Thoughts Aplenty

The title says it all really. I have too much in my head that I want...need to write about. I just don't have the time, or the space in this blog to share everything I'm hearing in my head. So for now, I'm just checking in to let you know I haven't dropped off the face of the earth. And please, allow me to share one thought below.

"A penny for your thoughts." I've heard it once or twice. "If I may put my two cents in," is another phrase (or something similar) I hear a lot. Both of these phrases is related to talking and sharing thoughts. Why do we say these phrases? Why do we use cents as our denominator in these phrases? Lets do some math.

If I'm giving you a penny for your thoughts, and I'm putting in my two cents in, I'm out three cents. If this pattern occurs 10 times a day, I'm out 30 cents. Over the course of the week I'm now short a cup of coffee at Perkins. Take that $2.10 per week over the course of a month and I'm out Bacon Burger meal at Culvers. Over the course of a year, I'm now short more than $100. WOW!!! This thinking thing is getting expensive.

Conversely, if someone is giving me this type of money, do I really want the three cents? And where is the money I'm receiving coming from? And if someone is willing to pay me, can I get a down payment for the next 20 years of my thoughts?

I'm a Loser

The other night, my brother sent me a message on Facebook encouraging me to check his blog. He thought I would rather enjoy that days post. The topic of the day was music, and knowing my passion for music and being in the music industry, he would rather remind me to read the blog than me forget to check in on it. So, off to his blog I went.

I enjoyed the post. I chuckled at it (chuckle in an amused manner, not the funny ha, ha type). I again found it both thought provoking and well written. Definenately a post I could relate to. Its topic - pick an artist/band and provide answers to the questions using one song from that band/artist. And, you must do so by not repeating any of the songs. After reading the blog, I had two thoughts. First, gotta read to Janda as she may enjoy it. Second, I might have to do this at some point in time.

First thought of sharing with Janda was accomplished. I shared the half of the post with the Steve Taylor songs. I love Steve Taylor's music and the genius behind the sattire of the words. Janda isn't too appreciative, but shared with her none the less. When I was done reading the post to her, Ethan put his two cents in and boy did it cause me to think.

Being tired, on his way to bed and still bummed from his baseball teams loss, what he said was perfect. His words were minced in my head and I thought he was referring to the state of the teams loss. Nope! Below is the conversation.

Me: (reading from brothers blog to Janda) "My Motto" - Jesus is for Losers
Janda: "Okay"
M: "I like this and thought it was funny."
Ethan: (walking into room after giving us nigh nights) "I'm a LOSER!"
M: "Ethan, you're not a loser..."
E: "What? Isn't Jesus for me?"
M: "I..you got me. And yes, you are right, Jesus is for you."
J: "Got you." (said as she laughs).

Lesson learned. Man, this boy is teaching me a lot over the last month. I love it and I am very proud of his maturation. Thanks kiddo.

Shopping as a Tourist

So today I had one of those moments where I wanted to stop doing what I was doing, slap the person speaking, and then go back to my routine. Praise God! I did not do what my impulse was telling me to do.

Without getting into much detail, may I remind people that when you are a tourist in a city you have never visited, you typically desire to see as much as possible as well as get in a little shopping, especially if that is what the town is built around. Knowing this, when you take people to a town known for its shopping, don't complain when they want to shop.

Really people, can you think of nothing positive? You are in a town known for shopping!!! They are there to do what everyone else is doing - SHOP!!! And you are mad because they aren't doing what you "think" they should be doing - catering to you! They are the ones on vacation, not you! They are the ones who asked to go there, not you! This is their first trip to the shopping destination/tourist trap/beautiful city where as you are a days event away from this place. BIG DEAL!!!

I say, get over yourself, and let your guest do as they see fit. After all, it is their vacation!

Drive With Your Windows Up

I am recommending that all drivers pay attention to this blog. This only pertains to days where there are remains from a massive rain storm or large amounts of snow melt, either of which create really big puddles. Though there be no immenent danger if you don't heed my warning, I do feel it best that you at least consider the consequences of not listening.

