Dine-In Only, No Sharing Please

I just moved the knife, fork and spoon
so to make room
so I could spill some ink
and tell you what I really think

your always there for me
when I want to eat a waffle
I hate when people nickname
this place the home of all things awful

monkeys and gentlemen
and barnyard friends
I'm here to inform you
this is not the end

the first bite is the greatest
and the last bite is the worst
I'll put this in a box later
with one last refill for my thirst

cos' sometimes I wake from my sweet dreams
my throat so terribly parched
but what can you do?
you know I say,
my shirt my be stained
but at least it's not starched

I never got around to what I was saying
but then again I never do
now my waffle's getting cold
it's just not worth talking to you
anymore.
was it ever?

My Dad Did This Before I Did

Here's a list of all the records I currently own. Chase will have his up some day. I was bored, so I figured, what the hey. I have about thirty 45's too, but that's just too much more work. They are listed from least important to most significant or favorite:

Korean Children's Choir- The Ring of Happiness
The Harry Simeone Chorale- The Little Drummer Boy
Anne Murray- Snowbird
Billy Joel- Streetlife Serenade
Olivia Newton-John- Totally Hot
Olivia Newton-John- Have You Never Been Mellow
Kenny Rogers- The Gambler
Pete Townshend- All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes
Choirs of First Baptist Church Largo, FL- Ichthus
The Romantics- In Heat
Renaissance- Prologue
Kid 'N Play- Fun House
Joan Baez- Diamonds & Rust
Amy Grant- Age To Age
Barry Manilow- 2:00 AM Paradise Cafe
Stevie Wonder- Fulfillingness' First Finale
The Persuaders- surfer's Nightmare
Beach Boys- M.I.U. Album
Van Halen- Van Halen II
Linda Ronstadt- Greatest Hits
Peter Gabriel- So
The Doobie Brothers- The Captain and Me
Arthur Rubinstein- Moonlight Sonata
Charlie Daniels Band- A Decade of Hits
INXS- Kick
Frank Sinatra- Sinatra Sings of Love and Things
Roxy Music- Avalon
Merle Haggard & The Strangers- Hag
Chicago- 6
Willie Nelson- Partners
Barry White- Let The Music Play
Waylon Jennings- Self-Titled
Tom Jones- This Is Tom Jones
Village People- Crusin'
X- Ain't Love Grand
Captain & Tennille- Love Will Keep Us Together
Wang Chung- Mosaic
Lionel Richie- Linoel Richie
Boston- Self-Titled
Billy Joel- 52nd Street
Foreigner- Self-titled
Neil Young- Trans
Chicago- 16
Fleetwood Mac- Self-titled
Little Richards- Greatest Hits
U2- The Unforgettable Fire
Blue Oyster Cult- Agents of Fortune
Beach Boys- Endless Summer
Frodus- Conglomerate International
The Young Rascals- Groovin'
Tina Turner- Private Dancer
Joe Christmas- North To The Future
New Kids On The Block- Hangin' Tough
Various Artists- Columbia Jazz Festive
Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band- Against The Wind
Billy Joel- Glass House
Manhattans- There's No Good In Goodbye
Joy Electric- We Are The Music Makers
Billy Joel- Piano Man
Wham!- Make It Big
Cheap Trick- At Budokan
Simon and Garfunkel- Greatest Hits
Henry Mancini- The Pink Panther
Elvis Costello and the Attractions- Goodbye Cruel World
Johnny Cash- This Is Johnny Cash
A-ha- Hunting High and Low
John Lennon- Double Fantasy
Elton John- Greatest Hits
The Music Man- Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
The Temptations- Greatest Hits
Kansas- Point of Know Return
Santa Clause & The Fun Street Gang- Self-titled
Starflyer 59- Americana
The Who- Tommy
The Beatles- Love Songs
The Beatles- 20 Greatest Hits
Hello Dolly- Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Fleetwood Mac- Rumors
Ray Charles- Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music
Pink Floyd- Animals
Run DMC- Raising Hell
Focal Point- Suffering of The Masses
The Eagles- Hotel California
The Beatles- Let It Be
Ben E. King- The Best of
Stevie Wonder- Songs In The Key of Life
Billy Joel- The Stranger
Tears For Fears- Songs From The Big Chair
Slick Shoes- Rusty
Mama's and the Papa's- If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears
Pink Floyd- Wish You Were Here
Simon and Garfunkel- Sound of Silence
The Beatles- Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
Beach Boys- Pet Sounds
Ramones- Ramones
Pink Floyd- Dark Side of The Moon
The Beatles- Abbey Road

