Who finds whom?

I’ve heard a lot of people end their salvation stories with, ‘…and that is when I found God.’  One of my favorite songs, ‘You found me’ starts with the words, ‘I found God on the corner of 1st and Amistad.’  Hearing this stuff really has me thinking and pondering who finds whom?

So which is it?  Do we find him or does he find us?  I know the natural response is that we find God because he is all knowing.  God’s omnipotence means that he knows where we are and where we are going to be.   So we aren’t lost in a location sense.  This regular guy’s opinion is that we are lost because we take our eyes off of him or believe we can walk without him.  Jesus talked in parables chasing after the lost sheep.  The lost sheep doesn’t know it’s lost.  The sheep is wandering off chasing some bright and shiny object.  The shepherd sees the sheep wander off and has to go in pursuit to recover his property.  Cross the streams, climb the rocks, and cut through the brush to bring his sheep back to the fold.

I may be way off but this is why I believe the God finds us.  He sees wherever we are at.  He crosses the streams, climbs the rocks, and cuts through the brush to bring us back with him.  The sheep may realize that it’s in danger and my try to find its way home or run further away.  Ultimately the shepherd finds the sheep and brings it home.  No matter what we do he brings us home.  So in my mind he finds us.  What do you think?

Week 1: Firing from the hip…

We’re going to go bullets for the first blog post of twenty-o-ten.  I’ve made a resolution to be better at expressing ideas that bounce around this noggin of mine.  I don’t want to lose these thoughts so I resolved to express myself once a week.  We’ll see how it goes because I’ve never been a resolution guy. 

So here we go….

Mark McGwire – You were  one of my heroes when I was younger.  I begged my parents to take me to an Oakland A’s game when I was in sixth grade to see you and Canseco play.  While what you did was technically not against the rules back then, it was wrong.  I am glad you are finally talking about this.  I have no doubt you took your cues from Major League Baseball as they wanted to see how this panned out.  I think you could have diffused a lot of this if you came out in the forefront and be the first to admit and discuss this.

 

 

 

Pete Carroll – Pretty big jump with some pretty big repercussions on the coaching carousel.  He leaves a pretty big seat on that carousel.  Granted there looms the big possibility of some NCAA sanctions on the horizon for the Men of Troy.  I think those gathering clouds affect the potential prospects to take that job.  Let’s look for Chris Petersen of Boise to become a player in this.

 

Huskers – Wow did three weeks off do them some good.  Drubbed the Arizona Wildcats 33-0 with a previously unseen offensive explosion.  The Arizona defensive staff looked dumbfounded.  I don’t blame them though.  If anyone watched film of us down the stretch, our playcalling was bland at best.  This game will do wonders for them this off-season. 

 

Wearing Jerseys in Public – I had a facebook status update that besmirched grown men wearing jerseys in public.  I referred to going Kroger to pick up some groceries on a Thursday as opposed to actually wearing it to the game.  I gave a pass to those who wore them while in the stadium.  Here is another example of why one shouldn’t wear a jersey in public.

 

Resolutions – Now I know I just said that I’m resolving to write in this more, but do resolutions really work?  I don’t think so.  Resolutions come off as a half-hearted attempt to commit to something.  If you really want a change, you need to commit to that change and let nothing stand in the way your desired change.  I may be on a soapbox here but it’s what I’ve learned in my short time on this ball. 

 

Harry Reid – Why does he get a pass for what he said about Obama?  If it were a Republican or Conservative that said the same things there would be a firestorm.  A firestorm that would ultimately lead to a resignation in shame.

 

 

Have a great new year.  Hopefully we will see more frequent observations this year.

A Pirate, a Pony, and a Chancellor walk into an equipment shed…

 

Pride comes before destruction

Proverbs 16:18

This situation has been rehashed 14 different ways on TV, print, and the blogosphere.   Here is my take.  There are five characters at play in this tragedy.