I have a 2007 Chevy Avalanche. It is my toy. I enjoy mud, snow, puddles and anything else that could baptize the truck in messiness. Upon sight of large puddles, there seems to be a magnetic force drawing the truck towards said puddles. These puddles are of even more joy when the are a part of the street and no extra deviation from the street is needed. Hence the reason for my warning.

If you are approaching an intersection known for water collection, may I recommend that you at have your window rolled up. At the very least, don't attempt to traverse through the intersection (especially if you don't want to roll up the window) until oncoming traffic (or me in my truck) safely passes through the intersection. If in fact you enjoy your window being rolled down, and you see a vehicle (or a Chevy Avalanche with me behind the wheel), and insist on passing oncoming traffic in the intersection with a very large puddle, rest assured - YOU WILL GET WET.

Again, this is only a suggestion and not mandated. However, if you do not believe me, just ask the poor lady who experienced a shower from my trucks....splash yesterday. Honestly, I had no idea her window was down until it was too late...way too late.

Check it

So I started writing a blog about last nights events at youth. Sadly, my computer at work crashed momentarily and completly closed all of my IE windows. So, for lack of creativity and lack of a desire to write, may I present to you my brothers blog. To encourage you to visit and read the wonderful (and no I'm not bragging, just speaking truth) blog written yesterday, I'm going to help him out just a little. Pearl Jam gets my vote. And in the words of Nickleback, "Cause we all wanna be big rockstars..."

Enjoy.

Moral Dilemma

Every once in a while I'm out and about in the evenings. And, when the family is with me, the radio station usually ends up on WAY-FM. Their evening program (6-10pm) is called Total Axxcess and is hosted by Wally. No last name, just Wally. The man good enough to go by one name.

I like Wally. He is funny, honest, insightful, fairly knowledgeable and every once in a while reflective. On a really god day, he is able to mix all of these traits into one topic. Tonight was that night. Upon hearing the topic of discussion, Janda and I laughed. Not that the topic was funny, but the presentation of the topic was great. So, please allow me to steal his question meant for fun and present you with a moral dilemma.

"If both of your parents wind up needing a kidney transplant at the same time and you are a match, which parent would you give your one available kidney to?"

Oh the family battles that could be waged based on this one decision. And not just potential negative battles, but also the positive ones of spouses sacrificing their lives for the other out of love.

So, what would you do?

Why are you having this done?

I am becoming acutely aware of the simple fact that dumb people surround me. Moreove, I could probably write a book about the stupid things these people do, say, write, etc.

I work at a radiology office. I schedule exams for hospitals that our radiologists read exams for. Over the years I have seen exams done for many reasons. Some histories are amusing, some are interesting and then there are those that make you really question whether you would ever want to visit that particular doctor. With that, I leave you with today's reason for having an exam done.

Exam ordered: right shoulder xray
Reason for exam: abdomen and back pain

I am no rocket scientist, but the last time I checked, the shoulder and abdomen are in fairly different locations of the body.

Captain Obvious

While scheduling an xray today I saw a case of overstating the obvious. See below.

"Please have exam read by radiologist."

NO DUH!

American Idol and Celebrity Apprentice

I'm not one to consider myself a reality junkie. As a matter of fact, the best reality shows I can think of are the ones that come in sport form. March Madness is quickly approaching. Spring ball is going strong and th NBA and NHL are nearing its completion in a couple months. However, for as much as I love those "reality" moments, there are two shows that I somehow always find myself entranced by - American Idol and Celebrity Apprenctice.

The two shows are a display in contrasting formats. One pits a bunch of unknowns together competing to make it big. The other pits those who have made it big competing for serious bucks for their charity. One, the contestants seek the adoration of America, the other seeking the Donald's good graces. Both shows eliminate contestants, one through fan voting, the other through a firing. Yet, despite these differences, I am noticing one similarity...a very LARGE similarity - EGO.

In the tryout portion of American Idol, people of all walks ar continually rejected despite their "talent" that is the best of all those trying out. It is their right to be on the show and the judges have just taken that right away from them. Who cares if the judges think they can't sing, they know they can and they will do everything to keep their dream of becoming rock stars alive.

