My Favorite YouTube Video from 2008

Another Feel-Good Sports Story

This is a very cool article from ESPN. It's worth your time to read.
Have a great day!

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?section=magazine&id=3789373

Photo credit & HT: same as above.

Merry...well, you know.

Where I work, we receive quite a few Christmas cards (that's not the correct term anymore, as I'll demonstrate) from our customers, vendors, consultants, etc. I would estimate that we received in excess of seventy or so that were addressed to our office staff. I kept count this year to see how many actually said "Merry Christmas".

The sad result is 3.

3 cards which read "Merry Christmas". Two of these depicted the Manger Scene, and the other one had a cartoon train overflowing with presents and reindeer. All of the other cards said some variation of "Happy Holidays", "Seasons Greetings", or the hypocritical "Wishing You the Peace of the Season", as if there could be any peace without the Manger.

It seems the coup is over. What we became aware of just a few short years ago when retailers began to omit "Merry Christmas" from ads and store banners has resulted in an Advent season with no Savior.

Indeed, Christ has been successfully erased from Christmas. Or at least denegrated to a fairy tale along side the jolly fat man.

How did Christians, who at least statistically still amount to a majority in this Country, allow this to happen?

Anyway, I indeed hope you have Happy Holidays filled with the Joy that comes from Christ.
I send to you Seasons Greetings in the name of our Lord.
I pray that you have the Peace and Joy that comes from knowing Christ.

Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday Michelle

Today is my wife Michelle's birthday. She's the good looking one in the picture above. I don't think she'd mind my telling you that she is 38 today. I don't mind saying that she's 38 because I'm proud of every one of those years and they way that they have shaped her. I don't mean her physical shape, which by the way is excellent - she is healthy and vibrant, and I think, the most beautiful of all women. But I'm most proud of the person that she is and of the decisions that she has made (particularly on whom to marry).

Michelle is by degree, a Pharmacist, but her current career choice is "Mom". On a daily basis, she puts her family first in all things. She is an excellent teacher and has charge of the education of the two firecrackers pictured above. She structures her daily schedule around them and for them -- and they do stay busy. Some of the activities that she engages them in are a bit unusual. As an example, in the last two weeks, they spent one afternoon volunteering to clean a local shelter, one morning ringing the bell for the Salvation Army, and one half day helping Samaritan's Purse pack Christmas boxes into a semi truck. These things aren't in the typical grade school curriculum but that is just one of the reasons that we home school. Academically, the kids are brilliant, of course, and it's all due to Michelle's perseverance in their instruction. It's a thankless job often, and not glamorous by any means. She never hesitates, however, in telling people what she does when they ask "What do you do?". "I'm a stay at home mom", she proudly replies.

Amazingly, Michelle manages to hear the words "Hey, Mom?" about 400 times per day without popping a cap in someone. It's adds up, I know -- the stress. I know that she needs time off sometimes and occasionally she'll even ask for it - just an evening away from the kids. I am most humbled when she says she wants to spend that time with me.

My wife is the most giving and kind person I've ever encountered. She continues to teach the boys and me what those qualities mean, and she reminds us when we fail to exhibit those same qualities. Whenever I do something right in the area of kindness and charity, it's because Michelle has prodded me to do it. Whenever I walk across a room and introduce myself to "the new guy", it's usually because she elbowed me into it. I am shy and selfish by nature and I owe such a debt to this woman for helping me to be a better person.

There's the cliche' that behind every good man there is a better woman -- well it's true. I am by no means calling myself 'good', but my wife make me better, and I am continually flabbergasted by this fact: I am a giant in her eyes. I cannot imagine what I would be like without the support and love of this woman. She has left an indelible print on my life and in my person that shapes my every thought and decision.

I'm not a gracious person by nature. That's not an excuse -- I need to work on it. But, it is the truth. I continually overlook that the house is neat or that dinner is ready when I come home. I take for granted that my wife is not dressed in sweats at the end of the day and that she always has her hair fixed and her makeup on, looking pretty. I forget to thank her for ironing, or setting something out that I need. I neglect to notice the details that she adds to enhance our home decor. I often nitpick at some silly detail that I notice and overlook all those other things, and then I end up hurting her feelings. She forgives me though. Amazing woman.

I don't expect anybody (my 3 faithful readers) but Michelle to read all the way to the end of this sappy post. That's ok. Today is her day, and this is for her. She may never win "Wife of the Year" or "Mom of the Year" in this world, but Michelle is the hands-down winner in my book.

Thank you God for placing this person in my life and giving her to me as my wife. Thank you for Michelle.

Michelle, I love you. Happy Birthday.

Throne of Lies & Fudge

A few of my favorite Christmas movie quotes:

From Elf -- "You sit on a throne of lies."



From A Christmas Story -- "Oh Fudge!"



From National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation --
"...where do you think you're gonna put a tree that big?"
"Bend over and I'll show ya."



So what's your favorite Christmas movie quote?

How Many Bricks Can You Carry?

Incredible.....My aching back.

Thank you to Dee who sent me this video.

Game Time

Although we have been feeding our LOST addiction (hello season 3), Michelle, the boys and I have actually been spending a lot more time with the TV off. Our new pastime that we are very enthusiastic about is playing boardgames. Recently, some friends of ours through church (thanks Paul and Kim) turned us on to a whole genre of games that aren’t widely known, although they are readily available. These boutique games (they are often called Euro-games, as many have been developed in Germany) are much more enjoyable then the old standard board games.

Say goodbye to Monopoly – these games take it to the HNL.

Our current favorite is Settlers of Catan. We have introduced this game to several couples who have, in turn, purchased it for themselves or returned to play again!

We also love the Carcassone series of games. These games are based on playing terrain tiles that have to be aligned on all edges with other tiles as they are played. It’s a great game for adults and kids too.

Both Carcassone and Settlers of Catan are great gateway games to introduce Euro-gaming to new players.

One of our newer games is Memoir ’44. This is a game based on the Allied – Axis theater of operations in Europe, during World War Two. Although it is just a two player game, we have played as teams at our family table. The boys love this game because it has highly detailed little “Army Men” style pieces which represent infantry, tanks, artillery, etc. This is a faster game too, as it can be played in under an hour.

Ticket to Ride is a great board game based on building train routes. We have the European map addition, but they have versions in the US and other scenarios. This game can be played in less than an hour and is a lot of fun.

These Euro-games are not available at normal retailers, although our city does have one dedicated game shop that carries them. They are easy to find online; however be prepared that they are more expensive than traditional board games. The best resource that I have found for purchasing Euro-games is http://www.empireboardgames.com/.

You can read ratings and reviews of just about any board game at

www.boardgamegeek.com.

I have to give honorable mention to another fun game that we've been playing. It's called Cathedral and it takes about 2 minutes to learn to play. A game can be completed in about 10 minutes or less and is enjoyable for kids and adults alike.

Think about trying some of these games out with your friends or family. They are a blast, and your TV won’t mind the night off.