Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened to My Sense of Responsibility

It's been 4 months + since my last post. There is no real excuse except for my persitant laziness. We are on a whirlwind trip thru Missisippi and Texas this week. We'll be home on the 7th of January, and we'll be sure to upload Holiday pics, Videos of Christmas performances as well as update on the major happenings.

2009 was a strange one. Here's hoping for a better and blessed 2010 for everyone.

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened To Summer Vacation

-Asher and Emery Started back to school last Monday. Here are the obligatory 'first day' pictures:

Asher - 4th Grader












Emery - 1st Grader














The Walk Back





- Bunches of First Day pics up on Flick'r

- More posts coming this week, including My Take on Healthcare Reform, Asher hi-jacks the blog, and a possible Bible Study...have a good week!

The Phases of My Life

I can pretty much break down my life into 4 Phases.

Phase 1 - Never Shaved
Phase 2- Shaved face a few times a week
Phase 3 -Shaved face 3-4 times per week, shaved head once a week
Phase 4- Same as Ph 3, but added ear and nose grooming.

Another way to look at it is as follows. If you take the total amount of time allocated in my life for grooming and maintenance of my body hair, The phases can be represented as follows:





Phase 1: Simple, straight forward. Easy. I didn't grow consistent facial hair till late teens/early 20's










Phase 2: Facial hair took off, and this was the hey day of my glorious crown. Considerable time on grooming and maintenance. Still, pretty straight forward. I need mouse, a brush and a razor.








Phase 3: Things begin to change. Especially after age 30. The hair was leaving, and was completely shaved off at 31-ish. The percentage of time allocated to head hair is skewed by the fact that it started disappearing and therefore more work was needed to, well, comb over. Nose and Ear hair start entering the picture.






Phase 4: All Hell breaks loose. The amount of time spent on head hair is dramatically reduced, while maintaining a goatee (in lieu of a chin) rises. But so does the ear hair. Pesky, hard to trim, impossible to get all of it at once. Same for nose hair. And notice the arrival of "other". Can't grow hair on my head? might as well grow it in random spots on my chest and *gsap* back....




The ear hair maintenance can be graphically illustrated thus:

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened To Dan Pastorini

-It's Movie and Picture Clearinghouse time. We've got Birthdays, grandparent's visits, ballgames, and other stuff to show.

- Emery had a great 6th b-day.



- She had a couple of friends stay for movies and a sleep-over. The main activity of the night? Playing the William Tell Overture on the keyboard whilst running around the house.



- Asher spent his 9th b-day at A Minor League game in Lake Elsinore.



- Check out The score board and see who is up to bat....


- We found Rednecks in Southern California while my parents were here. Luckily, they were all gathered in one place at the time....


- Vanessa and I went to see Coldplay last weekend. They put on a heck of a show. Just makes me want to see U2 more in October.



- We've uploaded more pics than you can shake a stick at to our Flick'r site http://www.flickr.com/photos/10588989@N03/

- That's more pics than you can shake a stick at. I've personally shaken a stick at more than 460 pics at one time. Granted, there is no governing body that can sanction my stick shaking record, but still, I'm awesome at it.

- It's over

Asher's Step By Step Guide to Getting a Wii For Your Birthday

Asher here to help all the kids out there get what it is that you want for your birthday or Christmas. Want a Wii? X-Box? Guitar Hero? Whatever the gift, just follow these simple steps, and you'll have what you want. No gift worth having should come easily, so you have to know going in that this system isn't for those wanting instant gratification. It takes time and patience. But end the end, I think you will see that it is well worth the effort.

STEP 1: Sometime right after Christmas, ask for a Wii for your Birthday. You will have to endure a lecture or two from your parents. They will tell you how they didn't even have video games until they were in Jr. High, and how their parents wouldn't by them a game system. You might also have to endure your Dad telling you that HE never got a system, but Aunt Laura sure as heck got one when she asked for it. Don't worry, this is just the beginning of the process, and is completely normal.

STEP 2: Wait. Do nothing for 3-4 months. It's hard I know, but if you can make it through this period, things start to pick up.

STEP 3: 3 months or so before your birthday, announce that you'd like either a snake or a lizard for your birthday. Don't just announce it. Get online and do research. Print out "Caring for your snake" guides and leave them on the table your Dad leaves his keys on when he comes home. Talk endlessly about the behavior of the Milk snake vs. the Corn snake. Sell it.

Step 4: Full Court Press. This will involve a lot of work, but again, payday is around the corner. Start about 3 or 4 weeks before your birthday. No matter what the topic of conversation, direct it toward snakes. "Hey Mom, I notice that you take a frozen chicken and defrost it to make us dinner. That reminds me of the California King Snake, they like defrosted mice..." or "Yeah Dad, I noticed when you prayed for us just before bedtime last night you asked God to provide for us...kind of like I would provide crickets and baby mice to a young Ball Python". Also, see if you can convince your younger sister that she wants a snake too. Two voices crying for snakes will break them down.

Step 5: Act a little crazy. Start using your allowance and early birthday money to buy rubber or plastic snakes. Create a habitat for your fake snakes with some legos and plastic bins. Care for them just like they were real. Look, I never said this would be easy. Sometimes you have to sacrifice to get what you want.

Step 6: Act surprised when you get a Wii for your birthday.

Step 7: Enjoy hours of fun with your new Wii.

I'm working on a new post now. Hopefully I'll publish "How to Get A Snake For Christmas" sometime around the first of the year.