Watch five minutes of Celebrity Apprentice and you'll soon see how big the ego's are on the show. Sure, these are individuals who have reached the pinnacle of their professions. Somewhere along the line they were able to take their talent and made money off of it. Put them in a situation where they have to work with others with as big an ego as theirs and spontaneous combustion will soon follow.

I love both shows. I don't agree with the ego's. Actually, I'm amused at the ego's. Real life application for the shows...be humble. In all you do, consider others first. Think highly of yourself, but think even more highly of others. When you are told you aren't the best, live with it. Sure, you may be good, but not every one is the best. And if you are good, keep doing good. You will be rewarded. What you sew you will reap. Realize that those criticizing you may actually know what they are talking about, be it Simon, The Donald or your boss.

One more thing, parents, be honest with your kids. If they can't sing, tell 'em and help them find another dream. If they can't play baseball, encourage them to try soccer, tennis or something else (chess if anything). As a parent, I want my kids to succeed. I want to see them trhive in something. Ethan is a good ball player but I realize he has a long way to go to be a great ball player. Rachel is becoming a good swimmer, but she needs more work to be a great swimmer. I'm not afraid to tell them as such either. And because of this, I'd like to think they respect me just a little for being honest with them.

For those with ego's, please leave them at the door when you come over to my place. I'm brazen enough to tell you the truth, you aren't the greatest thing walking the earth. That, and I hope to see you on TV one day making a complete fool of yourself (Bikini Girl and Andre Dice Clay) providing me with a few laughs.

Liquidated

Last night I designated as a night to catch up on the recorded shows sitting on the DVR. So I was only able to clear off a couple shows. The great part about the DVR is that I can skip the commercials. So, after watching a few shows, it was time for the news. Down side to real time television - commercials.

Not often do I pay attention to the commercials. However, one caught my eye last night. Circuit City. WHAT??? I thought they closed and liquidated everything! Somehow, this add slipped through the people in control of running commercials neglected to remember Circuit City's demise. Or, is the just no way liquidate commercials?

Oh well. I guess this just continues to show the...superiority (???) of our local television channel.

Sick

I tried to avoid illness. I told everyone I wasn't getting sick. I felt great this past weekend, really I did. At least that is what I told myself. DARN IT!!! They were right, I was getting sick. Now, on the road to semi recovery, my chest hurts from coughing so much and I can hardly breathe. So whatever recovery may have occured over the last two days really hasn't made much difference other than I can still function...sort of.

On another topic, I'm contemplating checking out Twitter. We'll see.

Pyro Inside

Note to self, when burning 3x5 cards in a metal bowl inside the church, do not set the metal bowl on the carpet. Hot bowl with fire inside equals a small spot of melted carpet. Yes, the rest of the lesson was moved outside to finish burning the cards in the bowl.

Breaking

There are days, series of days, months, etc. that one just has no desire to do much of anything, eat anything, drink, work, or for that matter exist anywhere other than locked up in a room doing nothing but sleeping, praying or reading. Today is one of those days. As a matter of fact, the last few days have been like this.

At first one would think this is normal for one on the cusp of illness. I would like to believe this. But no, not the case here. Then one would think this is a sure sign of borderline depression. Hardly the case. One of the final hypothesis you could think of would be that one is suffering from a broken heart. Well, that one is kinda true, but not like one would think (Janda and I are actually closer now than we were even 1 year ago - PRAISE GOD!).

It is moments like these that I am really trying to learn to give it to God. Over the last few days, I have had no problem in giving everything to God. The hard part is not acting like a two year old who just had its toy taken from him. Now the funny part of this it that I can actually see me doing this with God. Hand stuff to him, telling him I don't want the _________ (insert word) and then stomping my feet fighting with him to take it back for myself. Not only am I seeing myself in this situation, but I am seeing too many of us Christians doing this daily. It is with seeing this that I find myself suffering from a broken heart.

My youth kids are great. They are growing. I am growing with them. As with any teen, they have a long way to go. As with any Christian, I have a long way to grow as well. John Wooden said, "It's what you know after you learn it all that matter." I see this more each day. John Wooden, great basketball coach, great speaker, great person and a great man of God.

