Welcome to the Past
This what it used to look like
before wordpress. You can see that most of my
entries were short and to the point.
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The Ultimate Card
Game
Or at least that's all we play here. It is quite
fun though, after you play hand and foot, rummy
seems quite simple. We play quite often around here.
Last night we played twice and that was fun, mainly
because I won one of those times. My wife gets mad
at me when I want to quit, but there is really no
point in playing if you are a cazillion points
behind the leader. |
Christmas comes but
once a year
This Christmas I was away from my family in
Florida again. We will spend the next Christmas in
Florida with my family. Although I did mention to
Tara that it is nice being a part of a large family
here. I received money, candy, a Peyton Manning
jersey, and lots of food. It was a good Christmas.
Not to mention, we got the entire week off of work
so I have been able to sleep in almost everyday.
That in itself was a great Christmas present.
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I hate these
things....
I know I have heard other people comment on how
much they hate these things. I would like to state
for the record that I too, hate, disgust, loathe
these things. I understand their use, but I still
hate them. |
Being Sick
Without a
doubt, being isck has to be the worst thing ever. I
would rather run two miles, dig a ditch, reshingle a
roof, mow the lawn, eat some onions, or give myself
a paper cut. Yeah that's right. I mean I hate being
sick. I would rather do all those things twice than
sneeze and have to run to the bathroom to0 catch it.
I hate that. hate it. |
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My Bruise
Pictures
don't do justice to bruises. My arm looks way cool
right now. I am kinda proud of it, like a battle
wound or something. I gave platelets at the red
cross and now my arm has turned into quite the
conversation piece! My wife even made me put on a
long sleeve shirt while we had company over. sweet. |
Steroids and Baseball
Cards
This big
report came out this week that named numerous
players for buying/using steroids or HGH (Human
Growth Hormone). One named was my favorite player
from my baseball card collecting youth, David
Justice. I read some reports about his response, he
said he never used or bought them. My point of view
is that this mess won't be cleared up for a long
time. Can't we just go back to baseball cards and
bubblegum |
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Second Try
So the last
time I tried to give platelets at the Red Cross,
things got ugly. My blood was on the floor, and it
took three hours! I thought my second attempt would
have been better....not so much. After agreeing to
do a triple, they stuck me in both arms to speed
things up. Near the end, my left arm started to kill
me, the nurse came over. The needle had worked it's
way out and instead of returning my blood into the
vein, it was pumping it into my bicep. So for the
next few weeks I will have a black and blue arm.
Sweet. |
My Right Arm Died
After
failing to achieve my hoped for score of 120 on the
first game, I decided to change strategy. Instead of
bettering my score, I would try to increase the
height of my back swing. After about three games of
reaching for the ceiling, I believe my right arm is
broken. That's right, incapacitated, non-working,
broken. Well, actually I still have full function of
every aspect, but for about 5 minutes, it really did
hurt. |
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Bowling Score
It looks
like we are going bowling. So I would like to
predict my score. I am usually not an incredible
bowler. I usually bowl around 120. Which to me isn't
all that great. So here is my prediction for
tonight. I think I will bowl 4 games and the scores
are as follows; GAME 1-120, GAME 2- 145, GAME 3-137,
and GAME 4-156. If I bowl those, I will be pretty
happy. I guess we will see. |
Lazy Day
I usually
don't like lazy days, but today was a welcomed lazy
day. I didn't get out of bed until 12:30 and then
all I did was more to the recliner in the den. Then
I fell asleep again. It is now 6:36 and I have
finally gotten up, taken a shower and that is about
it. We might go bowling later, but that is a big
might. I kinda like being lazy for a day.
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I am scared of facebook
I know that
sounds crazy, but it's the truth. I used to be
scared of myspace. Everyone was scared at some
point. I mean come on anyone who has had a myspace
remembers when you first signed up. You kept asking
questions like...How did you make your profile look
like that...and how do you change this....You
remember. Now I face the book. I am not sure what I
will do, but I will face this fear, this facebook
fear. |
A New Hope
Our once
bare parking lot will be transformed into a paved
beauty. Its funny how you never really think about
how important a paved parking lot is. I wonder if
they would let me drive one of the big trucks? I
mean who out there can say they have helped pave a
parking lot? I can still hope right? |
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The Jury is still out
So I rushed
home from Church tonight, well not really. I stayed
until everyone else had left and locked up. Then me
and Billy went back to the house to watch Pirates 3.