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened To Pete The Chop

So, it's been almost a month. Sorry, I've been busy. Here is an interesting list of things to inform and entertain:







- Not sure if you've heard this or not, but Michael Jackson died peacefully, with little fanfare a week ago.

- Speaking of Media circuses, here is a fun Cartoon, click to enlarge, per usual.











- My parents just left after spending a week with us. We showed them many of the sites and even let them spend some quality time with the kids one night. Vanessa and I thought it was so important that we left the house and went out to dinner.










- Em and Asher Rode an Elephant at the San Diego Fair.








- We've been crazy busy at work, but it's paying off. Found out Tuesday that we were awarded a project in Ft. Bliss. Seeing that it is in El Paso, Ft. Bliss might be the most ironically named Army base.

- I read Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Illych - twice. Loved it. Thinking about attempting a meater Tolstoy novel soon.

- Asher and my Dad were having an conversation the other day about cartoons. Asher proclaimed that he knew who did the voice of Elmer Fudd- Barney Frank. He was serious. He said "you know, he is always saying 'the wepuwicans in congwess' all the time". I told him that Fudd was 10 times smarter and more articulate than Frank. But still, funny stuff.











- Of Course, there are other similarities.....









- Here are a couple of vids from the San Diego Fair to close this post. 'Til next time...

Emery's Kindergarten Promotion

Today was a special day, and not just because somehow Vanessa got Em to wear a dress (a pink dress to boot). It was special because our little baby Emery graduated Kindergarten. Vanessa, already getting that empty nest feeling, decided we needed another boxer. Thank God that's all she decided.

Check out the video of the 3 songs the class performed.

Playing Catch Up

It seems like I'm always behind on my reading. Instead of picking up the latest books upon release, I'm always a couple of years behind. It's been like this since 1979-ish. So, doing book reviews on what I've just finished reading seems to be as outdated as Shep Smith doing a report on the Invasion of Grenada.

Despite the fact you've read these and have moved on with your life, here is my take on the last 5 books.

1. Cancel Your Own Goddam Subscription; William F. Buckley
Selections from Buckley's column in National Review entitled 'Notes and Asides'. The column was for unorthodox correspondents to NR, and Buckley's unique responses to them. Sort of a 'Best of" format, divided into decades, it offers a glimpse into Buckley's sense of humor and amazing command of the English language.

2. Love is the Killer App; Tim Sanders
Sanders started at Mark Cuban's Broadcast.com, which later was bought by Yahoo!. He's now the Chief Solutions Officer for Yahoo. The premise here is that in the new business world, your methodology of doing business has to move beyond the command and control mentality. Sanders suggest that you become a 'lovecat'. Lovecats share their knowledge, their network and their intangibles freely in order to influence friends and develop relationships. So, OK. I'm all about sharing knowledge that I gain (just ask me!). And I spread my intangibles like swine flu. I'm not so good at networking. So, yeah there were things that I found useful. But all in all it seemed better fit for a series of blog posts, a keynote speech, or magazine article, not an entire book.

3. The Shack; William Young
I dunno. I'm not a huge fan of 'Christian' Fiction. The story is rather predictable. At best, the teaching is a giant waste of time. At worst, it's heresy. Want a good book about the nature of God that isn't say, the Bible? Read The Divine Romance by Gene Edwards. I find it hard to believe the number of believers that say this book changed their life. The explanation of the Trinity had the depth of Wednesday Night Bible Study from the Associate Youth Pastor. "The Spirit is like, this beautiful Asian woman, who is mysterious, and like Jesus, he's a bud you just want to hang out with you know? and God? Dude, He's like Naman's mom on 'The Jerk'....." . Include me out.

4. Blue Like Jazz; Donald Miller
How is it I'm just now reading this? While Miller and I would disagree on finer points of faith, I believe, I'm right there with him on the day to day implications of faith. Don't be scared because he's a social liberal or doesn't talk like he's straight out of the Evangelical Ghetto. Read it if you haven't.

5. Team of Rivals; Dorris Kearns Goodwin
Lincoln was a man of character. He also was a shrewd politician. He named his rivals for the Republican nomination to his cabinet. Good book, about a great man. It's hard to read about Lincoln (or Adams, Jefferson, et al) for an hour and then turn on the TV and listen to the crap-for-brains opportunist that pass for Statesmen today.

Current List? Gospel of Matthew again, The God Who is There, and some novel V read.
On-Deck? Tolstoy's Death of Ivan Illich

Pics of The Day

Fun in the Backyard - Sunday (click to enlarge)

Water Gun Battle

Tasty Animals

Enjoying the weatherRiding off the Calories

Change You Can Believe In, Pt. 5

So, we've all read the reports that talk about the Administration of Our Glorious Leader meddling in the affairs of private companies. Specifically, there is a move to regulate the compensation of the executives in companies that have either received TARP money or whose health directly effects the US economy. Scary, yes, but those who tell us that this is only the beginning are right wing kooks who just want to frighten us, right? Obama has no interest in MY company, right?

Not so fast. I was reading through a Request for Proposal on a project at Camp Pendleton. The project is to renovate existing Barracks for Marines, and was scheduled to be released a couple of months ago. But, the government decided that it would use American Recovery And Reinvestment Act (ARRA) money - otherwise know as "the Stimulus Package" - to fund the project. This lead not only to the delay, but to a couple of pages being added to the requirements. First, we have to turn in monthly paperwork detailing "A brief description of the jobs created and or retained" because of the project. No doubt where politicians can brag about how many jobs the stimulus package helped create.

