class 5

I will never forget a mission trip in 8th grade to Denver. Not only was that the trip I got baptized on, but it is also the first time I went whitewater rafting. The waters were at near record highs that year. The first rapid, three rocks, I think our boat almost flipped and the two guys in the front of our boat got thrown out. The guide yelled for me to reach my paddle out for him. I lunged out and reached my paddle as far as I could but the inches that seperated us quickly became feet in the current. Luckily both the guys were alright, but that image has always stuck with me, somebody I really care about, fear on their face, being sucked out of reach by this incredible power.

All that to say, right now that guy in the water is my brother. He has been having a hard time with ulcerative colitis, basically ulcers on his colon. He feels sick all the time. He has lost a ton of weight, and the medicine hasn't seemed to make a dent in it. My poor parents I know are worried sick about it, and we all feel so helpless. Right now, according to the doctors, the options are pretty slim. There is one more medication he wants to try, and if that doesn't work removing the colon is the only option. It seems so drastic, and it is, but it is a cure and evidently afterward if everything goes well you can live a pretty normal life. Anyway, I guess I am asking for your prayers, for Kyle, for my poor worried sick mom and dad, and for healing. We serve a great God, who is our lifevest during these times.

holey gray matter

I think I may have rotted my brain out by watching Disney Afternoon everyday from 3:15 to 5:00 during my kiddy years. They were great shows, Rescue Rangers, Talespin, Ducktales, Darkwing Duck, all great great cartoons. But the fact that I would sit and drink hot Dr. Peppers and eat Lay's and Ruffles for two hours of perfectly good afternoon has significantly shortened my attention span.

So now I am going to attempt to remedy that. I have decided to become a reader. It's hard because I have a history of nodding off after a couple of pages without pictures, but there are a few books that I have been wanting to read for a while, and now I have two of them, Blue Like Jazz, and God's Politics. I am going to read them even though they don't have pictures because I want to learn. Ask me about them the next time you see me, that way I will have to read them.

torsos

I love to watch kids draw. I like how seriously they take it. They get their face about three inches from the paper, they get the little tip of their tongue sticking out the side of their mouth cause they're trying so hard. They will add the smallest details until it is perfect. You'll start to look at it, and they'll say no wait, make one more half an inch line in crayon, then pridefully hand it over. Then when you look at it, it's a head with arms and feet, huge eyes and a mouth.

It makes me wonder at what age do you begin to realize that people have torsos? That arms and legs don't come directly out of the head? That is why I always point out to kids how terrible their drawings are.

whispering and the sweet science

It seems babies who are Jack's age really like to hear themselves make noise. Jack loves to say dadadadadadada, or babababababababa, or mamamamamamamama, and he likes to just let loose a scream every now and then. There was a while where the scream was really his favorite. It seems though in the last couple of days Jack has learned a new way to use his voice. Kind of a whisper. Last night he was standing up holding onto the couch and he kept whispering dadadadada, babababa, which was so cute and so much easier to deal with than the screams.

Did anybody watch "The Contender" last night? What did you think? I thought it was great except during the fight they kept showing the crowd. Just show the fight! I don't care what his wife and his teammates are doing. I just want to see people getting punched.

Out in La Grange

Is there any better "get fired up" music than ZZ Top? La Grange, Sharp Dressed Man, Legs, Cheap sunglasses, I don't think so. Nothing makes me want to drive really fast down a dirt road in my truck more than La Grange. Just a thought
Anyway I am here alone in the office today, Boss (also known as only other person up here) is on vacation. I've got a lot of surveys to put in, but the Yahoo ZZ Top and friends streaming radio station is going to get me through it.
What are your favorite drive fast songs?