After watching in amazement at the CGI, I have to
admit, I was lost. I usually follow movies pretty
good. But there were so many call backs to the
previous movies that I was lost most of the time. I
thought it was great, but I will have to watch a few
more times to understand it all. |
SciFi Channel
Usually I
run from everything SciFi unless it is Star Wars,
but this past Sunday a new mini-movie came on the
SciFi Channel that created quite the stir. It was
called Tin Man and it was a "re-imagining" of the
wizard of OZ. A bunch of people hated it, but I for
one loved it. So if you missed it I think it comes
on again starting Dec. 9th. |
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Pirates of the
Caribbean 3
I missed it
in theatres and I rushed out to buy it yesterday
when it came out. So I spent the $25 for the double
disc and I hope it is worth it. Some people have a
problem with the pirate movies (i.e. my wife) but I
for one have loved the series. I couldn't watch it
last night so tonight after church I am turning the
lights off and crankin the volume up. I will tell
you what I think about the final chapter in the
series. |
Start a Blog?
The great
question of my life right now, or at least for the
enxt few moments is whether or not I should start a
blog. I am basically doing a blog now, but if I
start one all that I have created will be lost as I
start over. The bonus of a blog is people could be
automatically notified when I added something new,
but I don't know if I trust this here new
technology? |
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Starting Over
When we left
Palatka, we had an incredible band and a whole group
of students coming up who wanted to learn to play.
Now that we are here we are starting over again. In
a way it is really exciting to see where these guys
are two years from now. So here we are starting over
with great hope in sight. |
Meet Andy...
Great guy,
didn't say much though. He was our waiter today at
Shogun's. I wonder if that is his real name. I can't
see a young Japanese couple thinking up the name
Andy for their new born son. I think Mark and I have
decided to build a grill with seats around it in our
dining room. It would be the ultimate man thing. Not
to mention you could build the "onion volcano"
anytime you felt like it! |
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The Legend Continues
I have found
one game, above all games, that wherever played
brings pure enjoyment to teenagers. And that is
Mount Knight Carry. I can't explain it to you in
words, but this one game is hysterical and more
importantly its funny. |
Crazy people...
You begin to
realize once you work with teenagers for more than,
oh say... a week that they are all crazy. They are
not going crazy, been crazy, or kinda crazy. They
are all crazy. This can be a good thing, and it can
be dangerous. In this case, this group of teenagers
are great. And crazy. |
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Yard Sales No More!
It has
finally sunk in, that for 2007 there will be no more
sales. I am not sure how I will handle this. It is
kinda like going on a fast. I will try to ignore the
pains for a while and then I will go through that
really tough stage...withdrawals. I hope that when
spring comes I won't go on a binge or something
crazy like that. |
New Friends
I love the
people from Palatka. I have so many incredible
memories from there and God did some awesome things.
What I am also excited about is that God has opened
the door to meet some incredible people here in
Jonesboro. Take for instance Carla, who I truly love
to see every Sunday morning. God is cool like that.
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The Future is here?
Go ahead
click the picture, it gets worse... I told you so.
After I finally noticed how fat my face has gotten,
I started wondering what I would look like if I
gained, oh let's say, 200 pounds. I am not sure if I
would wear those shorts, but the shirt is nice.
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Platelets?
To describe
the entire process that I went through today at the
American Red Cross. Let's just say at one point 6
nurses were crowded around me, and blood was pouring
out onto the floor, yeah that crazy. After three
hours I left with a Pepsi and a cupcake. Will I
go back? Sure. It's for a good cause but man was it
crazy. |
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Beanies in Florida?
The whole
idea of wearing a beanie in Florida was for fashion
statements only. I have found that in Arkansas
during the current season...they are a must, indeed
I say required. Have I mentioned how fat my face has
gotten... |
My New TV!
