Friday Thoughts

Not much to say. If the rains don't come, I've got a major project to do outside this week end. I need to attach drain pipe to a couple of my downspouts and run them to the ravine on one side of the house. This is going to involve digging a trench around 50 feet long. It doesn't need to be very deep, but it does have to be hand dug. I'm not exactly looking forward to it. However, it will stop some excessive erosion that is currently happening. I guess I better go buy an extra bottle of ibuprophen. Something tells me I'm going to need it.

Let's see, what about a little inspirational music to wrap up the week. What to play, what to play. How about something a little different. Most of these entries are Southern Gospel in nature because I LOVE Southern Gospel. However, I also like Contemporary Christian music. Here is something from Chris Tomlin. If you were asked to describe God, what would be your answer? After much thought, I believe Chris has the answer. Considering all of the attributes of the Almighty, one must confess the He is "Indescribable". Enjoy.

Indescribable - Chris Tomlin

Friday Thoughts: Take Me Out to The Ballgame

Soooo, this week has pretty much focused on the great American Pastime, baseball. Today we'll wrap up this unintended theme with a trip to the ballpark. Wednesday night Nana and I took The Big Guy to see a college baseball game between the Oklahoma Sooners, ranked No.9, and the Arkansas Razorbacks, ranked No. 12 in the country. The Razorbacks play in one of the nicest facilities in all of college baseball. The weather was absolutely perfect and a friend of mine got me seats just to the right of home plate! I'm an OU alumni and my grandson is a Razorback, so this was going to be fun. Every time the Sooners scored he would just look at me and roll his eyes. Every time the Razorbacks scored he would look at me and give me a double "thumbs up." The game went into extra innings and the Razorbacks prevailed 8-7. When the winning run crossed the plate, my grandson tapped me on the shoulder and said "Good game." Well, yes it was...it just didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. At any rate here are some photos of the evening.

There was a great crowd of over 8,000 on hand for the game. Like I said, we had great seats.

This field is manicured as well as any in the major leagues. Oh, did I mention that college baseball has cheerleaders? Well, they do. The grandson was NOT impressed, but then, he is the president of the local chapter of the He-man Woman Haters Club.

Nana and The Big Guy are discussing some of the finer points of the game. She's pointing out that these batters don't stick their tongues out when they swing the bat like he does in the header of this blog.

Here we are before the game started. We're both all smiles right now. At the end of the evening we were both still smiling. We had a wonderful night, the weather was perfect, and it was a great game.

Okay, now it's time for the inspirational song of the week. Here is Brian Free and Assurance singing Real Faith. Enjoy.

Fun With PhotoShop Elements 7.0

As you can see from Wednesday's post, I do enjoy photography. Thank you to those of you who complimented me on my shots. Truth is, it's not that hard, at least not since the innovation of digital photography and PhotoShop Elements. Any good photo editing software will work, but I just happen to like PhotoShop Elements 7.0. It will do EVERYTHING the average photo hobbist could ever want and do it for $600 less that PhotoShop CS4. The key to any good photo is the subject and the composition of the photo. In sports photography, you don't get much of a chance to compose the photo. The action just happens and you have to shoot what you can and edit later. Here are a couple of examples.

While there is nothing wrong with this photo, your eye has a hard time trying to figure out what is important. The three players on the left keep drawing your eye to them while the action is actually happening on the right side of the frame. So...let's crop it.

Bang! Now there is no doubt where the action is and your focus is on the most important part of the game. Nothing was done here but a simple crop.

Again, there is nothing really wrong with this photo, but it has a little too much information in it. That player on the right is distracting and that goal in the background is not even a part of this game. So...let's crop it.

Bang! Again, we're focused on the important part of the game and the one on one match-ups that are often the heart and soul of this team sport. This photo is much more intense than the raw shot. Again, I did nothing but a simple crop.
So, what did we learn today. Buy a photo editing program. Take lots of photos. When you get home from a photo shoot, look for the photo within the photo. I guarantee there are some gems among your snapshots.

Okay, now it time for a little soul music, or should I say music for your soul. A brother and two sisters make up one of my favorite groups, The Martins. Here they are singing "I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever" Enjoy.

