the power of "u"

All Hallow's Eve has passed once again and now we head to Thanksgiving. As I sit here at the house waiting for the Propane Man to come I thought that I would jot a thought down.

thought #1: the cornucopia, or, the horn of plenty (ok, that makes me laugh...). the cornucopia (with a "long u" sound there in the middle of the word) brings so many memories... ok, only a couple. one is making turkeys (turkies? what in the world is going on?) in grade school out of those hedge apple things that one might find out in the woods. now that i think about it, i remember making turkeys out of potatoes as well. I believe that I might have to go to the store for some construction paper (who am I kidding, I have a huge stock of it upstairs, along with that paste in the tub that you can eat off the stick and some glitter glue: one just never knows when you need to have a quick "craft fix". alright, that's dumb). where was i? oh, construction paper for my native american paper feather headdress. I think that I might make the other two in my department at church make them as well. wait, nathan and i will make headdresses and we'll have terrie be the pilgrim. and when i think of "corn-you-copia" i think of tina (not the llama; the tour guide at the alamo on "peewee's big adventure"): "Hello, I'm Tina. I will be your tour guide today... Here we have Pedro and Inez. Inez is holding a clay pot that she seems to be mighty proud of." Oh, "corn-you-copia" brings my thoughts to thanksgiving and going to jeremy's house when we were in college. here is the thought process as we decided when to leave:

• me: i only have one class on wednesday. jer: so do i.
• me: i'll skip that one and we can leave on tuesday night. jer: well, i don't have any classes on tuesday. wait, i do have concepts of p.e. (i am totally making some of this up, one for memories sake and two for the sake of my own humor, but don't deny that y'all have gone through this thought process as well)
• me: i have a/v methods. jer: (thinking)
• me: who am i kidding, let's just leave monday and take the whole week off. it's thanksgiving for heaven's sake.

as i type all of this, i realize, once again, why i was in school for 7 years. my word...

i thought that i had another thought but now that i have gone on about what "corn-you-copia" brought to my mind, i think that 1 thought will suffice for today.

I want to enjoy it...

So I went to McDonald's the other day, craving a Big Mac. I remember many-a-roadtrip with my family and we would stop at McDonald's. "Mark, what do you want?" my parents would ask.

"Big Mac, large fry, medium Coke," I would enthusiastically respond.

There are a lot of memories behind the Big Mac: riding to West Virginia in the Lincoln Continental (even though I had to sit in the back in the middle because that is where the youngest sat :-\ ), Saturday band trips, spring break trips to Florida with my family which included my cousin that sniffs constantly and doesn't stop talking many times and decided to use half a can of hairspray in an enclosed van.

On with the story... This is what I found on the box as I received my treat:

Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 sandwich (215.0 g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 576 Calories from Fat 292
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 32.5g 50%
Saturated Fat 12.0g 60%
Polyunsaturated Fat 2.8g
Monounsaturated Fat 14.1g
Cholesterol 103mg 34%
Sodium 742mg 31%
Total Carbohydrates 38.7g 13%
Protein 31.8g
Vitamin A 1%
Vitamin C 2%
Calcium 9%
Iron 31%
Nutritional Units 14

I DON'T CARE! I just want to enjoy my Big Mac in peace and fat and harmony. Good Lord... Oh well, as I completely inhaled my "two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun," I wanted buy another just to spite the carb count on there. I know, I know, there are some that would say, "Mark, that is totally not good for you." Well, sometimes ya just gotta be bad. Why be good when it feels so good to be bad, right? As Mark Lowry says, "Die young, make a pretty corpse." Ok, I crossed the line there...

david koch

Pray for Christ Center Wesleyan in Sedona, AZ. My conga player there, David Koch, decided that taking his life was a better option than facing some consequences. David, Trina and their kids, Tiana and Dean, are great people. The church is kinda in a tailspin as well since they just interviewed a guy for the worship position there and another guy is coming in another couple weeks to interview. Thanks...

A thought...

I found this is as I was cleaning today and I believe that it proves to be blogworthy:

"If someone gives you their love you should try not to crap on it."

"Attention in the terminal, now seating all rows for flight 1019 to Whatwasithinkingburg"

life moves on...

Well, life as I know it here in Ohio has come to the end of a season again. It's usually when you are starting to feel like things are rolling along pretty well and then God says that it's time to turn things around a bit. Kris Kuester, my co-worker and great friend, is moving to Atlanta. It's a great opportunity for him and Trudy and Maddie. And here's the funny thing: he started his new job the weekend after we went to 5 different venues at Cypress. Talk about crazy and talk about God needing to do what He does best: take over where we can't. But ya know, as Clairie says: "That which does not kill us only makes us stronger." (o.k., I realize that she was not the first one to say that but I like quoting Steel Magnolias, what can I say)

But you know what? I have found a new creative space. True, it is practically insanity with 5 venues within a Saturday night and Sunday morning, and there are days that I would rather stick my hand in a meat slicer (umm, I guess Children of the Corn was not a good rental choice...) but God is good to me with volunteers and people stepping up in the arts department and people coming forward to start using their talents.

