drivers. Even if you aren't a redneck...it was pretty cool.
31. I have seen concerts by AC/DC, Van Halen, Del Amitri, Aerosmith, Rush, Collective Soul, Metallica (twice), and Robert Plant/Jimmy Page for free. On the other hand, I have paid to see KISS, The Dead and Jimmy Buffett. Worth every penny.
32. I have made the game winning shot to beat the #8 team in the state
33. I have won tickets to the All-Star Game Home Run Derby (It was at Coors Field...unbelievable)
34. I have been to 4 Monday Night Football Games
35. I have worked at Cajun Cones
36. I went to Dean Smith's Basketball camp at UNC and Space Camp at the Space Center in Huntsville, Alabama
37. I have stayed in the Honeymoon Suite at the Imperial Palace in Vegas with 4 guys (mirrors on the ceiling...ew)
38. I have hurt my knee skiing
39. I have been to the Bahamas, got really sunburned, played blackjack at age 19, and eaten fresh pineapple on the beach (plus, I bought a suit in the Bahamas too...Tax free!)
40. I have swam with dolphins
41. I have been proud of my kids as they spoke in chapel at their school
42. I have accidently thrown my driver into a tree on the 10th tee at Maxwell Municpal Golf Course
43. I have preached at Highland
44. I have not packed underwear on a work trip and gone commando (poke out your mind's eye)
45. I have won money playing poker. On the other hand, I have lost money playing poker
46. I have seen the Dead at Red Rocks
47. I have met George W. Bush
48. I have played the outfield at the Ballpark in Arlington (Ameriquest Field)
49. I have played golf in the snow with Greg "Cheetah" Wilson
50. I have been blessed with an amazing life, an unbelievable wife and family and more friends than I could ever list.

Getting Back to Normal

2005-03-22T11:25:00.000-06:00

It seems like we are getting on with our lives. The roller coaster of the last two weeks has slowed considerably. Jen is back at work. We are getting together with friends. We're even getting a dog. Life is coming back into shape. Here are some highlights.

My wife and I spent all day Saturday playing with our kids while keeping an eye on the NCAA Tournament. We did this to spite my friend Michael Lewis and his post on watching sports on TV. (Just kidding, Michael.) We rooted for the underdog and we yelled at the favorites. We had a great day. We just enjoyed being together. I know many couples who go through something like we went through and their relationship takes a dive for a while. I am happy to report that our experience of losing a baby has made our marriage stronger. Thank you God!

We had some friends from Colorado come in town on Sunday. What an awesome family. They were our mentors while we lived in Denver. How glad we are that we now get to return the favor in the fall when their son, Jarrod, comes to college. He is a great kid. I hope Kyle continues to look up to him while he is here.

Cajun Cones opened last week. All is right with the world. Cajun Cones beats ice cream every day of the week. If you have never had a Cajun Cone, you have to get in your car and go there now. My favorite flavor is Blue Hawaiian and Creamy Colada mixed. I'm also partial to Vanilla Cream and Dr. Pepper. I'm getting the shakes just typing about them.

There are many more examples of our lives getting back to normal, but I will leave you with those. Please say a prayer and thank God for healing my wife. He is taking very good care of us.

Two Words. Roller. Coaster.

2005-03-15T09:33:00.000-06:00

"Pull the bar in front of you until it is snug on your lap. Please remove any hats and keep your arms and legs inside the car at all times. Enjoy the ride."

Our lives have been on a roller coaster the past week and a half. A week ago Saturday, my wife and I took a pregnancy test. Actually, two. Why two you ask? Because the first one had a line. Were we freaked out? Maybe a little. Actually...A LOT!

We went throught the "do we tell people or wait?" phase. We went through the "the doctor won't see us until when?" phase. We went through the "what are we going to name him/her?...no not 'Peter'" phase. We went through the "joyous time with our family and friends (after their shock)" phase. It finally sunk in...our bodies still work. We were going to be parents...again. (You should have seen the look on Cayce and Kyle's faces.)