Next came the shocker. The paragraph that followed spelled out that we must provide "Names and total compensation of each of the five most highly compensated officers of the Contractor for the calendar year in which the contract was awarded..". That's right, in order to get paid for the project, whoever gets the contract must disclose incomes of it's top 5 executives. And lest you think that the requirement is limited only to the General Contractor, who is no doubt a large corporation with golden parachutes, jets, and extravagant retreats in the Bahamas, the next paragraph details that we must provide the same for "First tier subcontract funded in whole or in part under the recovery act that is over 25K". So, the small plumber and painter must also disclose the incomes of their executives as well. Even if those executives often time wear a tool belt on the job. We are required to award 60% or more of our first tier subcontracts to minority, women-owned, disabled vet-owned, or other "Historically under utilized businesses". Your President and Congress is demanding to know the income of the Hispanic landscaper as well as Chase and GM.

What will they do with the info? Why does it matter? How did we get here? Who gets thrown out of office in your district next election?

Living With Disappointment....

This series could be ugly. More stuff posted this week, swear....

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened To Ranking Roger....

- First and foremost, A big Happy Birthday to Vanessa, who turns mid 30-ish today. My present to her? Puttin' on a wig & dress and singing Happy Birthday - Marilyn Style!

- Quite the visual, huh?

- From the "Parenting Is An Adventure" files...Asher is constantly working on something in front of the computer, either playing games, or writing for his blog (he'll publish it when we decide he's old enough to have a blog), or working on a book he's writing (A novel about detention - it aint bad). So last week when he said he was working on "An invitation for my friends to join "Asher's Territory Clubhouse" - we thought nothing of it. Until Saturday, when the door bell rang at 2PM, and a friend shows up, unexpectedly, with an invitation in hand. Turns out, Asher did indeed type up his invitation, print a dozen copies, then distribute them at school. Oh, and the Asher's Territory Club meets here EVERY Saturday...and promises "Good food". Luckily, the other parents got a big kick out of the deal.

- At about 2:15 Saturday, we had a long family discussion about when it was appropriate to pass out our address.

- How much is Asher like me? He says he passed the invites out on Thursday, and "totally forgot" about them until the door bell rang.

- I'll be flying to North Carolina on Monday to visit Camp Lejeune. It'll kind of be nice to be on an airplane again. It seems like forever.

- We are planning a Texas trip in July. It will be brief, but we are looking forward to seeing whoever we can. And eating BBQ.

- A friend of mine, Jeff Flowers, posted a couple of conversation starters on twitter Saturday, to which I responded with a great deal of...well...snarkiness. The question? " Why do you think Evangelicals are embracing Ms. California's "persecution" so quickly? Thoughts?". I answered with two tweets of my own: "because evangelicals spend a lot of time looking for victories in the skirmishes of the cullturual war- she agrees w/ us-we win!" & "...or, evangelicals are just as stupid as everyone else". Yeah, like I said, snarky. But am I the only one who finds it disturbing that evangelicals seem to attached them/our selves to the flavor of the day, (even if that flavor is in a BEAUTY PAGENT) if that flavor seems to agree with our position, no matter how inarticulate it is? We prove to 'the world' that we are no different than 'them' when we knee jerk and heap praise and support upon people who have done nothing to deserve it other than be on TV? Aren't we as guilty as 'them' in media hero-worship? How can we fight a cultural war when we are in love with the culture? What did Miss California say that was so darn Theological and important enough to earn an appearance on the Dove Awards? Miss California agrees with 52% of the voters of California with regards to her views on gay marriage. Big deal. We get offended when Obama states that we aren't a Christian Nation, we love it when a beauty queen thinks gay marriage is wrong. To me it appears that we are seeking outside assurance that our beliefs are correct, and we are right. My faith rests not upon the approval of presidents, musicians, beauty queens, or talking heads; but on the finished work of Christ alone. Anything else just seems stupid.

- $20 to the pastor/leader who can come up with a term other than "the world" or "then" when refering to the lost.

- Leave comments. Do it.

Wherein' I answer all the pressing questions of the day like "do you feel older?" or "does it bother you that this is the last year of your 30's?"...

Not really, no.

Wherein I Tell You How a Few Million of Your Tax Dollars Are Being Spent.

HUGE video from...uhmm...Channel 10 NBC in San Diego. The news team did a report last night on how Billions of the stimulus package are being spent on military bases right here in California. So, they go to a job site at Camp Pendleton and shoot our crews working hard and pretending that there isn't a camera there. Oddly enough, they interviewed our competition, but it's our project the are showing. Look for the RQC Diamond HERE.



We've also been awarded the contract to build the new Seabees Museum. Check out the links here and here as well as the 3D model on the left.

Family Interviews, Pt. 4, (or, "Allow Myself to Interview...Myself", OR "You're Never Alone With A Schizophrenic" )

Lane

The WAM Interview

This reporter has been a part of some tough interviews in the past, but none posed such a challenge as this one. How does one interview oneself without coming across as conceited, vain, self important, or just plain ole goofy? Answer: One doesn't. But here is where I throw caution to the wind and press on anyway.

