Uncomfy

I had to do it! I had to set up my PC in Katie's empty room. I'm too old to sit on the floor in my room with the pc by my side of the sleeping mat.

They gut the kitchen tomorrow. Yikes.

Also, Unforch... I must've packed away the HP specific usb cord for the bloody camera. I wanted to post the before pics of the kitchen. No worries, I'll do it later, but I'll get Kate to do some stuff with her good camera, although we'll have to put the pics off until later....

Hip to Podcasts?

Daylight savings is over and I woke up early anyway. I was up before seven, which is rare indeed, but it feels good. I went to bed relatively early after a nice grilled pork chop dinner.
Right now I’m catching up on some Daily Source Code Podcasts with Adam Curry and getting fired up about Podcasting. I can tell you now I’m gonna need some new gear like a new pc or Mac and either an Ipod or some other portable device. What a great excuse to upgrade huh?
Today is a beautiful day and I’m pumped up. We’re going to Hot Stacks for breakfast.

Progress

We have removed almost everything from our house in anticipation of major work to begin monday. Whew! I have set up a little communications/entertainment center upstairs in our bedroom for the time being. Katie has temporarily moved in with her grandparents while the work commences. I'll post a few pics over the weekend. It aint pretty...

Onward Towards Remodel

Talmadge, our contractor pulled up a huge 17 foot trailer in front of our townhouse this morning. We are going to move most everything out of the house to prep for the remodel. They are pretty much gutting the place. I'm planning on posting some photos pretty soon, for those of you who would like to take a gander.

Yikes, my back already hurts, and I shoulda been in training for this kind of schlepping! It'll be well worth it I hope!

Lorrie Morgan

Lorrie Morgan came into the store yesterday and I waited on her. I was pretty sure it was her and when I rang her up I knew it for sure. She was very nice. She was in town to play a show yesterday. I didn't talk music with her; I'm sure she didn't want to be bothered, but it was a pretty interesting moment. My daughter was there at the time and of course she had no idea who she was, being the little rocker that she is. I myself was unaware of how famous she really is and how many music awards she has recieved over the years. I would have loved to pitch her a song then and there but you know what they say about hindsight being 20/20 and all. Such is life...

Good Morning

It is almost indescribably beautiful here this morning. About seventy degrees and clear as a bell. I like the way the air feels on days like this. It's like the sky is more expansive. I am energized. I am also grateful to God for such a fantastic morning. Mornings are among the litany of things I usually take for granted. Not today. Not anymore. Betsy and her Dad are off to Charlotte today, so I'll be working alone this morning (Betsy and I usually work together at the store). This time of year it's pretty quiet in the retail gig. I wouldn't wish a solo stint on anyone in the summer! Yeah, this time of year you have your regular customers and friends popping in. Nothing I can't handle. On a good day. When I am feeling anti-social, I don't want to know anybody. But I'm a good actor. I always have been. I really need to get a handle on things from an interior standpoint, because sometimes I am my worst enemy. Well, about all the time I guess.

Today is a good day.

Cabinets

We're actually moving forward with the remodeling plans. Betsy ordered the new kitchen cabinets this afternoon. They should be here in four weeks, and then we begin the home makeover....

I'll keep you posted.

Happy New Month

4:53 AM
I am up very early with the girls. Katie has got a swim meet in Columbia today and Betsy is making biscuits and gravy. I’m up for moral support and, of course, to sample some of the biscuits and gravy! It's awesome this time of day, but usually I see it at the end of a day, not a beginning, but I'm probably going to take a little lie down before I go to work at ten. Right now, though, is a perfect opportunity to read the Bible and commune with the One who wraps light around Himself as a garment, and who , despite our imperfections, wraps us in a blanket of grace every moment, and speaks love into our hearts.

God is amazingly proactive regarding our redemption, which makes a ragamuffin like me leap for joy. There is absolutely nothing I can do to deserve this great love, and that in itself is quite a liberating truth!

A Saturday Off!

I can't even remember when I last had a Saturday off with my family. Betsy and I both took the day off (we work together at her father's store, the Tinder Box). Katie, our daughter, has a swim meet this afternoon and we thought it the perfect excuse to bow out. We have both been working six days a week through the summer which is our busiest time of year. I almost don't know what to do with myself! Almost, that is. Here's an idea....chill.

Early

I love the morning. The sunlight has a special quality to it. It's almost like it's filled with promise. If I would just take off my spectacles of gloom once in a while I'd see more of this...