I finally
got a picture of the new tv. I absolutely love it.
Turn the lights off (cus its projection) and it is
perfect. Turn the volume up and "Pirates of the
Caribbean" is as good as in the theatre. Which by
the way, hits DVD on Dec. 4th....Gotta love it.
Thanks Scott and Lisa! |
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Our First Camera
So we got up
and went to Black Friday sales. We left at 3AM and
pretty much the only thing we got was this camera.
It is actually my first digital camera. We have been
using the church's camera for everything. But now we
are the proud owners of a Kodak C763 which was on
sale! Gotta love Black Friday. |
Why is it called Black
Friday?
It's like
turkey day is too much rest for this crazy American
economy. We can't stand to be locked up in our homes
for more than a day, especially with Starbucks
closing early. We have to make up for that some
how...I know let's get up around 3AM drive to Kohl's
and shop with thousands of half asleep shoppers.
Genius. Will I do this again? Wait till next year to
ask me. |
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I'm going to hibernate!
I
lived in Florida for 25 years, and I loved the
weather. Now that I live in Arkansas, I have
realized that Florida did not have winter, fall, or
spring. We just had hot, and more hot. To be honest,
I am quite scared of the cold weather, this
floridaboy doesn't know what to expect. I bought
and ice scraper for my windshield yesterday. I
think I'm going to hibernate. |
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Kinda Like Christmas
Back in my
hometown of Palatka, we had garage sales, and I went
to a few every once in awhile. But since I came to
Jonesboro, I found out what real garage sales are
all about. We wake up at 5AM, drive into the
darkness, go park in front of a house, wait for the
lights to come on, the door to open, and then we run
like crazy. I can't explain it any better than it
feels like Christmas. You never know what you will
find, some are better than others and you walk away
with a bunch of stuff, I love it! |
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Life as a King
My cousin in
law, Scott called me and asked if I would be
interested in a 52"inch TV. He was getting a new one
and wanted to give me his old TV. I thought a big TV
was in the 19-27 inch range. But long gone are the
days of puny ole 27inch TVs. I have in moved
amongst the kings. And it feels amazing, not to
mention video games are now life size, how I love
you Tony Hawk. |
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This Bird Shall Die
I have never
really been excited about Thanksgiving. It was
always the lame holiday where we ate and then sat
around the house. You couldn't do anything with your
friends cus it was a holiday. But now being much
older and a healthy 40 pounds heavier I have a
strange appreciation for all those wonderful days
off with plenty to eat. I sure did miss out on a
good thing. So kill the bird, bring on the football
and fall asleep my friend, fall asleep. |
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A
new phase of life...
I don't know
when it started but I just recently noticed
something...I have entered into a new phase in life.
I am now in the DOT DOT DOT phase... I was typing
the other day and realized that almost every
statement I made ended with a dot dot dot. In this
entry alone there are already three...now four. I
don't know what this means but it has to be
significant. Go ahead and try to count how many dot
dot dots I have done on this page alone. Kind of
scary, I know. |
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While I am in the mood
After the
cambers came it got me in the sappy remembering
mood. I went looking through all my old photos and
came across this one. it has to be one of my
favorites. Me and Pastor are cleaning our fish that
we caught. After an attempted cleaning, we tried
grilling them, and then promptly got in the car and
went to McDonald's for fish sandwiches. Classic. |
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Cambers are gone...
8 days and 7
nights. You know I didn't realize how much I missed
Palatka, until the cambers came. They are family to
me and we had a huge reunion this week. I would love
to show you all the pics but it would seem too long,
so I took out five shots to give you a glimpse at
what we did this week. So here goes.... |
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Mosquito Golf
We attempted
to play Frisbee golf, which I actually loved, with
Frisbees that were way too large. Amidst the golf
playing we managed to learn survival skills. Even
this late in the year the mosquitoes were horrible.