I Could Sing of Your Love Forever - The Martins


And here they are doing one of my absolute favorites. The song is commonly know as Doxology, but what I love is the family harmony of the Acapella performance. It is wonderful.

Doxology - The Martins

Friday's Thoughts

It's been an interesting week. It started with the worst part of my job, having to terminate someone due to poor performance. I want to see everyone succeed and I would like to see them succeed in our firm, so it just kills me to have to let some one go. I just hate it. There were many performance reviews that went very well, and for that I am thankful. The week will end on a good note.
We're taking the oldest grand daughter to Tulsa for a soccer tournament. That means I get to drag out the telephoto lens and practice my photography skills again. It also means you're going to have to suffer through more soccer pics next week.
It is weeks like this that make me thankful for my faith. It makes me thankful for uplifting music of the faith. I love the hymns of the faith and I love southern gospel as well as contemporary Christian music. Since I don't have anything else on my agenda, I'll share several examples with you. Stop by several times this week-end, pull up a chair, put on your headphones and enjoy the concert. Let me know which one you like. See ya next week. Enjoy.


Gaither Vocal Band - Yes, I Know


Jerusalem - The Hoppers


Holy Highway -Gaither Vocal Band/Signature Sound Quartet

Days of Elijah - Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir


The simplest and one of the nicest arrangements I have ever heard...
Amazing Grace - Randy Travis

Friday Thoughts

Wednesday my bride left for a road trip with a couple of her friends and that leaves me Home Alone, which is never good. Well, I won't starve, that's for sure. I'm no Emeril or Bobby Flay, but I can fend for myself. During my lunch hour Wednesday I stopped by the local butcher shop and picked up a NY strip steak, some worchestershire sause, and montreal seasoning. I got a plastic freezer bag and did a little food prep when I got back to the office. The steak marinated for about 6 hours prior to tossing it on the grill. Buy a little salad-in-a-bag and you've got a decent meal.
Thursday night I was in full Home Alone mode. Turn on the TV, watch rubbish and eat junk...kind of. While I had the grill fired up Wednesday night, I tossed some boneless chicken tenders on. I basted them with EVOO, a little soy sauce, and Italian Herb seasoning. And now, for the rest of the recipe.

The key here is to keep it simple. I started with the grilled chicken tenders, a bag of salad, a bag of spinich, and a bag of frozen, microwavable veggies. Nuke the veggies first according to the directions. Then pop the chicken tenders into the microwave for a couple of minutes. While the chicken is heating, add some of the baby spinich leaves to the salad. Slice a few more carrots, add a couple of grape tomatos and then chunk the chicken when it comes out of the microwave. Add your favorite salad dressing. It's a meal in five minutes.

There ya go. Not bad, and it's pretty tasty. Now for the dessert course.

If you haven't tried this, stop what you're doing, go straight to the store and buy a half gallon. Notice that it says "Limited Edition" so it won't be around long. It tastes just like the cookies. This is not gonna last long around my house. In fact, it will probably be gone before my bride returns.
So, now I'm watching American Idol, next is NCAA basketball, and I have no idea what I'll watch after that, maybe a Jason Bourne movie. Watching rubbish and eating junk...Home Alone!!!

Okay, it is Friday, so we have to find an inspirational song to finish the week.
I could have sworn that I posted this song recently, but I don't see it when I go back through the archives. At any rate here is the thought.

^13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen ²asleep, lest you sorrow ^tas others ^uwho have no hope. ^14 For ^vif we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him ^wthose who ³sleep in Jesus.

^15 For this we say to you ^xby the word of the Lord, that ^ywe who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are ⁴asleep. ^16 For ^zthe Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with ^athe trumpet of God. ^bAnd the dead in Christ will rise first. ^17 ^cThen we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them ^din the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus ^ewe shall always be with the Lord. ^18 ^fTherefore comfort one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

There will come a day when I will step into eternity. There will come a day when friends and relatives will gather around a grave to place my remains in the ground. I face the future with the calm assurance that when that day comes, Jesus will call my name and I will rise!