One Day I Would Like To Say This To You

Did you catch the show tonight?
No, the one outside
God painted the skyline for you and I

A piece of art just for us

The stars in the sky
The half-eclipsed moon
Lighting the way for the clouds to see
Bringing your heart through the night to me
The brilliant heavens above were clear
Oh, what a sight to view

So much pain was present though
My life seemed so hard
But all the bad went away
When the sky made it's way forward

There's never a time when I don't notice you
I can always pick out what’s been on my mind

It's easy to say
Sincere things I feel
But it's hard to write
That the things I'm scared of are real

I can't help but inquiry in bewilderment...
Did you see the sky tonight?

Will your dreams wander through that very sky?
Or will your thoughts be on some other guy?

Until you find that one special person
To share your dreams with
Whoever you dream of
Will always have dreams of someone else

The Battle not The War
Jed, you know, I'm happy for you. You got yourself an impressive record collection. I could've said that in the comments but that would have taken so much away from this post. Anyway, a thought I had was that maybe the rest of us should list our collections. Just to get it out in the open, you know. Does that sound like fun to anyone else? Or is it just me? For the record, Jed, you compete. And that's only after a few days. You strike fear in my heart.

Moving right along...Me and Donna are taking off for Montgomery as soon as I finish writing this. We're going there to watch Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind. This is the nearest we found it playing. I think it's a shame really. I mean, it's obviously going to be a good movie. Hopefully it will be a wider release soon.

Don't Pass Out Yet! We'll Be Singing Later

I've never figured out why people get so excited to do trivial things. It's like there's all this anticipation that is built up and then when it's done, it's over. But, when it comes to Biblical things or something on that level (circa: worthwhile), people tend to not be as enthused. And when I say people, I mean me...

"During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission" -Hebrews 5:7, NIV.

Don't get me wrong blue, I know what you're thinking, and it's not true. It ain't me babe. I love to do the trivial things too. I get excited about going to see a band live, having a day off from work, or eating some Krystal or Waffle House late at night, just like everyone else. But, it seems to me that I and everyone else can surface more joy and expression in these ordinary events than doing those things in which proves that we belong to an extraordinary Redeemer.

One example of this, as from the previous verse's indication, is the issue of prayer. If you're trying to be like Christ, it could help your stride and advancement toward that goal if you did one thing; pray like him!

Crazy as it seems, I love to pray. I guess it's just a 'me' thing. I'm sure everyone can say it, including myself, but I don't know, when I pray, I get a peace. This is explained in scripture, of course, and the Bible even teaches us how to pray. The Lord's Prayer, which is more of a model than a word-for-word recitation, gives us a clue how to start, what to pray for, and how to say it. But even with a nod from God, my passion for a plentiful and prolific prayer life is flawed by one aspect--it's not always honest.

Praying honestly is praying fervently and selflessly. I'm not saying it's bad to pray for yourself because that is obviously absurd. We all have problems and God is the only one who constantly and consistently cares about your burdens and strife. However, when you prayers start becoming, "God do this for me, thanks," you've really run into some problems.

Maybe the reason I like praying so much is because mine start to sound like the example given above. I sometimes just pray to pray. Whoa... Pray to pray? Is this me taking advantage of something? Does God even hear me when I'm mumbling off rudimentary and incoherent thoughts all to the tune of a concluding and a not so astounding amen?

Philippiansns 4:6 "Don't not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God" (NIV).