A brief history on our subject is in order prior to jumping into the interview. Lane, the eldest of 2 children, was born in Tupelo, Mississippi just after breakfast one morning in mid-April of 1970. For the sake of brevity, the next 38 years go something like this: Move from Tupelo to Kosciusko, MS. Where he learned to ride a bike and tie shoes all by himself. Then to Houston, TX where he learned to appreciate Tex-Mex, baseball and humidity. From Houston to Denison, TX where he graduated high school in the top 76% of his class. Denison to Dallas, and all over the DFW Metroplex, to Waco, back to DFW and eventually in Temecula, CA. He has two children, a dog, a wife of 14 years and little hair, that he keeps shorn closely to his scalp. Lane can be quiet & shy, or loud and demonstrative, depending upon his caffeine-to-red-blood-cell ratio. Work doesn't come easy for him, as he has to circle around it for a while before diving headlong. He can be at once studious, carefully attentive and forgetful and rather absent minded. He and This Reporter sit in his living room where he should be working on a project for work.

TR: Good Evening, handsome.

LM: Hey good lookin'!

TR: I understand you should be working instead of blogging.

LM: Yeah, well, you know...I'm getting around to that.

TR: I thought you swore off working after hours from home after you took an office job.

LM: I have, by and large. But, my mouth gets me in trouble - I take on ambitious projects and aggressive deadlines from time to time. I typically won't work from home until after everyone else is asleep. I don't want my children remembering me as the Dad always with his head in the laptop/blackberry.

TR: Let's talk about work for a moment. You've had an interesting work history.

LM: To say the least. I've had opportunity to be involved with just about every facet or construction, save for residential or highway - from HVAC & Plumbing, to small turn-key institutional, CM at Risk Educational, to Hard bid commercial and everything in between. Which makes where I am now a perfect fit. Plus you add in the books I sold, wheelchairs I delivered and the whole other life I had, and it makes for good stories, which really, is what it's all about.

TR: Speaking of "that whole other life", what happened there? People tend not to just leave the ministry unless they are forced out by an exposed sin or disillusionment. So, which was it?

LM: Neither, thank you. I think it all started with a basic misunderstanding. God called me to be a full time disciple. In my immaturity, I assumed that meant I had to preach, go to seminary, do it for a living. Looking back that certainly wasn't the Plan or the calling. There might have been some disillusionment thrown in there too. Much of what I was exposed too in the whole "full time ministry" life wasn't exactly spiritual or healthy or even biblical.

TR: I was hoping for something a little more, say, Swaggert-esque.

LM: OK, I was caught buying meth and keeping company with a male prostitute. Better?

TR: Much, thank-you. Have you found a church in Temecula yet?

LM: Yep, I found THE Church.

TR: You mean Saddleback?

LM: No, I found the Church here, within these 4 walls. And at work, with fellow believers. And at a coffee shop in a chance meeting with a guy that's quickly becoming a friend.

TR: So, you don't go to church?

LM: I belong to no 501-c-3 organization, no.

TR: But who do you disciple?

LM: Besides my children? Right now, no one other then them. Although they are rather important. Down the road, who knows? The Father has a tendency to make things happen when you least expect it.

TR: So you quit church?

LM: God has been moving us to this place for a while. We love the people that we have fellowshipped with, love the time together, love studying together. Basically, we loved the relationships. I could do with-out the committees, in-fighting, guilt, and everything else that comes with an institution. I love Jesus, I want to love Him more, and I want to be around people who do as well, and thus far, that hasn't been a problem. This is where we are right now. Focused on Him, getting to know Him, letting Him do with us as he pleases; and right now at least, this seems to be pleasing him.

TR: What gets you going? What are you passionate about?

LM: I'm passionate about construction. I love the challenges, the team work, the fact that no two days have been exactly alike since 1997. I love trying to fix what is broken in the industry and integrate all that we do into one cohesive unit. I love trying to figure out the process and what is broken in the process. I love to read. I'll read anything. I'm most passionate about my family. Our little unit here. Don't even get me started on them.

TR: What are your weaknesses?

LM: My mind tends to wander at times. I can get wordy. I seem too often to have to re-trod territory I've already have been through because my mind can be weak. I think I'm too motivated by ambition at times.

TR: What then, would be the one thing you'd change about yourself?

LM: I'd like to be quicker off the dribble in basketball, and be able to drive from both sides.

TR: Short attention span, verbose, slow learning and ambitious - and the one thing you'd change is your basketball game?

LM: Yep. I'm also a touch superficial.

TR: Describe your perfect day.

LM: Coffee shop early in the morning, head to the beach with a book and lounge chair, sit, read, repeat for a few hours, then head to grab some enchiladas. Then finish the night back at the coffee shop and have a long wandering conversation with a friend.

TR: Let's go now!

LM: Sorry, I've got work to do.



I should ought to give credit to Lore Brand Comics for the image I've repeatedly hi-jacked as my own. My fav 2 Lore comics here & here

It's Friday....

I s'pose this is where I pontificate about this being Good Friday and all that it implies. But I can't do better than this. So read the old hymn by Issac Mason, When I Survey The Wondrous Cross. Then listen to the words of the Late Great S.M. Lockridge.

When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

His dying crimson, like a robe,
Spreads o’er His body on the tree;
Then I am dead to all the globe,
And all the globe is dead to me.

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

Palomar Mountain

To put the finishing touches on a 2 week (!) Spring Break, we all loaded up in the Mighty Astra and headed up to the Peak of Palomar Mountain. We visited the Palomar Observatory near the peak, and hiked around the mountain for a bit.

We hiked on some nice trails, and stopped at every tree of any size to climb. There are a lot of trees to climb, so the hike took a while

We spotted a couple of woodpeckers, and watched them for a bit. But, quietly observing birds isn't near as fun being loud, so the woodpeckers moved on.