Just as the roller coaster reached the apex of it's climb...it sped down the incline at a rapid rate. The day after we broke the news to our best friends...the phone rings in my office. It is my wife. After hearing the symptoms...we head for the doctor. Three hours and a blood test later, our good friend, Dr. Martin, tells Jen that God just wants us to enjoy our two children for a while. Just that quick, he has taken the new one home. More phone calls. More unknown feelings. More prayers.

My wife is amazing. She is stronger than I could ever be. She is tougher than nails and will bounce back better than ever. Our kids were incredible as they heard the news. All they cared about was if Mommy was going to be okay. They know that God has a plan for our family and this is part of that plan. Our friends and family were unbelievable. They give us support without even trying. And God is...well God. There are no words to describe him. He is powerful and in control. He is caring and knows what is best. He is big and strong and alive. We couldn't do this without him. Thank you God for all that you have blessed us with. Our family, our friends and each other. Please take care of our little baby that was the size of a pinhead. God, you are the best.

"Thank you for riding our newest roller coaster. The ride is now complete. Please exit the car to your left and continue down the ramp to the rest of your life."

A Few Random Thoughts to Start the Weekend

2005-03-11T09:50:00.000-06:00

I am not working today...I guess you could call it my Spring Break. So my mind is doing just that. Here are some random tidbits from the corner of my brain.

I heard on NPR this morning that a document surfaced on the internet claiming that the US Government did some nuclear testing in Sudan in the 1960's. After much research by the Sudanese government, they realized that the report contained a typo and that the testing was actually done in Sedan, Nevada. I have two thoughts. My first is, if we had tested nuclear weapons in Sudan in the 60's, wouldn't people in Sudan know about this before now? Aren't a lot of people who were young adults in the 60's still alive? How would they have missed that? Wouldn't there be mushroom clouds and glowing people and land that wouldn't grow anything? My other thought is how many other reports have had typos that we didn't catch. Were we supposed to attack Iran and not Iraq? Were we supposed to pay $150,000,000 instead of $15,000,000 for 800,000 square miles of land in the Louisiana Purchase? Did Ann Richards really get elected governor of Texas in 1990? THAT HAD TO BE AN ERROR!

Saw the new trailer for Star Wars Episode III last night. I am pretty sure I am the only one of my friends who cares...but that's okay...I am excited anyway. It just reaffirms the fact that I am really twelve years old.

Going to Dallas today. I think this is probably the 1,478,492nd time I have made this drive. My friend Kevin Campbell can estimate to the minute when you will arrive just by the landmarks on the road. He is sick.

My son, Kyle, is realllllly ready for baseball. He only asks 107 times a day if we can go throw. I cherish that, because it won't last forever. I just hope he can learn to catch soon.

I haven't worn briefs since seventh grade. Is that too much information?

I have a group of friends that gets together at Lake Whitney every year in April. We just sit and talk for hours. I think that is how God intended it. We have been e-mailing all week and my side hurts from laughing. Thanks guys.

Bagels may be the perfect bread. Add a little cream cheese and you may get a glimpse of heaven.

Is Disney World a rite of passage for 8 year olds? We are thinking of going in May. We have to (I will explain that later) or it will not happen. I think every 8 year old has to go to Disney World or they will not get the full enjoyment out of it. Of course, you already know I am 12, so I will always enjoy it.

Thanks for venturing into my mind...it's not funny...it's just what is there.

West Coast Bias

2005-03-08T12:34:00.000-06:00

Every year I try to watch the West Coast Conference Tourney final. It is usually entertaining, always high scoring and very fun to watch. Something about this mid-major conference just gets me fired up. I started watching when Loyola Marymount was scoring 150 points a game and kept watching, rooting for Pepperdine or Santa Clara (Steve Nash) or Gonzaga, maybe even the Dons of USF. I don't really have a favorite team, but I root for that whole conference when it comes tourney time.

This year is no different. I hope St. Mary's gets a bid. Their three point shooting is unbelievable and they are fun to watch. I want Gonzaga to make the Final Four, even if it screws up my bracket. There is just something about that team. They have a great inside presence in Ronny Turiaf and a ridiculous playmaker in Adam Morrison. I have been watching this guy all season thinking "we are seeing the reincarnation of Larry Bird". Sure enough, he pours in 25 in the semis against San Diego and 30 in the final vs. St. Mary's. I love this guy. He is as clutch as clutch gets. He can carry them a long way.