So today I strive to be more like Christ (sans the dying of a broken heart) and John Wooden instead of the two year old I frequently see.

Waking the Dead

Taking the youth on trips to confrences is awesome. God does wonders. Their lives are changed. As the youth director it is always hard to keep them on a high. Not very often do I see any youth pastor succeed in keeping the momentum going. Through many reasons this sadly happens and yes, I too fail at it. That though is the beauty of these trips because it forces us to really work at maintaining our relationship with Christ.

Now, the hardest part about trips like this weekends is the sleeping part. Actually, that is only a partially true statement. How about the going to sleep part is actually the hardest part. For me, I amaze the guys in my room at how fast I can transfer from awake to out cold. I consider it a miacle if anyone in my room is out by midnight or earlier (yes, one guy in my room passed out at 11:32 last night).

Yet, despite any diffifulty the youth may have in getting a semi decent night of sleep in, there is always the part they forget about. WAKE UP!!! The final day of any weekend trip starts early. I always have to get up first (15-30 minutes before them) just so they can be up when instructed. When I announce wake up visits the night before, there is always grumbling. Even then, their choice is to stay up and have fun. I have no problem with this and even encourage it. Then, at times when many of them are getting up during the week, I greet them with loud rapping on their hotel door. ALWAYS, there is one who never gets up with the first knock. And, there is always one in the group who expresses their...gratitude for the early visit.

As any parent knows, it takes a move of God to get their teen/preteen awake. Now, try imagining waking 12 teens. It is in these moments of the trip where I see the most frequent miracle God could ever perform - waking the dead. YES, God does still perform miracles!

Ouch

I have learned I should have stayed in the hotel today. Life would have been a little less painful had I done this.

Okay, so Janda and I are in Rapid City aending Wild West Winterfest with 12 of the youth kids from the church. I have been expecting a wonderful trip and move of God. And with any trip with the youth, at least one memorable moment happens.

Last night was exactly as I expected. God moved. He has healed people in the group already and I expect even greater things tonight.

Today the memorable portion of the trip happened. After breakfast we went to an amazing chocolate store. All but two kids had made their way with Janda to the van parked across the street. All of them were ready to go to the mall. The two still in the chocolate store took a few extra minutes to make last second purchases. After the had paid for their desired purchase (one of them it was the third trip to the register) I began making the trek across the street to the van. Just two steps out of the store, one forgot her purchase at the register. Naturally, I kindly waited so she wouldn't have to walk to the van alone. That choice prove to be the fatal choice to any hope of a normal rest of the day.

As we began walking up a slight incline/decline walk in the parking lot of Pizza Hut (where van was parked) I began to slow my pace just a bit. The parking lot, though plowed of snow, was still fairly covered with the white stuff. Naturally, one would expect the potential for a slick spot or two whith these kind of conditions. And, being from Cheyenne I should know that there is going to be those spots. Well, being blonde apparently overtook my thought process. About 5 feet into the lot the memorable moment of the trip happened.

YES!!! I provided the memorable moment of the...trip. In seemingly slow motion, my right foot abandoned the pavement in a very unnatural way. My equalibrium was now absent. I then began to try and regain what apparent little balance I had. This attempt failed miserably. I now found myself falling to the ground with my entire right side in the air. In what felt like slow motion, taking an eternity, my robust body landed on a very cold and snow covered parking lot.

I began to laugh. The one student I was walking beside began to panic and asked, "Are you okay? Oh my gosh! Really, are you okay? Oh my gosh!!! Aaron, are you okay?" Then she began laughing. With both hands full and not wanting to place my chocolate or Blackberry phone on a snowy parking lot, I asked she take the chocolate and allow myself to get up off the ground. Now, as I begin getting up, I look to see how many in the van saw my act of instability. Indeed, it appeared that one, maybe two had seen my failed balet act. Yet, they definately saw me layin on the ground attempting to return to my feet. This was the moment that all of us found ourselves laughing.

I am glad to tell you that I am fine. My ability to laugh at myself definately came in handy. My leg still feels very cool. Although I am sore and slightly bruised, I am fine. If my hip still hurts come Monday, I may seek a professionals (doctors/xray) opinion. I'll let you know what happens. And yes, please enjoy a laugh on me.