If Christ submitted his concerns in worshipful and respectful submission, ought I do the same if I expect God to lower himself out of perfection to hear my feeble and petty cries? I should and I will. In relation to Christ, I'm nothing more than dirt on his sandals. However, since Christ atoned for you and I, we have the availability to cast our concerns to God whenever we need to.

Priesthood of the believer = Jesus is our mediator = PRAY!

With that freedom, there also comes a responsibility to treat this time of intersession with reverence. I believe God hears my every word, but limits what he does according to his will. However, if I'm just throwing some fuzz up to the "big man upstairs," I might as well just save it. God doesn't just want our words or our weekly 10%, he wants our time, minds, and hearts; our everything!

The Kids Are Alright

My main problem with my job doesn't have anything to do with the actual work I do. I love where I work. Sure, it's scary to see how a few psychotic children and teenagers act sometimes, but for the most part, I'm really lucky. However, nights like tonight, when we are understaffed, it just gets so stressful. One child shows out, they all act-a-fool. You have to deal with it all at once. If we had more staff, then we could sort of, deal with it as it comes. Plus, the one that shows out, we can separate him or her, and get the rest of the kids back on task. I know 7 kids isn't a lot, but a few of them are seemingly psychopathic and most of them act insane anyway, thus they all require very much attention. And you know, I like the kids. Sure, I dislike getting hit, kicked, spit on, cussed at, flipped off, threatened, bitten, disrespected, and my every word ignored, but that's just most young people in general (haha). The real annoyance is dealing with everything when you're shorthanded and we are shorthanded 4 nights out of the week. Nights like tonight cannot happen or I'm going to need a room in a mental facility--or a new job...

Everything is Broken
Donna almost sliced her left index finger off. So now I have to wash all her dishes.
My head is stuffy and I got a 'tomach ache, worst one since kindergarten.
And to make matters worse, the tyrannts of the village I live in are all coming down harder than Hitler ever dreamed.

But hey, tomorrow sees the beginning of Spring Break...the time when one and all will catch up on rest, relaxation and homework. Peace.

Waffle House Poem On A Napkin # 2

By Livingston & Watkins

jenga is a game
and love is a verb
but tomorrow there will be a yard sale at your suburb

tactless friends
who fart on cue
and those who can't keep the line of thought are going taste that

so back to the moral
almighty one
jenga is a game played by lame white people

Death And Well, You Know...

These days, it seems as if I'm growing older at a more prominent rate than previous times in my life. Of course, every second that passes, is a second closer to the grave. Day by day. Hour by hour. Minute by minute. Second by second. And as they say, every day above ground is a good day. But, really, I'm a Christian and all the aesthetics of life and death don't affect me because I believe life is eternal and my supernatural soul with be Christ in Heaven after my physical body is not longer inhaling oxygen. It's like The Dingee's said, "Dying was the easiest part, now I'm afraid of life." And really, it's all metaphysics anyway.

These thoughts of my earthly demise and decay stream from the struggles that occurred today when I did my taxes. I've helped my Dad with mine every year before, but today I filed my 1040EZ solely and hopefully without any errors. This is just another example of me growing up. Pretty soon you'll read about me falling in love, going back to do post-graduate work, getting married, doing ministry, graduating with my MA and maybe Ph.D, and buying a house, having children, retiring, and dying. Woo... I better slow down.

Death and Taxes, the only things that never change. There's a lot of insight into those words. Now that I'm doing my taxes by myself, death seems only footsteps away. Maybe I'm jumping the gun at tad. I'm only 23. But, nobody is guaranteed their next breath, so, I'm just going to sit back and gasp some clean, eh... some air for a few.

As well as I should be able to write by now, I know this might not flow perfectly or even be comprehensible, but it's what's floating through my feeble mind. I'm just starting to realize that my youth is over and I am virtually on my way to false teeth and watching the Price Is Right just before my afternoon nap. Don't leave us Bob!

"Wouldn't it be so wonderful if everything were meaningless?" Pedro The Lion, Rejoice, from the album Control.