The Pirate :  The Head Coach.  He has built an impressive program that competes at the highest level in one of the top conferences in college football.  He took what was once a backwater program and brought them into the national discussion.  Attributed to an interesting personality and offense to match.  This success has afforded a great following with a fan base in west Texas that was looking for a collegiate outlet for their friday-night-lights football obsession.  This following afforded him some capital in the public forum.  Capital that led people and press to overlook a snide personality with his penchant to publicly explore other jobs.

The Pony:  A former football great.  A former golden-boy running back who was deemed so worthy in high school that a University literally sold it’s soul to get him on campus.  He moved on to NFL glory and a career as a talking head on a major sports network.

The Receiver:  Son of the Pony with the attitude to match.  Largely been reported that he had an air of entitlement to his personality and practiced that way.  His attitude drove his position coach and the Pirate nuts.

The AD:  The poor soul who had to be the boss of an individual, the Pirate. who thought he had no boss.  He was fired from his old job as Basketball coach and received his previous job largely out of pity.  His predecessor leaves the school and puts him in the catbirds seat.

The Chancellor:  A spectator in this whole circus.  A guy who loved the success of his schools football team but had to have heard what it was like dealing with the Pirate.

Here is where I see the mistake was made.  Leach (The Pirate) let a lazy, entitled athlete with a reportedly overbearing, stage-dad get into his head.  If Adam James was such a bad teammate, Leach had many options to deal with him.  Sit young Adam on the bench, suspend him, or give him a signed release and leave it up to Adam to decide if he wants to stay or not.  Instead it appears he went Col. Nathan R. Jessup and tried to train Adam by locking him in various closets and sheds around the Lubbock Metropolitan area.  A big misread by the Pirate in this case.  The Receiver makes a call to the Pony and the public hype machine at the WWL gets fired up.  This unwanted hype and years of abrasiveness made the decision pretty easy to part ways.  All they asked him to do was apologize to the family and he refused (and not to diplomatically either).  Leach brought lawyers into it and filed a restraining order.  Leach’s representation said he couldn’t be suspended  because he didn’t have that clause in his contract.  So the Chancellor said exercised the termination clause.  IMO Leach has no one to blame but himself and his foolish pride.

2009 in Review

Boy a lot has happened over the past year.  I know you the reader sees a lot of these this time of year.  I’m going to give my spin on what I’ve seen over the past year.  It’ll end up being mediocre but then again I’m not the greatest writer (probably could tell by reading this).

Family

This year was really great for my family.  My oldest started 1st grade this year.  He and I are beginning to hold conversations now versus me ordering him around.  He is an interesting cat.  I love his take on things.  It keeps me young.

His younger brother is 3 going on 15 now.  He has such an advanced view on life because of his older brother.  They will be partners in crime when they get older.

My wife and I continue our journey together and it continues to be great.  I could write a whole lot more here but it wouldn’t do us justice.

Me

Lots of things happened this year.  I ran a half marathon in San Antonio.  It was as grueling as expected.  I went into it kind of hap-hazardly.  A friend of mine told me to run with him in it and I agreed for some reason.  The thought of running 13.1 miles continuously scared me to death especially since I’d never run more than a 6 mile distance in my life.  I found a Hal Higdon training program and stuck to it.  This experience taught me how to rely preparation.  John Wooden is famous for saying ‘Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.’  This became my rallying cry for this race.  I’ve applied this experience to all of the other aspects of my life.  Preparing for something only helps and never hurts.

Goals for 2010

I’ve made only one resolution for this upcoming year.  It is to write a blog article at least once a week about ‘whatever strikes a chord.’  I think I’ve figured out where ORaN fits in with my Facebook and Twitter pages.  Spent most of 09 trying to find it’s place and we’ll see how it transpires.  I hope you like it.

Brett Favre part 76…I’m back

 Well it’s official.  Brett Favre to the Vikings.  I remember hearing several times after he agonized over his decision that this wasn’t over.  One of my friends stated that this was just a ploy to get out of training camp but that he will be  in purple this year.  Well it turns out that Chicago Bear fan was right.

If you take a step back and look at this whole situation, I believe something went really awry with the front office in Green Bay.  I see a front office who eagerly wanted to move on with Aaron Rogers and a future Hall-of-Famer who wanted to leave on his own terms.  Who was right?  I don’t know.  It is the prerogative of the front office to make sure that they put a competitive product on the field.  From Favre’s perspective, is Aaron Rogers really an upgrade?  Hasn’t he earned the right to call his own shot? 