Go ahead...call me crazy. And no, it's not perfect baskeball (a la Duke and UNC) but I invite you to join the WCC Bandwagon. Develop a West Coast Bias. You have to stay up late...but it is worth it. These guys are good.

The Wal-Mart of Circuses

2005-03-07T10:35:00.000-06:00

I can finally talk about it.

My daughter, Cayce, had her 8th birthday on February 26th. We are one of those every other year families. We have two children and they get to have a "big" birthday party every other year. (Last year, Cayce had a swimming party at the 'Y' with 20 crazy 2nd graders). On the off year, we do something special as a family and they get to invite one friend.

Well, this was Cayce's "off year". We came up with several options for a family activity, but it just so happened that the circus was in town on her birthday. So that is what she picked. And, man, was she excited. She and Kyle talked and talked and talked about what they would see at the circus. They raved about clowns, lions, tigers, elephants, trapeze acrobats, crazed men being shot out of a cannon and much, much more. So we had a plan. The Pattersons were off to the circus.

At least that is what they called it.

I should have looked to see which circus was in town. I thought they were all just like Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey. I. Was. Wrong. The Pattersons (along with a "lucky" friend of Cayce's) were in store for the 2 p.m. performance of Circus Gatti. Gatti? Like Mr. Gatti's. Oh, if only that were true! It might have actually been fun.

Let me describe Circus Gatti. It is the Wal-Mart of circuses. Even worse it is the K-Mart of circuses. Maybe even the Bealls or Dollar General of Circuses. There are so many analogies. First, there was the ringmaster who had proudly proclaimed this his "29th year of hosting Circus Gatti". He was probably only 42 years old. They stole him from home at age 13. I know these things. His voice rang throughout Taylor County Coliseum selling wares of the circus: Alien Balloons, Light-up toys, $5 Elephant, Pony or Inflatable slide rides, and $5 Face Painting. This man made me sick. The ultimate in cheesy.

Then there were the clowns. Wait...did I type an "s" there? I meant clown. Yep. One Clown. One terrible, not-funny clown. I thought a circus was to have many clowns to actually be called a "circus".

Finally, we have the animal act. No...not animal acts...animal act. Yep, one act with three elephants that have been with the circus for 107 years. They were doing the same tricks with the "I could stomp on this guy and never have to do this again...Nah, maybe tomorrow" look on their faces. The rest of the circus acts contained a combination of the same performers just dressed in different handmade "satin" costumes. All the while recorded music with a live drummer played in the background. I needed a shower.

And, oh, the money they made. 17 bucks a head to get in. $5 to go down an inflatable slide. $15 for a light up toy that will die tomorrow. I told Jennifer that we are in the wrong line of work. Circus Gatti can't be that expensive to run. You have 10 people and some various barn animals to take care of. They must make profit like you wouldn't believe.

But, here is the funny part. MY KIDS LOVED IT! I wish I were a kid again. Simple things make you happy. Three half dead elephants and a single, bad clown make for an afternoon of rousing entertainment. I was so happy for them and we had a great time laughing at the circus performers (not with them). It was a great day. Cayce was on top of the world. Kyle, while slightly creeped out at the clown, has a blast. I can't wait for them to see a real circus.

Maybe it will have clown(s).

That's my name...

2005-03-04T10:05:00.000-06:00

This is the second time I have attempted to Blog. Maybe this time it will stick.

Let the jokes begin.

As you can tell from the web address, my name is Corbett. I actually tried to get coreypatterson.blogspot.com, but some random guy has it. I wonder if it is this Corey Patterson. If it is...I'm okay with it. Otherwise, I'm ticked because I had to use my given name, Corbett.

I've had lots of nicknames over the years. I've been called Knick Knack Pattywhack, CPT, Patty, CP and various names from my friends Garrett and Jarod that I won't mention here. And even though I actually like my given name (get this: I was named after a guy who later fired my Dad - nice legacy, huh), it has been a target since fourth grade. Being called "Corbett from Orbit", "Corbert" and "Corny" was always fun.

So call me what you want, I'll keep posting...I think.