It was a great day to be in God's creation with the coolest people in the world. We've uploaded a page and a half of pics on the flick'r site. Click "Our Pictures" link on the right to see them.

Hope everyone has a great Easter Week.

Change You Can Believe In, pt 3

THEN: US companies fell under the authority of the US government's regulatory agencies such as the FTC, SEC and countless others. The role of these agencies was to ensure that firms reported income/loss accurately, and they followed standard government guidelines for fair practice, transparency, safety and stability. The government stopped short of regulating wage and compensation packages, because, this is like, you know, America.

NOW: According to the G20 communique, The One has allowed, with apparent little or no protest, to allow US corporations to be regulated by a Global "Financial Stability Board" whose powers reach as far as the paychecks of those running the corporations. From the communique:

12. We will conduct all our economic policies cooperatively and responsibly with regard to the impact on other countries and will refrain from competitive devaluation of our currencies and promote a stable and well-functioning international monetary system. We will support, now and in the future, to candid, even-handed, and independent IMF surveillance of our economies and financial sectors, of the impact of our policies on others, and of risks facing the global economy.....

14. We each agree to ensure our domestic regulatory systems are strong. But we also agree to establish the much greater consistency and systematic cooperation between countries, and the framework of internationally agreed high standards, that a global financial system requires. Strengthened regulation and supervision must promote propriety, integrity and transparency; guard against risk across the financial system; dampen rather than amplify the financial and economic cycle; reduce reliance on inappropriately risky sources of financing; and discourage excessive risk-taking. Regulators and supervisors must protect consumers and investors, support market discipline, avoid adverse impacts on other countries, reduce the scope for regulatory arbitrage, support competition and dynamism, and keep pace with innovation in the marketplace....

• to establish a new Financial Stability Board (FSB) with a strengthened mandate, as a successor to the Financial Stability Forum (FSF), including all G20 countries, FSF members, Spain, and the European Commission;

• to reshape our regulatory systems so that our authorities are able to identify and take account of macro-prudential risks;

• to extend regulation and oversight to all systemically important financial institutions, instruments and markets. This will include, for the first time, systemically important hedge funds;

• to endorse and implement the FSF’s tough new principles on pay and compensation and to support sustainable compensation schemes and the corporate social responsibility of all firms;

This Might Explain It....

Each night, after we put the kids down, the house is very peaceful and quiet. Vanessa and I will either read & knit, or talk or watch a little TV. Around 10:30 or so, I'll typically go upstairs, climb into the comfy bed, settle into the covers, close my eyes, and try to enjoy the silence just before this begins playing in an endless loop in my head.



Pray for me.

The Temptation

Hebrews 4:15 (New International Version)

¹⁵For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.

I will readily admit that the above verse has given me fits for years. First, because I am tempted to do horrible things. I know that He knows what I am tempted to do, but the thought of Him being tempted to do those things has always bothered me, even though that is probably not what the verse means.

The other reason the verse has given me fits is because I've had trouble getting temptation story as presented in the Gospels to gel with "...has been tempted in every way, just as we are...". Mainly, because I've never been tempted to turn stone into bread or jump off something tall. Therefore, anytime I came to the accounts of the temptation, I either glossed over it with the ole "Jesus answered temptation with scripture, so should you"* line or got too deep in the weeds with the "could he have sinned, or couldn't he?" tailspin. I even taught through Matthew in a Bible study last year, and my notes for the week of Matthew 4 simply read "Temptation story" and move on from there. However, in reading through Matthew again, and now Luke, Christ's temptation stuck with me, and I had to figure out why it was there and what it means. Again, my challenge to myself this year was to read the gospels without the aid of commentaries and books. Just Christ and His words - nothing more. Which is fine, until you come upon a passage that poses an interpretation problem. So, here is my take on the temptation story. I'm no theologian, I just played one for youth groups in the 90's.

After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" -Matthew 4:2-4

This one might be easier to grasp. Look, as I sit here, I'm not in the least bit hungry. But if I could, I'd turn the throw pillow into a plate of sour cream chicken enchiladas, just because I could (and it's impossible to find them in California). So I get it. There are no short cuts to success. Look at Esau. He gave up his birth-right because he hadn't eaten since, like, breakfast. But there is more too it. Jesus was, in order to be Christ, both human and God. This was a temptation to give up his humanity. Since the garden, there has been a process for man to achieve food. Either hunting or growing. The temptation was for skip that process. Don't plant, weed, water, harvest, grind and bake; just do what you are capable of doing - making something out of nothing. Sounds almost reasonable. But to do that, the verse from Hebrews couldn't be written. He kept his humanity, thus he kept the ability to relate to us, and to be the sacrifice for us.

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple."If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written: 'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'" Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" -Matthew 4:5-7

Well, why not? If the one thing God desires is the praise from His people, then this would achieve it. It would be obvious, Jesus was The Messiah. Right? Well, no. Look, in the garden, a guard gets his ear cut off, and Jesus reattaches is....and they arrest him anyway. Before that he healed a guy, and they Pharisees were P.O.'d that he'd done it on the sabbath. They had all sorts of evidence that Jesus was The One. But maybe this would have sealed the deal. Maybe doing this would have opened the eyes of the people. So they would have worshiped him. Out of fear and duty. God wants our praise, yes. But Jesus made it clear that he wants to hear the praise from the blind who could see, the cleansed lepers, the knees bent in worship that were once twisted from disease & sinners saved by Grace. His kingdom would not be filled with empty accolades from politicians who wanted his ear or those worshiping him for fear that, if they didn't, they'd get what was coming to them. His Kingdom was not to be built on the expected. Because no one expected the ideal. This would have left the ideal behind.