Well we know how it has played out.  The Packer front office got their wish and convinced him enough to leave.  Favre then played his hand.  He played the NFL’s retirement system very well so he could dictate how and where he would go.  What better place than Minnesota, hated rival.  What a great way to get back at the front office than show up to Lambeau on a day that was supposed to honor your Packer greatness in the jersey of your enemy.   You say but what about his fans?  Won’t this alienate his fans?  In a word, no.  He is their hero.  He led them to greatness.  Brought championships back to ‘Titletown.’  I would be willing to bet that after the initial sting has worn off the ill feeling held by Packer fans will turn to management.  As time wears on, I would be willing to bet the prevailing thought in Wisconsin is that the Packer front office blew this one. 

Either way this is a great situation for Favre.  The Vikings possess the two things that take pressure off the QB, a premier running game and a stout defense.  The defense will keep opponents out of the endzone and Adrian Peterson and that O Line will control the clock and punish the enemy.  This puts Favre in a position where he doesn’t have to make 50 throws to be competitive.  In fact, the play action game becomes the knockout punch in their gameplans.  This means only a few throws a game for Favre which is perfect for his high mileage arm.  This addition makes the Vikings a contender in a big way.

My Michael Vick Take

Let me start off by saying I’m dog lover. I love my little pug and she is a family member to me. She greets me when I get home. As a pro-dog person, I’ve had a keen eye on the Michael Vick proceedings. I believe that his conviction and punishment were just.

I watched portions of his 60 minutes interview while I made dinner for the family and I have to say that my feelings on this have changed. I initially believed that this man should have known better and that I would be okay with him never playing again. I don’t feel that way anymore. I believe in second chances. I believe in that everyone deserves a shot at redemption if they feel bad about what they did and change the course of their life as a result. I believe Michael Vick needs a second chance to redeem himself. If he truly renounces what he did, then he should get a chance to play again. Now if he blows this second chance and reverts back to a point where he’s involved in dog fighting then all bets are off. Vick seemed genuine in his regret during the interview. How much of that was coaching of his legal and image team remains to be seen. I choose to believe at this point that he regrets this ever happened and wants a second chance.

With all that said, what changed my mind you ask…Couple of things. The fact that Tony Dungy is laying his name on the line for this man says a lot to me. I view Tony as a pretty stand up guy and for him to vouch for Michael Vick admittedly buys him capital with me. I’m willing to give Mr.. Vick a second chance because Dungy thinks he’s changed. Second and really the most important is because of my faith. Without getting into a big spiritual discussion here, I am going to say that my faith has taught me that we need to forgive when no one else will because we are forgiven when we shouldn’t be. I think that applies here.

I am going to continue to watch this situation unfold. If Vick has changed his words will become action. If his words are just that…words then he will fall back into the same traps and lose this chance. I’m willing to watch this thing unfold. I hope has seen the error in his ways and has made a true change.

Why I quote movie lines incessantly…

Don’t know how to write a tribute article so I’m just going  to talk off the cuff here.  John Hughes movies shaped my growing up years.  I was grounded a lot as a child.  I was very good at testing the line my parents set for me and I also was very good at checking their consistency.  I ended up grounded a lot as a result.  John Hughes and his movies helped get me through paying my debt to my folks.  After looking at his amazing body of work, I would have to say that of the movies he directed these three really shaped who I am today.  In fact his movies got me into to the bad habit of quoting movie lines as part of my everyday conversations.

Sixteen Candles

I think of this movie and I just laugh.  My wife loves to quote this movie.  Some of my favorite lines are:

“…the donger need food”

“Lumberjack: What's your last name?
Long Duk Dong: Dong.
Lumberjack: What's your first name?
Long Duk Dong: Long.
Lumberjack: What's your middle name?
Long Duk Dong: Duk.”

Howard: Dong. Where is my automobile?
Long Duk Dong: Oto-mo-biiile?