Is there anyone else that misses Chris Farley? He makes me laugh. Oh, movie, Akeelah and the Bee: just watched it Sunday night. Great movie, although the end was a little sugary. I do like this, though: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same."

Two words...First Call

I could really hardly contain myself today as I was browsing through Lifeway and happened upon this treasure, no, gem. Nay, a true diamond amidst a lot of whippersnapper cd's. First Call. First Call...do you see that. And not just any First Call but the THE FIRST First Call. I was no sooner in my car, slashing at the government issued plastic surrounding the cd, practically beside myself trying to get it into the cd player, turning my car on and aurally feasting myself upon the banquet called First Call (ok, that may have been a little too far). Amidst all these so-called "musical geniuses" we find Bonnie Keene, Melody Tunney and Marty McCall. I mean, really, can you get any better than "O Sifuni Mungu," "Snap to It," "Undivided," "The Reason We Sing"? Tell me, can you find better? Ok, there are some out there. But I will tell you this, very few. First Call today...First Call forever!

memory lane

Well, click in those Memory Lame seat belts 'cause we are goin' on a little ride...

"My goodness, look at the time! I hope that we are not too late for all those Early Bird Specials at JCPenney."

"My buddy, my buddy! Wherever I go he goes!"

"And now, returning from the grave..." (nice pegged pants)

"Look Mom, no cavities!"

"But Dad, I don't want to be a family band..."

prepare yourself

Ok, so I know that I need to post a few more times than what I have been. What can I say? Well, nothing really. I can tell you this: has any heard of Rita Springer? She is an artist/worship leader. We are doing one of her songs this weekend, "Rise Up": WOW!

Forewarning on the next post: you better strap on your Memory Lane seat belts 'cause we are goin' for a little ride...

Find me faithful, find me true
Find me in, in love with You
Your love compels me to run the race
Your hand, it guides me, as I seek Your face

Your Word is my deed
I want to leave a legacy
Help me to be, help me to see Your story in me
Throw off the sing and draw me in
I lay down my life so You begin

Write on me Your glory
Write on me Your story
I wanna be the one that You will use
So Lord, please write on me

starbuck's in easton

I am sitting here at Starbuck's in Easton Towne Center...well, the cafe in Barnes & Noble. Can I just say that the human race is so interesting. It's no wonder that I wrote a sketch a couple Christmas' ago based on the people that I experienced at B&N on campus.

These dear ladies beside me seem to be enjoying themselves. One looks a little jaundiced and the other, I think, cut her bangs while they were wet. Just saw a guy that had no business in a muscle shirt and with a gal that looked to be about 21...o.k, 22. Oop, "No Bangs" just got up and the ol' painter pants were rolled up: must not have received the memo that the flash flood watch is over. Then there is a guy over here whose toes are hanging well over his black Birkenstocks. Maybe they are his wife's because she has on a pair, too. One can never have enough Birkenstocks. There is great looking African-American gal sitting across the cafe, looks a lot like Byrd (sp?), the vocal coach from American Idol (wait, did I mention that I am going to the concert Friday here in Columbus? YAY!). Wait, hold it right there...I think that one of the cast members from Wizard of Oz just came through the joint. Wow... Uh-oh, someone just got new Tommy Hilfiger tennis shoes!!

Shall we talk about how enjoyable John Denver really is?

well, i made it

I have a feeling that much of this is going to be random. Can I tell you of a new treasure that I have found on tv? I came home from Easton Town Center, turned on my tv, flipped a few channels and found "Lovespring International." Seems to run in the vein of Best in Show and A Mighty Wind. A brief synopsis: dysfunctional misfits run a dating service. In a word: delightful. And I've only watched for 15 minutes. O.k, so it's on Lifetime, but the joy...my, my, my...

Just got back from Bayou La Batre, Alabama, yesterday. What a great time that we had! Even though it is now about 10 months later after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, it is still a mess down there. But the great thing about it: the people are working day by day to rebuild their homes and businesses. If they thanked us once they thanked us four times for coming and helping. That brings me to this...

Walmart lost my pictures. I got home after receiving my pictures, failing to look in the package to see, if in truth, they were mine. Got home... "I have no idea who these people are." I return to Walmart. Guy (that's what we'll call him) says, "Did you take these to customer service?" "Umm, no," I stated. (if I had taken them to customer service, I would not be here at the developing counter) Gal (this is what I shall call her, although her name should probably be Boobs McClanahan) then proceeded to check my receipt and give me my money back which brought me to this question: "Now, if you're giving me my money back, when you find my pictures will I need to then give this money back to you?" She retorted, "Umm, well, nah, we'll just give them to you." Wow... Gal decided that she would give the number on the envelope a call. As I stood there, I received a call, only to realize later that she was CALLING ME! So, we'll hope that the people that have my pics will return them so that I can show you a few.

Can I tell you this: I wish the ocean was closer because skimboarding is way too sweet.