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only. - Matthew 4:8-10

We, as a whole, have a hard time seeing beyond the next five minutes. We forget recent history at an alarming rate. We've seen it before; Godly man or woman does something completly out of character and falls. Because human nature doesn't like to wait. If the first temptation was to give up his humanity, this one was asking Him to give up the Divine. "One day, "every knee shall bow..", but why wait that loooong. You could do it now. You deserve it.". Sound familiar? It does to me, because appealing to that base human desire of "NOW!" is a good portion of every temptation I face. Tempting me to give up the Divine nature living and working (most day, working overtime) on me, and feed that screaming 2 year old know as "man" inside of me. He could have ruled right then. But that meant that he would have given up part of himself.

Well, so what? First, this tells me there is no such thing as an easy way out. Process and order are there for a reason. And when I hear that voice telling me "You're getting to be a bigshot, not many people do what you do..and certainly not in the length of time you've done it...you deserve ______", I should remember where it's coming from. Also, I think that I settle for second best too often. God had an ideal, and stuck to that. Jesus should be my only example.

How 'bout you? What does the temptation of Jesus teach you? How does his responses help you?

*Not taking that point likely here. His responses to the temptation are the example to follow. I'm just saying that I, at least, fall into the trap of hearing one emphasis on a passage, and never getting around to exploring the other sides.

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened to Eddie Biles

- Emery O'Shamrock hopes everyone had a happy St. Patrick's Day.

- The kids started their springbreak on Friday. They get two full weeks off.


- I really wish I got a spring break.

- Both Asher and Em were in a musical at school Friday. The name of the musical was "My Planet, Your Planet". Lot's of song about the environment. We live in California.

- In the spirit of equal time, we buried old car batteries in the backyard today.

- Here's the unedited video of Asher's song "Tomorrow Needs Us". It's shaky, Vanessa was behind a large headed guy, and Asher was behind a Large headed girl, so it's not the best, but you get the idea.


- Em's class sang Polar Puppy. Good luck on deciphering the lyrics...

- The flick'r site has a few more pics as well.

- I've watched more NCAA tournament this year than I have in a long time. We actually had games on during a bid at work on Friday. I play Basketball at work 2 or 3 times a week. Watching has inspired me to try some new moves.

- There is no way my body is going to go along with the new moves.

- I miss Paul Harvey.

- Since Asher was born, V and I basically, for all intent and purpose, have stopped going to the movies. I have little interest in new movies. I'm becoming Don, I know. But, I did get "The Dark Knight" on demand last night and loved it. And not because I'm a Batman nerd from way back. Great actors, well written, and very cool. glad I saw it. Also, I love Gary Oldman, who played Commissioner Gordon.

More posts soon....

Change You Can Believe In, pt. 2

[Another in the series to help you track just what changes The One brings to our country. Also, to avoid any other angry emails/phone calls - it's sarcasm]


THEN: A long time ago, during the presidential campaign, the Republican candidate John McCain proved to be completely out of touch with the economic realities of the country (read: middle class) when he stated that the Fundamentals of the economy were "strong". Anyone who watched the alarming news on TV knew that the economy was fundamentally on shaky ground.

NOW: After less than 60 days on the job, our Glorious Leader President Obama, through a series of unprecedented stimulus and spending packages, has moved the economy off the sinking sand and on to a more stable foundation. We knew it would happen, but it became official Friday with this statement:

ANALYSIS: Some will argue, cynically, that doom and gloom during the campaign was just an attempt to scare up votes. They will also argue that his constant talk of the uncertain economic situation was only a tactic to push through the Stimulus package and/or lower expectations if it turns out that he really doesn't know what he's doing. Those people are obviously right wing nut cases in the pockets of big-business and the evangelicals playing partisan politics.

Notes From Matthew

Define "Hubris" ? OK - "Lane doing a book review". Define "height of human arrogance"? Easy - "Lane doing a book review on a Book of the Cannon". But in my defense here, my intention is to only let you know the thoughts, convictions and impressions that the book left-not a critique in anyway, shape or form. You might recall the challenge I presented myself HERE. In lieu of reading what people say about Jesus, I'm just going to read what he says this year. I started with Matthew because, well, it's first. Color me simple. I've completed Matthew and V and I are working on Luke together. Here are some things I picked up from Matthew. Note, I'm not a theologian, scholar, preacher or anything other than a Bible College drop-out. Albeit a rather handsome and charming bible college drop out. So don't read this if you are expecting great insight. You are likely to be in a different place. This is just me typing.

- Something I've always wondered: How did anyone who knew Jesus first hand like Matthew or John manage to remain so objective in their accounts. If it were me writing, it'd be peppered with subjective quotes like "dude, seriously, Jesus fed 5000 that day with, like a couple of fish and some Brown N Serves-it was awesome." or "I'm not sure what kind of cold hearted, self loving/loathing idiot can sit there and read what I'm writing and still not believe that Jesus is God in the flesh and wants you to get to know him. Really, repent. Like, now". But not Matthew, he just gives the facts and lets the Jesus' words and actions speak for themselves without beating the reader over the head. Wish I could do the same sometimes.

- You'd expect - as would most of Jews in Century 1 - that if you were God in the flesh, born as a baby and thus in the line of David, you'd have a who's-who of the Jewish faithful in your Genealogy. But what you have is a list of adulterers, prostitutes, bastard children, faithless, rebellious, liars, cheats and Gentiles. What you have is Grace. Thank God.