I am learning to focus not on what I lack, but what I have already been blessed with. Sometimes, for me, it's not natural, as I have always seemed to have had a bent towards discontent and longing. I need to learn to truly embrace the now, and not some distant ideal of a future or past perfection. This is a major stumbling block for me. Life would be tremendously easier if I didn't get in the way of the flow and question everything.

Rainy Sunday Evening

What started out as a sunny day has become a rainy afternoon and evening. Betsy and I walked her parent's dogs just now because they are up in Charlotte at the Panthers/Patriots game. I don't follow football, I just like the sound of a game on TV in the fall, especially around Thanksgiving. Don't ask me why, I just dig the ambience.

There was a little let up in the weather and off we went. We had a nice walk around their neighborhood. It was quite relaxing. I wouldn't have minded walking in the rain. It clears my head to walk. Perhaps I should make a habit out of it. It recharges the mental brownies.

Ophelia

Sheesh, we are in a hurricane watch now. That's all we need. Get thee to a Nunnery, Ophelia honey, you're never gonna make it as a Playboy Bunny!

Seeds of Something Cool

It's a nice morning in Myrtle Beach. My favorite time of year around here. I'm pottering around the house this morning.

My brother Roger and I jammed a bit last night mostly on my songs, but we did a few fun covers as well. We are going to be playing together a whole lot more these days. eventually we will get out and play live again. It's been a long time since Rog and I have played out together, and I'm looking forward to it, but we've got a lot of ground to cover in rehearsal. I see the seeds of something cool starting to happen...

Up Early

I was up early for no particular reason, so I stayed up. I read the Bible a bit and wrote in my journal. I like everything about the early morning except dragging my lazy butt out of bed. Once I'm up it's all cool. I liked the experience so much, I may repeat it again real soon!

Betsy and I have decided to hold off on moving into a new house and just tough it out in our townhouse for the time being. We put a lot of thought into moving, and actually had paperwork drawn up for construction to begin soon, but it is not to be. I have concluded that doing so would plunge us into a huge financial black hole, even though it would be a good investment. I could see myself going ballistic when the first power bill comes in or anything unexpected comes up. This townhouse is paid for and it just makes more sense to stay put, even though we are a little tight on space. There is just the three of us, and in a couple years Katie will be going to college, so I'm thinking stay put and sock as much dinero away for her as possible. Lord knows she's going to need it.

A mortgage is something I really don't want to be tied down to. I sure don't miss one at all.

PEOPLE ARE CRAZY

Generally speaking, I'd have to say that people are off their rockers! I am amazed daily. Hell, I amaze myself daily.

Expansive Pondering

It’s not cooler yet but there’s something about this time of year that I can actually feel. Somehow I feel the sky opening up and a heaviness dissolving in my spirit. At times like this I dream of a place that has more of this feel of expansiveness of the horizon. What a great day to be alive.

GAS!

Unbelieveable!
Playing into the hands of the greedy again! Where are the alternative energy sources? Bought out or squelched by the corporate oil giants. The same ones who you can blame for the demise of the red electric streetcars that once graced Los angeles. Assholes! I realize the situation in the gulf, but gimme a break! Now I suppose we have a great excuse to steal some oil from Iraq. Yep. As if W really needed an excuse. He's only profiting from this mess anyway, at our expense.
Tirade over.

De-Junking

I'm going through some old vinyl records and having a wonderful time. I'm going through the old collection with a mind to archiving them on cd. Betsy and Katie are out doing a bit of back to school wardrobe shopping for Katie and I'm listening to the Brandenburg Concertos by J.S. Bach. Right this minute I'm into Concerto #1. I'm loving it and almost caught up in a reverie. I could swear even the cats are into it. I have tons of old vinyl and cassettes and have only begun doing some format conversion with an eye to further de-cluttering of my life. There was a time when I wouldn't even consider getting rid of the precious old outmoded mediums, but I guess you could say I am a changed man. I just don't want stuff to tie me down. I am evaluating just about everything of a material nature and questioning its worth or the purpose it serves in my life. Is it a weight or is it a joy? Is it a burden or is it a tool for increasing the quality of life? Sure, I love music, but I also value organization up to a point, and getting rid of stuff and simplifying life has become a bit of an obsession for me, not only on the material plane, but on the spiritual and mental as well. Boy is this fun! Let the games begin!

The End Of Myself

Sometimes the darkness overtakes me
Like a long lost lover or a friend
Unlike the daylight that forsakes me
At the journey’s end

I am seeking transparency
I delight in the truth
And I want it to motivate me
To higher pursuits