This is my recap of the past few weeks.  It’s not a brain dump, since I don’t usually carry more than baseball statistics in my brain and there are no baseball statistics included in this Friday Bag.

I dedicate this video to my wife, who informed me after 11 years of marriage that she no longer liked Chicken Wings.

I’ve been in 3 different creative meetings this week at church.  At some point they will figure out that I’m not nearly as creative as I am opinionated.  And on that note, I want to say that I really love my church.  I work with some real creative people, and can’t believe sometimes that I work in a place like this.

Every Sunday I post a twitter recap from the previous week.  What say you about those postings?  Do you hate them as much as me?

I’m 82 days into a 90 day project, and I can smell the end coming.  I’ll recap what it is when I figure out an easy way to talk about it online.

Starr and I are 7 weeks into Financial Peace University, and so far so good.  We have the obligatory student loan debt, and what we like to call “Graduate School Associated Debt” on a credit card.  If we can stick to Dave’s plan, I’m thinking we could be debt free sometime before I die.  Of course, I’m planning on living a long, long, long time.

I’ve got some friends coming to visit from Austin this afternoon.  I haven’t seen them in years, but they have a kid running in a High School Cross Country regional meet here on the South Plains.  It’ll be good to catch up.

Speaking of Austin, Starr saw a shirt yesterday here in town that said, “Keep Lubbock Normal.”  I’m thinking I should make a shirt that says, “Keep Lubbock Flat!”

I’ve been asked to be a part of the Network Technology Manager interviews here at Trinity.  (In a previous life, I was an IT Manager…)  In the last month, I’ve been in 11 interviews.  I did 6 on Wednesday and Thursday alone.  I have so many things to say about this, but I’m going to let it go.  I do have one thought…. Why would you apply to work at a church if you’re not a Christian?  I know that being a Christian does not make a good IT Manager, but still it baffles me…

I hired a Part-Time Elementary Ministry Coordinator a few months back; and it has been a great move for Trinity and personally for me.  Not having to be at every single church function as it relates to Children, has been a needed break for me and my family.  However, she’s expecting a baby any day now; so I’ll be back to the grind until she returns from her Mommy break.

The Fall Festival was a huge success last Saturday Night.  I’m estimating about 100+ volunteers showed up to help (many of them at the last minute) and about 1,500 people partook in the festivities.  I’m still philosophically trying to make up my mind about why we do these events, but for what it’s worth the Fall Festival in Lubbock, TX is alive and well!

At some point in the past few weeks, I have become the Apple go-to-guy for everyone on staff at the church.  How did this happen?

I’m the “Mystery Reader” at Ryan’s class this afternoon, and I’m so looking forward to visiting his classroom.  He doesn’t know I’m coming, but has gotten clues all week about how it may or may not be.  I got to do it a few weeks ago and it was a blast.

If you are disturbed by my frequent use of semicolons and commas; then, please read another blog.  The same thing goes for my use of apostrophe’s. Thank You. (and yes I overused them in this sentence to make a point…)

I’ve been asked to lead a Christmas service for a Foster Care agency here in Lubbock.  I’m not sure they asked for the right person.  I tried to make them understand that I don’t juggle ornaments, nor will I be dressed as a Christmas tree.

New Favorite Website of the Week: I’m loving http://www.setlist.fm It’s a collection of concert setlist, with included Youtube Music videos and lyrics.  It’s a super awesome way to relive past concerts, and catchup on currently touring concerts.  (And BTW, Kenny.  I can’t find any 1980’s-circa Carmen concerts listed, so when you have the time go ahead and submit those would ya?)

About five years ago I was reintroducing myself to the music of U2.  I knew there was some more meaning behind the music than I was getting, and needed the U2 101 class to really appreciate them more.  I knew of a guy running a blog at www.bagofnothing.com who was a MAJOR U2 fan, so I emailed him asking for some song recommendations from U2.  In about a weeks time I instead received a package in the mail full of U2 music, with a song list and reasons why each song meant something to him (and everyone else as well.)  It was a powerful way to learn new music, and it began a love affair with the music of U2.  Keith and I have become good friends since our first online conversations, and while I don’t live in the same town as him, work the same type of job, or have much in common besides being the same age; I’d consider him a good friend.  He would be welcome at my house anytime.

