Family Fun

This year we spent turkey time with my family. It was good to see the Black side of the family again. We met in Wisconsin (it's a long story). When my family arrived in the Taurus Truckster my dad mentioned something about having a cold. He was sniffly and sneezy. He awoke two mornings in a row with headaches. They eventually turned into migraines. This is something he generously passed through the genes into my noodle. I am not all that thankful but I was able to empathize with his pain. It may have been something in the gravy or it may have been the pain killer he was taking but for some reason he spent most of our time together wearing a pot on his head. Maybe this is some new form of alternative medicine.

The day after the turkey celebration the ground was covered in three inches of white, fluffy snow. I quickly threw on my longhandles and neck scarf (as opposed to any other type of scarf) and took the boy out for some downhill sledding (as opposed to any other type of sledding). I am not sure that he really enjoyed the snow but he did enjoy the speed at which we were taking the hill. Before we reached the bottom of the hill he would shout "mowa" (translated: "more"), so up the slick snow we went for another run down the hill. We will be spending our winter in North Dakota (August-June) training for the new Olympic sport of father/son downhill sledding (as opposed to any other type of sledding).

After several attempts at a new downhill landspeed record we went inside to warm by the hot fire and the even hotter wife and mommy. It doesn't take long to thaw out with one look at those eyes.
We had a good time together as a family. We have much to be thankful for indeed. Next year Pancake Sinatra will be here to help us celebrate and hopefully he won't have to see his grandpa wearing that silly pot on his head.

Saltines: The Traditional Pre-Thanksgiving Meal for Seagulls

I am now reunited with my family in La Crosse, Wisconsin (translation - The River, Wisconsin). After several hours on a train across North Dakota and Minnesota - my only entertainment was watching an old man that may have been Jerry Garcia back from the dead play war games on his laptop computer - I am back with my lovely wife, energetic son and over-eating dog.

Monday evening we went to see Walk the Line. Great film. They only left out one small thing about John R. Cash - Jesus. Phoenix and Witherspoon are marvelous. Cash was definitely a rock-n-roll star!

Tuesday evening I finished reading A Walk in the Woods. I then read to my wife from I'm a Stranger Here Myself. I laughed aloud. She fell asleep.

This morning we loaded up in the MarshWiggle Wagon and went to the Mighty Mississippi. My boy fed seagulls a traditional pre-Thanksgiving meal - saltine crackers. They seemed to be thankful for the crackers. We thought one seagull was missing a leg. It was tricking us. When it landed it ran on two legs to get a piece of saltine yummy goodness. The tricky two-legged seagull must not have a canker sore in its mouth like I do.

I am thankful for all of the above activities. God is good to give me even these things. I am unthankful for the canker sore.

THANKS!

1 Thessalonians 5:18 - Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

I am thankful for __________________.

A way of escape

I am in Minneapolis for a conference. Last evening I went for a walk through the city with a friend. It was 18 degrees and the windchill made it something like a bagillion below. It was the kind of weather that made your skin hurt and snot run down your face unawares. We walked through the city streets for about an hour. We then remembered that Minneapolis has this hamster style maze through the buildings to provide a way of escape from the elements. The Skyway. It is an amazing system of indoor sidewalks. The return trip to our hotel was much nicer. I thought of hamsters as I walked. Then I thought of being a rat in a tunnel. Then I thought of Billy Corgan. Maybe he is right, I am still just a rat in a cage. I am in Minneapolis.

How to make a North Dakota redneck...

1 Flannel Shirt
1 Pair of Overalls
+ 1 Shag Carpet
1 N.D. Redneck

He sure is cute though, eh?

You know you're in the middle of nowhere when...

...you drive down your street (in a residential area in the middle of town) and you see this hanging by the sidewalk. Welcome to the middle of nowhere!

My love

My wife is a darn good woman. She whipped up a pumpkin cheesecake for my birthday. She is one beautiful gal. I am so glad she is my wife. Look at that picture! Isn't she a looker!? I sure do love her! She is happy that we are the same age - 30 years young.

Closing in on a name...

We have almost decided on a name for our next little one.

Pancake Sinatra

We are still debating as a family.

What do you think?

Martin's Words for Today?

As I read through the 95 Theses of Martin Luther today I noticed several that may be applied to our current context. Our battle is not against the Pope and his efforts to build a basilica but Luther's words may be applied to our current situation.