- The Sermon on the Mount kills me every time. What a challenge it is not to use it as just another list of instructions on how to be a good Christian. That is nothing more than being a Pharisee. It is a list to show how far we are from God and what to do to get back. I'm poor in spirit. Thank you for blessing me anyway.

- Finally, if there is one overall impression that I never really noticed, or paid much attention to until now, it is this; Every time Jesus spoke to someone, it was meant to enhance His relationship with the other party. What would happen if I made a point of doing the same? What if I every conversation I had, I focused on enhancing my relationship with the other person? How much less would I yell at the children, or split hairs with my wife, or treat the lady behind the counter at the Taco Shop? How would my co-worker's perceptions of me change? What if I added to it, and instead of trying to enhance their relationship with me, what if I tried to enhance their relationship with the Jesus in Matthew's account as well? It's not easy. But I think the main problem I have with myself and humans in general is the fact that 90% of what we do and say is is done and said on autopilot. If I used my head, tried to be more self aware, tried to be more like Jesus in this area, I bet each relationship in my life would change for the better.

I'm working on something about the Temptation, and we'll get it posted - probably after we read it in Luke. Until then....

Change You Can Believe In, pt.1

[As a public service to the WAM readers, we will from time to time offer you examples of exactly how we as American's can quantify & celebrate the "Change" that was promised during the campaign]






THEN: When you adjust for inflation, since 1890, the median cost for a home in the US typically is between $90,000 and $100,000. Sure there have been dips (WW's I & II, Great Depression) and Peaks (70's, 80's). But on average, the market likes housing to hover within a close range of $100K per home.

NOW: The bubble of the early part of the decade sent the median cost to $200K per home. Today, it sits right around $170K & falling. The market is trying to adjust back to where it should be, but we won't let it! This is America dangit, and $100K just isn't good enough. So we will artificially dictate the costs, not the capitalistic market. Dictating who got a martgage worked out well for us didn't it?

Link
Click the Chart to enlarge:

No Line on The Horizon

So, after a few days and a dozen listens, here is my blow by blow review of the new U2 Album No Line On The Horizon.

1. No Line On The Horizon - It reminds me of Lady With The Spinning Head, a B-side from Achtung Baby. Cool song, cool lyrics, good start.

2. Magnificent - I really want to like this song, but I go back and forth. Why is Brian Eno in love with the sonar sound? I hear overtly Christian lyrics. But, Christ can be in anything if you are looking for it.

3. Moment of Surrender - Edge plays an actual factual guitar solo. It's long, over 7 minutes. Themes of sin, repentance & giving up control. Making a case to be one of my favorite u2 songs...

4. Unknown Caller - I like it. Different, long intro with That U2 Sound (TM). I like the chanting. "Go. Shout it Out. Rise Up. Escape yourself, and gravity...Force Quit and move to trash." I dig it.

5. I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight - Awkward falsetto. I dunno, might be this Album's A Man And A Woman.

6. Get On Your Boots - I like the stream-of-consciousness lyrics. The music part is good. I'm gaining more and more respect for Larry and Adam. But still, it could be named "Vertigo, pt2". I can't help but hear "Wild Wild West" in some of the lyrics. I could take it, I could leave it.

7. Stand Up Comedy - Led Zeppelin Guitar anyone? I like.

8. Fez: Being Born - I can't see me singing this in the shower. (deal with THAT visual for a second). But, I like it. It's Zooropa-y.

9. White As Snow - First listen: hated it. Second listen: only lasted halfway before skipping to the next track. But, I'm learning to appreciate it.

"Who can forgive forgiveness where forgiveness is not

Only the lamb as white as snow"

10. Breathe - Bono writes a Bob Dylan song! Tell me these lyrics aren't Dylan-esque:

16th of June, Chinese stocks are going up
"And I’m coming down with some new Asian virus
Ju Ju man, Ju Ju man
Doc says you’re fine, or dying
Please
Nine-oh-nine, St. John Divine on the line, my pulse is fine
But I’m running down the road like loose electricity
While the band in my head plays a striptease

The roar that lies on the other side of silence
The forest fire that is fear so deny it"

Anyway, i like it.

11. Cedars of Lebanon - ahhhh the Daniel Lanois sound. Cool, slow, ambient music. Half-spoken lyrics. I really dig it. I really dig most of the last songs on their albums.


So, it's no Achtung Baby, or Joshua Tree. But better than How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb and might be better than All That You Can't Leave Behind.

Back to doing my Awesomely Bold Leading Leader's of Bold Teams Workshop Homework.

Scattershooting While Wondering Whatever Happened To Fun Boy Three

- Thanks to Emery for the new WAM banner. I asked her why she wrote McKibbens in lieu of the more traditional "McKibben". She said "because there are 4 of us in the picture, not just one". Hard to argue with logic like that. Also note that in the pic, Em is taller than Asher. I suspect that was on purpose.

- I'm spending 3 days this week in LA for a Managment Training Conference. I have a bad attitude about it. I need to drastically improve that attitude.

- This video is wrong on soooo many levels.



- I want one of those KJV Chains though...

- We spent all day Saturday at the beach. Although the water was much too cold to swim (it's never really warm, like the Gulf), the kids had a blast. "Doing what?", you ask? Digging a hole. They, along with several other kids who'd never met, spent 4 hours digging a 3 foot deep by 4 foot wide hole in the sand. Amazing in this day and age of computers, countless cable channels, WII, PS3 and the like, that a hole commanded such attention. They don't realize it, but it just guaranteed us not getting any sort of gaming systems. For a few years at least...