I will Rise - Chris Tomlin

Friday Thoughts

Wednesday morning I met the "Big Guy" at pre-school for a donut and milk breakfast. We visited for a few minutes before I had to head to work. It was a great start to my day. It was "Dads & Donuts" day but since his dad had to be at work at 7:00 that morning and this started at 8:30, I filled in. Thursday morning was a repeat performance and his dad was there. So, all of the men in the family got together for breakfast this week.
Sunday we will celebrate the birthday of the oldest of the grand crew. She will be Thirteen!!! That gives me an idea. I may just do a Thursday Thirteen in honor of Scooter's thirteenth birthday. I'll have to put that together this week-end. At any rate, I'm smoking country style pork ribs. We're having baked potatoes, corn on the cob and a salad as well. Yes, there will be cake and ice cream too.
Let's see. What do we want to do for an inspirational song this week. We've had a couple of contemporary artists recently...maybe we should return to the Southern Gospel genre. Okay, I can't decide, so you're going to get a double feature from The Martins. First, I have chosen the Lords Prayer because it is a great way to start this morning. I haven't spent as much time in His presence recently as I should, and I can tell it. This prayer reminds me of the relationship that God wants to have with each of us. Second is "Doxology". I chose this one because it is simply one of my favorite acapella performances by the Martins. There is just nothing like family harmony. Enjoy.

Friday Thoughts

It's a Friday thought and I have no idea why this thought came to mind. I like airplanes. I have never learned to fly one, nor do I intend to do so at this stage of life. Yesterday an airplane came to mind. I remember seeing this craft in Memphis, at a private airfield, when I was traveling on business. I thought it was just the most beautiful private plane I had ever seen. I have never seen another. Now I know why.
The Beechcraft Starship 1 was developed in 1984, first certified by the FAA in 1986, and the first one sold to the public in 1989. The Beechcraft Starship 1 took too long to develop, which drove costs up. It was too expensive at the time. You could buy an entry level jet for the same price. It was slower and heavier than most of its competition. The result is that only 53 of these beautiful aircraft were ever built. Virtually all of them are now in a "bone yard" awaiting destruction. The video tells the story. Still, it was a gorgeous flying machine.


Okay, on to Friday Inspirational music. Today I have selected a more contemporary artist than I normally feature. This song by Jeremy Camp celebrates the wonder Genesis 1. God is creator and savior and sustainer of us all. Have a marvelous week-end. Enjoy.

Friday Thoughts

Nothing much to post. We have made plans for one week of our vacation this year. We will be going to the National Quartet Convention in Louisville, KY. this September. It will feature some to the best groups in Southern Gospel music. I'll put up a more complete post when we get a little closer to the event. Although not a quartet, unless you count when their mother sings, The Issacs will be there and they are one of my favorites.
And now for the inspirational song this week. Blessed Assurance is also one of my favorite hymns.
Enjoy.


For those of you who like a little more contemporary arrangement, here is Third Day's version.

Friday Thoughts

It's been a long week. Last Friday I attended the funeral of a friends mother who lost the battle with pancreatic cancer. Monday a co-worker's sister-in-law was killed in a house fire and another friend's nineteen year old son passed away suddenly. It brought home the fact that there are no guarantees in this life. No one knows when they will step out into eternity. The only question is, are you prepared?
While we live in a pluralistic society and many believe that there are literally thousands of ways to get into heaven (assuming that one believes in life after death and that heaven does exist) and to believe otherwise is being narrow minded and intolerant, the truth of the matter is this, if the Bible is the basis for one's belief then there is only one way to heaven. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me." John 14:6 While we may not like the truth and we have the freedom to reject the truth, it is still the truth.
This week I have mourned with Christian brothers and sisters who have lost loved ones from 19-69. While they will miss the fellowship of those who are gone, they can rest and take comfort in the fact that each of these that have passed are safe in the arms of the Savior and we will see them again one day. One day Christ is coming again. On that day, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we will always be with the Lord." I Thessalonians 4:16-17. On that day, there will be a "Shoutin' Time!"Thank you Lord for salvation. Thank you for your mercy, comfort and grace.

Shoutin' Time - The Hoppers