For instance, number 54 on the list states:

A wrong is done to the Word of God when in the same sermon an equal or a longer time is devoted to indulgences than to God's Word.

I understand that Luther was writing against a corrupt church but I wonder what he would have written about the church today that does not preach the Word of God. What type of statements would be nailed to our church doors? Sure, we aren't selling indulgences (hopefully) but is the Word of God faithfully taught from our pulpits? On Sunday morning is the time devoted to music, fellowship and drama rather than on the preaching of the Word of God? Even if the sermon is lengthy, are our pastors teaching the Word or are they telling emotional stories to make us feel good? The allotment of time spent on the Word of God during a Sunday morning worship service speaks volumes to the devotion of the church.

To what are we devoted? What would Luther say to us?

A wrong is done to the Word of God when in the same sermon an equal or longer time is devoted to _______________ than to God's Word.

What say ye?

31 October 1517

Skating is Good for Health

One of the great things about small town life is the fact that most small towns hold on to things that larger towns have long since abandoned. The town in which we live still has a roller rink.

A few weeks ago I mentioned to the young adult small group from our church that I would like to go roller skating. Every Thursday night the group gathers together and we walk through the bible. Recently we have been studying the book of 1 John. At least one person in the group has heard something I have said because this week the group surprised me and took me roller skating to show their appreciation. Sure, I wish they would remember things from our studies but that's a different topic.

Have any of you been to a roller rink recently - I mean the old style rinks with wooden floors and carpet-covered contrete walls that assist the skater in important things like stopping? Let me tell you...they have not changed since the last time you entered a rink in 1984. There was a disco ball in the middle of the rink. We played games like limbo and four corners - the game in which the object is to race to a corner of the rink when the music stops. They didn't do the couple skate, which was fine with me because my beautiful wife was not with me. They didn't play any Lionel Ritchie or John Astley.

I encourage you to take advantage of the roller rink nearest you. After all, skating is good for health.

One Reason to Celebrate Halloween

Is Halloween all that bad? This is a picture from Halloween 2004. If we did not celebrate Halloween we would have no acceptable day to dress up like our favorite super heroes. Knowing that Spidey-Dog and Super-Boy are here to protect us from witches and goblins should give us peace of mind.

Tis' the Season...

This is my favorite pumpkin picture.

Norsk Høstfest - Scandinavian?

"Norsk Høstfest, North America’s largest Scandinavian Festival, is celebrating its 28th year, starting the evening of October 11th-15th in Minot, North Dakota. Tens of thousands of people attend the event annually to celebrate and partake in the Scandinavian culture and entertainment.
Over 200 internationally recognized artisans, craftsmen and chefs participate. The experience is an eclectic array of contemporary and traditional. The cuisine as well as the clothes, art and jewelry are authentic, fine quality and exquisitely Nordic."

As I browsed through the Festival web site I came across a few of the headlining musical acts. I don't know much about heritage or the origin of names but I sure don't remember some of these people as Scandinavian.



Wednesday & Thursday - Randy Travis
I guess Mr. Travis could be Scandinavian but the dark hair is a bit out of place.



Friday - Merle Haggard
Good ol' Merle may be Scandinavian. His hair is certainly lighter than the above musician. Merle could be a deviation of Mjerle.



Wednesday & Thursday - Charlie Pride
Now wait just a minute! How did he get in the mix? There are several reasons why I don't think Mr. Charles Pride is Scandinavian. Do I really have to go into the reasons? I suppose he could dye his hair black. He may have changed his name from Bjøro Haaland to be more country music friendly. Would you purchase a country music album from a man named Bjøro Haaland? Probably not.

I did some CSI style research into the Pride Family tree and found a photo of Mr. Pride's great-great-grandmother, Ingrid Pride.



For more information about the Norsk Høstfest entertainment click here! There are some interesting entertainers. Literally thousands of people from all over the world travel to Minot, North Dakota for this rip-roarin' week of Scandinavian Shin-diggin.' If you are planning the trip, make sure to stop by Rugby,NorthDakota, the geographical center of North America. You are so jealous!

Name the Black Baby

Now that we know the flavor of the Black baby-to-be, we are accepting name ideas. If you have a name idea please post it to the comments. We will reveal the winner at the day of birth.

Names we have already considered:

1. Jett
2. Coal
3. Ivan Brandon (initials only)