Now fast forward to Sunday afternoon when I get a phone call from him asking if I’d like to attend the U2 concert with him on Monday night.  His wife was under the weather and unable to attend. :(

Did I ask where the seats were?  NO!  Did I ask if he was serious?  YES!  I confirmed that I could leave town for a few days, and then made my plans to race to Dallas for the concert.  I met Keith at his house, where he also let me sleep after the concert and drink one of his Cokes (such a nice guy, huh?)  We hung out with his wife for an hour or so, then headed to the show.

We got there early enough for us to get the full Cowboys Stadium experience and to grab our seats.  Our seats.  Oh boy, our seats!  They weren’t actually seats.  Keith had gotten RedZone tickets, which enabled us to stand right next to the catwalk and stage area.  I freaking stood 5 feet away from Bono and the Edge at a U2 concert!  I watched the Edge play the guitar lick from “Where the Streets Have No Name” from 5  feet away!  This stage was ginormous, and was a technological marvel.  I can’t begin to describe this stage, so I won’t.

Thanks to Keith for making a dream I didn’t know I had come true.  This easily makes one of my top 10 lifetime experiences, and I owe it to a buddy who thought to call me when his wife wasn’t able to make it to the show.

And yes.  I’m posting the pictures and really lame videos to rub it in.  I am not above that.  Sorry.

What was will be again, what happened will happen again.
There’s nothing new on this earth.
Year after year it’s the same old thing.
Ecclesiastes 1:9

I’m not a high-class music snob, but I know what I like and with the exception of “Kill your momma!” songs and “I’m a redneck” country songs I like EVERYTHING.

With that in mind let me make my Christmas music recommendations.

You could hardly find Sufjan Steven’s Songs for Christmas Album two years ago, but I see it with more regularity now. Whether you like new Christmas songs or classic Christmas songs, you will adore this wonder. But one word of warning: DO NOT buy it on iTunes. Buy it in the store. You will get much more music, as well as the other Christmas goodies included in this box set.

The other recommendation is to check out A Very Rosie Christmas, by Rosie Thomas. You’ve heard her other stuff, right? If not, then please do. You can download and listen to one of the tracks off this album for free by going HERE.

Let me tell you about this wife of mine. A few nights ago after the kids headed to bed, and it was way past our own bedtime we headed to the bedroom. I closed the door and turned out the lights and then……get your mind out of the gutter……we somehow got into a conversation about the music and movies we grew up on. Somehow that conversation led to me making some song requests from days long ago, so I could see if she still knew the words.

Let me just tell you that this woman of mine has a sick mind for memorizing 1980’s movie love songs. She sang every verse and chorus from just about every Whitney Houston song (Where do Broken Hearts Go?, I Believe Children are the Future, One Moment in Time, Saving All My Love for You, Didn’t We Almost Have it All, and etc, etc, etc) , songs from Cyndi Lauper (True Colors, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Time after Time) threw in a few Bangles (Manic Monday, Eternal Flame, Walk Like an Egyptian), and topped it off by singing favorites from Karate Kid (Glory of Love) and Top Gun (Take My Breath Away.)

We even got in an argument over which Karate Kid movie takes place in Japan. Which I won, because all true Karate Kid lovers know it was Karate Kid 2 and not Karate Kid 3! She kept fulfilling my song request for well over an hour, and when I woke up in the morning I found myself singing…

“I am a man who will fight for your honor
I’ll be the hero you’re dreaming of
We’ll live forever Knowing together that we
Did it all for the glory of love.”

What is wrong with me? And how in the world can this wife of mine keep this much garbage rolling around in her head? At what age exactly will those lyrics leave that super-sized brain of hers? So the next time she forgets to do something simple, like close the garage door or start the dishwasher; I’m gonna blame it on Whitney and all her catchy pop songs!