- Did I mention I dread the Management Conference?

- I'm down right giddy about the new U2 album. I like Coldplay, I like Radiohead. In fact, other than U2, they are about the only bands I'd walk across the street to see (Unless the Smiths have a reunion). But I don't wait in anticipation for their next releases. I downloaded the album art a month ago. A U2 song was played at my wedding (It wasn't "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" smarty..), I'm a full blown nerd. Luckily, I'm not alone. Brant at Kamp Krusty wrote a piece summing it up pretty well.

- This is getting kind of embarrassing for other kids at Asher's school. Last week he got an award for being a good citizen (A pencil..). Friday he won the Academic Achievement award for the last Trimester. This time, he got free nuggets at Chick-fil-a, so much better than a pencil. Yep, it's hard to be Humble when you're McKibben, but we try.

- I've made some snarly comments lately about V not knitting me anything. I would like to offer this correction. Vanessa has knitted me a scarf and a sock. Not an entire pair of socks mind you, just a sock. But still, it's something.

- Check out all the earthquakes around us HERE

- I got no less than 6 posts lined up in the Draft folder, so get ready.

Dance Fever!

Emery likes to dance. A lot. Asher does too if he thinks no one is looking. Emery prefers someone looking. Her style is rather, well, lets say "unique". So, nothing else to do but put together a dance mix video. Take a look.



P.S. - a couple of new pics on Flick'r

Lent, History, and The Evangelical Experience

So, what are you giving up for Lent? Coming from the non-reformed evangelical background, it's a question I've never really asked. I haven't really ever given Lent much thought other than the glances at the dark spots on random foreheads and curiosity with the kid in my school growing up who gave up gum every year. But what is it and is it something that Evangelicals are missing? The Wiki definition is basically this; It's a 40 day season of prayer, fasting, almsgiving and self denial, representing the 40 days Christ spent in the desert, preparing the believer for the commemoration of the Passion and Resurrection. Sounds nifty really. I like the idea of taking an extended amount of time, a season if you will, to reflect, repent, and focus on the important and lets the non-essential things blur as we pin point our lens on the goal of being Holy, as He is Holy. On the other hand, it seems with an organized effort, it looses some meaning and can become just a ritual. My friend had no idea why he couldn't enjoy Bubblicious for over a month every year. It never had any meaning for him.

But while thinking about Lent and all that it entails, it got me thinking about other church traditions that Baptist and other Evangelicals have given up. And I wonder if it is to our detriment. I was in my 30's before I had seen, much less participated in, the tradition of Advent leading up to Christmas. And loved it. How richer would our collective experience be if we tied our beliefs and our worship to traditions dating back centuries? Instead, for example, of teaching against the evils of Halloween just prior to Oct 31st, we instead have a Sunday celebrating Luther, Grace and the Solas? Or, in lieu of the Mother's Day "Her children shall rise up and call her blessed" sermon, we taught about the significance of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit and celebrated God's tabernacleing in our hearts? Or, maybe we should take baby steps, and actually have communion more than twice a year - thats a start. Communion has always held a special place in my heart. The light came on, and I accepted Christ as they passed the Cup in a service just before Thanksgiving. Good thing the Spirit was leading, otherwise I would have had to have waited until Easter the next year for my next shot.

So how about you? What tradition do you hold dear or wish they did away with? Would you and your brothers and sisters in your congregation benifit from a little more emphasis on certain dates or times of the year?

Third Generation Conservative SBC'ers

I found a great blog post on Baptist 21 by Steven McKinion, a prof at SEBTS. In it he describes the Theological, Cultural, Biblical & Intellectual distinctives of the under 40 crowd in the SBC. The oldest of us were 8 or 9 when the Conservative resurgance started in '79. Many feel disconnected from the players, politics and principles that started the resurggence. However, we've been rewarded with the fruits of the return of the convention to orthodoxy. The article, lengthy, but well worth the read , can be found HERE.

It's interesting to read that some of the problems I have with certain SBC teachers/Pastors, as well as evangelicism as a whole, are the same problems others have. McKinion writes, when speaking of the Theological differences:

"A limited view of the Gospel in which church people obtain a “get out of hell free” card by saying some prayer seems Gnostic, at best, to these young people. They have come to adopt a holistic perspective in which Jesus is Lord, not just of the believer’s eternal state, but of all His creation. For that reason, the younger conservative desires obedience to the only Law for the Christian: Love God and love neighbor. "

Sweet, there might be hope for us yet. We aren't in the SBC anymore (although, I'm sure we are still counted as members in over a dozon) mainly because the only SBC church in Temecula proudly states on it's website that it's KJV only. Nothing wrong with the KJV, but there is a conversation I don't want to have. Anyway, even though we aren't part of the SBC physically, it's my spirtual heritage. Our prayers are that the resurgance that started 30 years ago, yeilds fruit for generations to come. It'll look different, to be sure. But thats OK, I hated ties anyhow.

Be A Person of Character, Get A Pencil

The proverbial leaf doesn't fall far from the proverbial tree. Proverbially speaking. Asher received recognition for demonstrating character traits emphasized in the school's Citizenship program. Specifically, his teacher says he exemplifies "friendship". Yep, he's his father's son.

So Friendship gets you a "student of the month" pencil, just like the Bible says (Living Bible).

He was honored at a ceremony on the school playground this morning.