“Oh sexy Girlfriend…”

Long Duk Dong: She at the church. She getting married to oily bohunk.
Jake: Married?
Long Duk Dong: Married.
Jake: Married?
Long Duk Dong: Yeah. Married
[closes door]
Jake: [turns around, under breath to himself] Married?
Long Duk Dong: Married! Jeez.

Howard: Who was it? Well what did they want?
Dorothy Baker: [shocked] Sex.

 

Weird Science

Another movie whose lines I probably quote without even realizing it.

Wyatt: Gary, you're just as uptight as I am, all right?
Garry: Nobody could be as uptight as you! Nobody! Your middle name is tense. Wyatt "Tense Up" Donnelly.
Wyatt: All right, this is true, this is true.
Garry: It's true.
Wyatt: But it's not so bad. We can hear the music.
Garry: [sarcastically] We can hear the music, that's great. Maybe if we put our noses to the door, we can smell the food!

Wyatt: Gary?... By the way, why are we wearing bras on our heads?
Garry: [hesitates] Ceremonial.

Chet: How 'bout a nice greasy pork sandwich served in a dirty ashtray?

GARY'S MOM: Don't you think Gary was acting a little strange tonight?

GARY'S DAD: Gary? Who the hell is Gary?

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

My word I love this movie.  I can remember trying to be Ferris Bueller.  (I failed miserably btw)  I unsuccessfully tried some of his antics.  I can try to list my favorite quotes but it’s another one where I will unknowingly quote this movie because it is woven into my being…Ed Rooney is a very underrated character in this movie.

Ferris: Hi. Do you speak English?
Garage Attendant: Uh, what country do you think this is?

Ed Rooney: What's the score?
Pizza Joint Owner: Nothin' nothin'.
Ed Rooney: [not really listening] Who's winning?
Pizza Joint Owner: The Bears.

Grace: Oh, Ed. You just sounded like Dirty Harry just then.
Ed Rooney: Really? Thanks, Grace.

Maitre D': You're Abe Froman?
Ferris: That's right, I'm Abe Froman.
Maitre D': The Sausage King of Chicago?
Ferris: [caught off-guard] ... Uh yeah, that's me.

Ed Rooney: I don't trust this kid any further than I can throw him.
Grace: Well, with your bad knee Ed, you shouldn't throw anybody... Its true.
Ed Rooney: What is so dangerous about a character like Ferris Bueller is he gives good kids bad ideas.
Grace: Mmm-hmm.
Ed Rooney: Last thing I need at this point in my career is fifteen hundred Ferris Bueller disciples running around these halls. He jeopardizes my ability to effectively govern this student body.
Grace: Well, makes you look like an ass is what he does, Ed.

I tried to find the YouTube clips for each of those scenes but I couldn’t get them all.  I loved his movies.   His movies captured the awkwardness and comedy of the teenage years.  Something I certainly identified with as a young teenager.  So what say you…Any favorite quotes or movies that I left out?

Me and my Coffee Habit

(Jeff Kubina – Flickr)

Hello, my name is JoeMama and I’m a coffee addict…(Hello Joe says the room)

I absolutely love a good cup of coffee.  I wouldn’t consider myself a coffee snob at all.  I’ve drank coffee from just about every locale: truck stop, my kitchen, coffee shop big and small, from a coffee single, and I’ve even eaten instant coffee straight out of the jar.  What can I say I love this stuff.  To me there is nothing better than walking out to the dock very early in the morning when the water is like glass, sip my coffee, and say hello to the sunrise.

I digress.  I’ll get to the point.  There isn’t a coffee maker in my office area and I’m surrounded by non-drinkers.  So when I need my fix, I’m left to suffer.  We do have a near-boiling water tap nearby and I’ve used it along with some coffee singles.  It’s okay but I need more.  Better flavor.  So the current debate I’ve got bouncing around in my head is the following three options

1. Coffee Maker
2. French Press
3. Thermos

So lets do what any good engineer would do and weigh the pros and cons scientifically.   Let’s take a look at what I need and then balance them against. 