Grammy Awards

Rarely, if ever, do I watch the Grammy Awards. However, last night I figured, "Why not." Well, I should have avoided them. Not because they were bad or weren't entertaining. I did receive both good moments of musical gifting and sadly a few more bad moments that killed the ears. Yet, the most memorable moment came when I was trying to figure out what MIA was wearing. WHAT THE HECK!!! Girl! You're 9 months pregnant!!! Wear something a little more.....fitting....appropriate....tasteful...something! She really looked like a pregnant lady bug minus the wings. And the guys sharing the stage with her showed class (a far cry from their bad boy image they portay in their music). She showed...almost everything. YIKES!





Okay, so some of the other things I caught, when looking up from what I was working on were the following.





The Jonas kids and Stevie Wonder. Stevie still sounds good. What possesed him to agree to collaborate with the kids though.


Neil Diamond is still doing music. They say he has new stuff. I don't believe them after this performance.


How does a marching band (USC) get into the Grammy's? And what was the lead singer for Radiohead actually saying. If one didn't know any better (and I don't) you'd think he didn't know the words.



I heard Travis Barker state that Blink 182 was getting back together. However, contrary to his band mates claim of their ability to rock, they play punk music. So wouldn't that be...never mind. I just am not thrilled like many others are.



The Blind Boys of Alabama deserve the lifetime achievment award they received. WOW!!! Their suits were...pimp worthy. Glad they do music and not pimp work.



I did see other things. Really, these were the most memorable for one with a short term memory. Next year, I just may forego the pangs of seeing pregnant women dance, old artists singing old songs while trying to dance, artists mumbling words, etc. Here's to wishing the Grammy's showed a few more presentations and fewer performances. Really...Justin Timberlake has had his day. Give recognition to some others through getting their awards (Toby Mac, MaryMary, Take 6, Beck, James Taylor to name a few) instead of what we got.

Good thing I'm only a voice and not an authority.

1 week later

It has been one full week since surgery. Sleep has never been as abundant as what it has been this past week. Pain meds have never been a friend of mine, even when they should have been. However, I am really liking them. That said, here are just a few observations from the past week.

1. This has been a great way to lose weight. Probably not the best or most desired method to lose the weight, but man it has been effective.

2. Silence may be golden, but truly is a pain in the butt when you do have something to say. Even worse when your kids are talking so much that you can't get a word in edge wise.

3. Never attempt to watch Jeff Dunham while not being able to speak or laugh easily. This is a feat that is impossible. I have tested and proven this theory. Trust me, you don't want to find out for yourself.

4. Lastly, I should have taken more pain meds sooner. Life would have been more interesting and I might have been able to provide a little more wisdom for someone.

Day Two

I sit here and wonder many things. How ong can I keep up the blogging? How long until the cotton mouth feeling leaves. What else is gonna feel wierd no that some feeling in my throat is returning. OY!

Today has been one of nothing but sleep. I nevr knew I could sleep so much. Yet, sleep I have. I also never knew that drinking would be such a chore. And more impressive than any thing yet, Shepard Smith looks a tad more realistic when you see him in double.

Okay, that last statement tells me it's time to go back to bed. Later.

Beginning

Hello blogger.com! I have posted blogs on MySpace previously. However, my time on MySpace has been greatly reduced due to work load. However, I have no desire to stop writing. So, using Google as much as I do, and reading my brothers blog and a friends blog here on blogger.com I figured I would streamline my computer time and make my return to blogging somewhat easier.

So, that said, today begins m return to blogging. Sadly, this blog isn't going to be very long. My only (and valid) excuse is my dependence and altered mental state from the drugs prescribed to me post surgery.

I feel fairly good. My throat does hurt...bad. Yet, the pain isn't as bad as anticipated, Granted, just over 24 hours have passed since surgery. I do expect the pain to get worse, but not too much worse.

Okay, so this is the end of the first "new" blog. I hope that the ones coming will be a little more coherent. In the meantime, go check out my brothers and friends blog. They are certainly better than mine.