ken's links....

here's a really sweet story, courtesy of ken's blog. gosh, are we hurting for community.

while I'm gushing over ken, here's a link he showed me on his blog a while back. it's my new favorite Chris-Tomlin-and-Christian-music-industry-bashing site. okay, I actually really hold Mr Tomlin in high regard. but I do have a few beefs with the quality of his songwriting lately. definitely some issues with the overall quality of christian music these days. and these guys say it so well....

"...writing a heartfelt worship song is no excuse to suck."

weeeeeeeee!

jodi and I have always said we never want a boat. but we DO always want to have *friends* who have a boat.

well the same seems to apply to the nintendo wii. neither of us consider ourselves "gamers." and we never would have considered buying a game system. who has the time? the money? and who wants to push the boundaries of geekdom like that? all this seems to have changed....

this is nicole throwing a mean right hook while beating James' butt in the boxing ring.

this weekend we went to our close friend Alvin's birthday party. it was at James & Bethany's home. a home that was recently blessed with a wii.

we had such a blast! talk about a party in a box. the 6 of us had a hard time putting it down. we were neglecting small children. it's hard to even call it just a video game system because the controls are so stinkin' innovative.

so we're praying about all this. are we to become game nerds? would we be able to get anything else done with a wii in our home?

farewell coach cowher

i know i'm a little late - and i call myself a Steelers fan but....

we'll miss you bill! *sniff*

rocky balboa and bob dylan quotes....

jodi and I went to see rocky balboa the other night. great movie. had a bit of a slow start with rocky giving lots of pep talks that bordered on cheesy/cliche. but he's rocky. that's what we expect. and that's what gets us pumped up when we see him fight.

overall a really good movie though. stick around for the fun closing credits too.

and i've been watching a bob dylan DVD i got for christmas. it's a documentary directed by martin scorcese. really well done. gives a great insight into who he was as an artist. how prolific and new he was at the time. and how much he hated being labeled or pigeon-holed by the press, politics and even his fans.

I didn't realize that he played at the rally where Dr. King gave his "free at last" speech. I also didn't realize that Michael Hutchence was copying Dylan's video for "subterranean homesick blues" when he did the words on the cards for the INXS video!

he was really creative and witty - especially when the press asked stupid questions. check out some of these quotes:

"in those days, artistic success was not dollar-driven. it was whether you had something to say or not."

interviewer: "your songs are supposed to have a subtle message"
bob dylan: "subtle message?"
interviewer: "well they're supposed to"
bob dylan: "where'd you hear that"
interviewer: "in a movie magazine"

interview: "for those of us who are well over 30, would you label yourself and perhaps tell us what your role is?"
bob dylan: "well... I sort of label myself as well under 30."

interviewer: "why do you write surreal songs?"

interviewer: "how many who labor in the same musical vineyard in which you toil, how many are protest singers?"
bob dylan: "how many?" "about 136." "either 136 or 142."

bob dylan: "i'd had it with the whole scene.... I was looking to quit for a while"
interviewer: "what about the scene - what had you 'had it' with? what about the scene were you sick of?
bob dylan: "well, you know, people like you...."

jonathan's blog

hey everyone. my little nephew jonathan has started a blog.

this kid amazes me. he reads so many books it's sick! he'll plow through a 500-page novel in like a week - and he's only 9!

anyhoo, here's the link to his blog for reviewing books and video games.