What I need – good coffee, not a lot of volume necessarily (32 oz max), and easily to clean/maintain (since it’s in my office.

Now to the pros/cons

Coffee Maker –

Pros:  Makes a good coffee with whatever volume you need.

Cons:  uses electricity, have to make sure you watch the burner so you don’t scorch, you have to ditch the filter everyday,

French Press

Pros:  Makes great coffee with limited amount of volume,  uses no electricity, easy to maintain (just dump and rinse)

Cons:  Need certain size grind on your coffee, Need boiling water to make this happen.

Thermos

Pros:  Takes a finite amount of coffee anywhere, get a good thermos and you get a piping hot cup anytime anywhere.  Pour and enjoy.

Cons:  You have to brew ahead of time, another item to lug back and forth to work.

The verdict….

I need a good, warm cup of tasty java.  I always am rushing out the door for work so I think that rules out brewing ahead of time.  My schedule varies from day to day.  Sometimes a ton of meetings.  Sometimes not.  This means I don’t have time to babysit a coffee maker.  This is a sure bet that I’ll scorch a pot and end up having to scrape it.  Looks like I’m going to give a run with the French press.  Am I crazy?

THE WINNER

Road Trip!! (finding some truth along the way)

We took a trip to pick up my oldest from his grandma this past weekend.  We met halfway in lovely Wichita, KS.  This trip resulted in roughly 18+ hours in the car.  Sounds like a lot but I love a good drive.  I get a lot of good thinking behind the wheel.  When I used to have a 45 minute commute to work, I had to have a tape recorder nearby because as I drove I would literally download my brain out of my mouth.  Lots of good ideas.  To capture these ideas I would record them and transcribe them later.   This trip allowed me to think about a lot things.  Mostly my Christian walk and how it is speaking through my family, work, and me.

We found a lot of good modern Christian stations between here and Wichita.  This isn’t Gospel but modern rock that praises God.  I am a normal guy who loves the Lord.  Do I have shortcomings? You betcha.  I am not perfect because I am a Christian.  I try to achieve perfection because I feel that Christ deserves that much but I come up short on a daily basis.  I am made perfect because I believe and he loves me back.  Now getting to the point.  I heard Matthew West’s ‘Something to Say’ and the message behind says that everyone’s life speaks for the Lord.  What is my Life saying?  As I said before, I’m a normal guy.  I love sports, my wife, my kids, playing the guitar, etc.  I have areas of my life that are far from perfect.  They are broken.  I need fixing.  I look to the Lord to show me how.  I’ll never be Billy Graham and stand at a pulpit and preach to the masses or Bart Millard and sing God’s praises to thousands.  My life is my testimony.  I heard something on the Dan Patrick Show about Tim Tebow.  They were talking how he operates in a football locker room and Dan said that Tebow just takes on an attitude of ‘I’m here to help you.’  He is not the standing on a street corner screaming for people to repent.  This really spoke to me and so has this verse.

¹⁶"Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may ^(T)see your good works, and ^(U)glorify your Father who is in heaven.  Matthew 5:16

So putting it all together.  I am a normal guy who is trying to let the Lord speak through my life.  I will not thump my bible in your face but I am here if my friends, family, or whoever wants to talk about the Lord.

It’s Alive!!!

Sometimes I have something I want to say with more than 140 characters.  I’m still learning how to use these sets of tools.  Twitter, Facebook, and Blogspot are a great way to communicate and they all have their place.  I guess I’m sorting out how I’m going to use them all.  Each has their great points.  I’m bringing this old bird back from the dead.  I know a few months ago I said I was going to 86 this thing but as time moved on it became apparent that I needed more than 140 characters to get out my thoughts.

I’ve messed around with how I’m going to format this.  Largely I think I’ve been chasing my tail.  My original thought for this blog was a catch all of thoughts, feelings on whatever trips my trigger.  It could be spiritual, sports, work, family, whatever.  I tried to make this blog like others but I’ve gotta make this one MINE.  In essence this blog is going to be about nothing from here on out. 

Whether I have one reader or a thousand, I’m going to stick to the original concept.  So I’m going to proceed to bore you all to death from here on out.