I mean Florida has nothing on the life size blood
suckers here. It was incredible and I think Joey and
Holly cheated... |
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Crackhead Forest
We fed the
geese at the famous "Craighead" Forest which if said
quickly sounds a lot like crack head (Joey mentioned
that at least twice). The best part was that after
feeding/chasing the geese, we found a lovely moist
surprise on my new jacket. It was as they say,
beautiful. |
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$10.10 Please
We went to
the amazing Jonesboro bowling center for a fun night
of bowling. I personally bowled my worst to date, an
awful 98, 101, 129, and another score which I have
forgotten. We bowled five games and that averages
out to about 250 throws. I never thought of it that
way before... |
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Graham Cracker Houses
The Camber's
have a tradition that the Hudson's have stolen. We
now make graham cracker houses and promptly destroy
them. It was lots of fun...including the demolition.
Many people don't understand the joys of crushing
graham crackers beneath your hand...sweet freedoms. |
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"Give It All"
Our last
full night together, we decided to write, perform,
and record a song. Although I was unsure at times,
we pulled it off. Expect the EP to drop sometime in
the spring.... |
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Cambers are coming...
It is true,
they are coming. Holly, Joey, and Pastor Bill are
coming to my house in Arkansas. As we speak they are
driving this way. I totally know the feeling that
they are having right now...pure panic, and
claustrophobia...I wish I had spelled
"claustrophobia" correctly on my own but spell check
was definitely involved. |
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PodCouch
So I totally
love
relevant magazine.
Each week they have a podcast that, I think, is
incredible. So what do you do when you love
something...steal it! So with that said, each week
thrive is recording a podcast modeled after the
relevant one. Now although ours is quite less
professional, I think it is great. Each week
students come over to my house and sit on the, what
I have named, PODCOUCH, and we record a podcast.
Check it out at
doyouthrive.com |
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Frozen Hay
For some
reason as intellectually advanced as the human race
has become we continue to subject ourselves to
various forms of torture with the only logical
explanation being tradition. Why did 35 people pile
into the back of a cotton trailer in 40 degree
weather? Tradition. What made that fun? Tradition.
Whatever the logic, I had fun.
Okay
so the picture is an over exaggeration, but who
cares... |
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AState Game
Tonight we
went to an AState University football game. Not only
did we go, but we went VIP style. I am talking Suite
AB on the third level of the football center. I was
right behind the goal posts and it was incredible.
Did they win, no. Was it even close, no. But there
was free food and I felt cool, so there.
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Not just a concert, but a beginning...
We went to
the Switchfoot concert and it was everything I had
hoped it would be. We sang, we cried, we laughed,
some guys even went to the bathroom to say they went
to the loo while at a live concert. I thought that
was an ingenious idea. And now have decided to see
how many important events I can attend and be in
"the loo" at the same time...Then once I am old and
grey I can tell the kids of my adventures in the
bathroom at weddings, funerals, Bar Mitzvahs and
political rallies... |
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I
pretty much know switchfoot...
Okay not
really but who knows what could happen after tonight
when we see them live in concert. I will be sitting
in Sec D Row 17 Seat 9. If you se me, stop by and
say hi. If you are not going then, I will let you
know how it was. Although I can pretty much say with
lots of confidence that this could be the best
concert in the history of man kind.
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Strawberry Barbeque
We drove 3
hours round trip for this barbeque. I really did not
believe that it was going to be worth it, but after
the first bite, I said the first bite, I was a
believer. I have never had such good pork before in
my life. they call it the pork steak dinner! WOW, it
is worth the drive. it was huge and I had enough
leftover for seconds tonight! Yes. God is good.
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It is coming...
This
Wednesday, it will happen, it will be large, it will
be incredible. We will reveal the new name for our
youth ministry. We are pretty excited about it.
Pretty much the picture says it all. This will be
the exact reaction of our teenagers...yep. |
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Singapore Addiction
Finally,
after many lost auctions, I won my favorite SNES
game on ebay. Upon arrival from Singapore, I quickly
became addicted all over again. I played for about 5
hours total only to find that the game had erased
all of my progress. But alas, I am addicted, this
did not hinder my progress but instead only
intensified my problem. Life is great! |
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Meerkat Memphis
A "Whole Day
Date" is what I called it. I took my wife on a date
to the Memphis zoo. It was a lot of fun. My favorite
had to be the Meerkats. Those guys are incredible.
If you haven't seen them in person, you gotta go. We
also loved the hippos, giraffes, and Tara's favorite
was the monkeys. Gotta love the Zoo. |
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The Man Room
Okay so HGTV
and "Man Room" don't seem to equate but follow me
here. Upon arrival in Arkansas we were blessed by
the church to have a parsonage, (which means Huge
House with a thousand rooms) and because there was
extra space, I was able to have a room dedicated to
man stuff! Thus the "Man Room" was born. I saw this
guy on HGTV, don't player hate, and he turned this
room into a cool ocean scene. I am taking a twist on
his idea and making a florida man room. I can't wait
till it is finished, I will post pics later!
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My First Rodeo
I finally
feel like I live in Arkansas. I went to my first
rodeo. We are talking ropin cattle, ridin bulls.
Life is great at the rodeo. i just wish it was the
least bit interesting. Sad to say but after the
first 10 minutes I was second guessing my $12 ticket
purchase. I hear the upcoming "Bull Buster" event in
March is much better. So here I wait in
anticipation. |
New Kid on the Block
Here
we are in Jonesboro Arkansas. God has moved me and my wife
to a new church with new faces. I feel like the new kid on
the block, getting to know everyone is a big job. I am
really excited about the days ahead. Things are going great
here. The church is growing and we have awesome opportunity
ahead of us!
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The day is coming...
I
never really thought I would leave Palatka, I thought I
would grow old sippin tea from the front porch of some old
house while getting a nose full of good ole GP. But God
being wiser and smarter new better. On Thursday August 16th
I will pack my life, my stuff, and my wife into a moving
truck and head to Arkansas. I remember growing up and
watching people move on in their lives and now I am the one
moving. Kinda weird to be on the other side now.
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Fireworks are here!
Every
year I get the pleasure of selling fireworks as a fundraiser
for my church. I cannot explain how crazy it gets at times.
But this year, thank God, there is some relief. Our kid's
pastor took over one of our tents and is running that one.
So things are actually going great. I am not stressed out
and I am still alive...for now. |
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Summer Camp
You
can't really explain a "move of God". So for me to put words
around what happened would be to simplify the miraculous. We
not only had the most fun ever, we connected with God in such
an intimate and personal way. I wouldn't change anything about
this year's camp experience. Click the pic and check out all
that happened. My expression on the white water is priceless! |
Justice and eBay
The
past few weeks I have developed a stupid addiction to
eBay. I found out that I could order all kinds of stuff from
my favorite player growing up, David Justice. I bought a
jersey, a baseball bat, and added to my now enormous card
collection of over literally 1200 cards. That is a whole bunch
of David Justice cards. Call me crazy or addicted, whatever.
Find what you like, I guess. |
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I should change my
Quote!
This
past week was probably the hardest I have faced. On Sunday it
all began with a trip to the emergency room, and then another
trip by ambulance on Monday. My wife had emergency
surgery, and I was freaking out! The doctor said that if we
had not of brought her in...well you know. God is good and I
am so grateful to all who have prayed. I guess the really hard
time is in the recovery. Well I do believe in God even when
the circumstances seem to be against me! I think my new quote
should be "nothing bad will ever happen to me or my wife!" |
I am tired!
This
was our big event for the spring. We brought in a group called
"FX". They use trashcans, brooms, and other stuff to make
rhythm. They did 6 school assembles, reached 1200 students,
and 17 got saved at our night rally. We had large inflatable
games like the joust, and the bungee run. It was an incredible
night with dozens of leaders and students working together and
the result was a harvest for the kingdom! Click the thumbnail
to see the rest of the pics. |
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It's a Toilet...
So for
years now, I have heard the idea of raising money with a
toilet. All you have to do is paint it up real nice and drop
it off in someone's front yard. Then they pay to remove it or
they pay to put it in someone's yard. I don't know if it will
work, but we will try anything for camp money! |
Am I a
Fisherman?
Up @
6am and home @ 4pm and all I caught was this little brim. We
were fishing for them, but if you are on the water that long
and only catch that...it seems unfair. It's like they were
toying with us for fun. Ha you stupid man. Ha. Stupid man.
Stupid. Up at 6am! I felt bad for Jeff, every time he takes me
fishing, I can't seem to catch anything.
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How do
you spell Fuel?
I had
this crazy idea to go jump up on the roof and have the teens
spell stuff out on the ground. It was really cool, they spelt
stuff correct too! It is amazing what our school system has
produced! I am so proud.
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Invading Spaces
Because Heaven's Gates and Hell's Flames went so good the
church brought it back for a second week. Since they brought
it back they gave everyone the night off this past wednesday.
But the youth can't take a night off! We had to have service
and since no one else was there we invaded spaces. It was so
much fun!
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The Incredible Hulk
We
took a group of middle schoolers down to Islands of Adventure
in Orlando. We rode the Hulk, Spiderman, River Adventures, and
the Double Dragon Ride thing. It was so much fun. Middle
schoolers are the coolest! Did I mention, I love my job?
Doesn't my forearm look really cut? Ha! |
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Gotta love Florida!
You
know some people in some parts of the world are freezing right
now. They are wearing jackets and coats, sitting by the fire
trying to keep warm. NOT ME! I love the beach. There is
nothing better than sitting in the sun, listening to the waves
and getting a major sunburn! gotta love it! |
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Worship Explosion
My
roommate from college is a youth pastor in Spring Hill, Fl. He
invited me down to do worship at his church on Sunday night.
So I packed up the car with two of my teenagers and took off
for Spring Hill. Tara was sick and I definitely missed her
piano and her voice. Other than that is was a great night.
They even put my name on the sign. I felt real special and
nifty! |
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Rocky and Airsoft
So I
finally bought one of those airsoft guns. They are just like
BB guns only they use a soft pellet instead of the metal
spheres of deaths. But anyways I bought one and was playing
with it in my office. I definitely do not recommend playing
with an airsoft in a small room. But seriously, I have this
life sized poster of Rocky, I am somewhat of a fan, in the
midst of playing with the gun, Rocky was seriously wounded.
Click the pic to see his grave injuries! |
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Heaven's Gates
We
started set up last night for a play called, "Heaven's Gates
and Hell's Flames"! It always amazes me at how quickly
this whole thing can be put together. Today, in fact right
now, we are having casting for the play. I am really late and
I need to get over there but I wanted to put this up first.
Okay so it is gonna be an insanely busy weekend, but it is
always awesome! |
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I hate being Sick!
There
can't be anything worse than Kleenex and old movies. I was
stuck at my house all day yesterday with nothing but potato
chips and "Cars". Don't get me wrong I was a big of fan of
"Finding Nemo" but Cars just wasn't the same. But, today I
feel much better and we are up and about! Oh and good luck
Pixar on your next venture... |
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The Big Wet Parade
So we
got there way too early and it just kept raining and raining.
Even so, the day was good. We had five kids show up and we
walked the parade. We passed out candy and sported our High
Octane Banners. I think it was worth it.
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The Latest Venture
I have
been trying to do something at Beasley Middle School for a
while. I didn't really know what it would be or what it would
look like. And through a number of events, I ended up starting
a "Lunch Club". I guess that is what you would call it. Our
first week we had 170 students come out. It was insane! God is
really opening some cool doors. |
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Burrito Night!
Okay
this was just crazy. One of my youth leaders, "The Ms. Chris"
had an idea to sell burritos to raise money for
Speed the Light.
This year our goal is $10,000, and that is a lot of money. So
maybe burritos isn't that crazy of an idea. I think on the
road to $10,000 we might do a lot crazier things than sell
burritos! |
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Change of
Heart
Okay so I decided to change the whole focus of my website. I
was originally using it to promote my web design business. I
think that was a good idea, but there is so much more that we
could put on this site. So I decided to add what is happening
with my youth group, my school clubs, and my family. I know
you like the pic! |
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