Christspeak, Rx

My good friend Guy Andrews has a unique way of communicating. He went to Page and Carolina, dropped out to join the Marines, became a seargent, went to seminary at Asbury, is married with 2 beautiful girls...

Guy is consumed with a passion to know and teach the Bible. Here's a portion of his program for reading the bible through in one year, "Wordworks" copyrighted by Guy Andrews, 2004, reprinted by permission

DAY 1: READ GENESIS 1,2 MATTHEW 1

GENESIS 1,2
OVERVIEW: Genesis 1 is the compass for the origins of the Cosmos and humankind.
After creating skies, vegetation, and animals, God fashions a human being to manage it. He then views His 6 day construction as very good. In chapter 2 God leaves His fingerprint of holiness on the 7th day. God puts Adam, the first man, to work in the Garden, and then provides him with a co-laborer; Eve, the first woman.
THEME: God is the Designer of glorious, universal theatre in His Creation. In chapter 2 intimacy, innocence, and security flow while the first couple honor their Creator and His Eden guidelines.
KEY WORD: “Image of God” (Genesis 1:26,27) Humankind carries the unparallel distinction of reflecting the mystery and eternity of God, because He chooses to cast the human with His “Likeness.” No quasar, angel, or Hope Diamond has that gift or responsibility.

MATTHEW 1
OVERVIEW: Genealogies were a serious authority to prove Jewish bloodlines. Matthew opens his Gospel with Jesus’ ancestry. He then discusses Jesus miraculous birth, conceived in the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. Matthew quotes the prophecy made by Isaiah some 700 years prior (Isaiah 7:14) to identify Jesus as the predicted “Immanuel.”
THEME: In targeting the Jewish audience, Matthew’s goal was to testify to both Jesus’ Jewish family tree, and His authenticity as the prophesied Jewish Messiah; the King of Israel. He inaugurates this purpose by outlining Jesus genealogy that places Him in the “line” of two of the most famous Hebrew leaders’ Abraham and David.
KEY WORD: “Immanuel” (Matthew 1:23) means “God with us.” One of John Wesley’s (Founder of Methodist movement in the 18th century) last words were, “The best of all is, God is with us.” Different from every other religion that places God as transcendent and distant; Jesus reveals God at the street level.


STATISTIC: 92% of homes in America own a Bible, but only 16% of Americans read their Bible daily.
“WORD” ON “WORD”: Amos 8:11, “….not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.” Which famine are you concerned about?

SUCCEEDING IN READING THIS AMAZING BOOK:
1. COMMITMENT: The most important step in this adventure is crossing the threshold of commitment. Because we are fickle by nature, we must be “hemmed in-behind and before” (i.e. Psalm 139:5) by the pledge, determination, contract, profession, and purpose that we are going to simply read through the entire Bible; whatever it takes!
2. K.I.S.M.I.F. (KEEP IT SIMPLE, MAKE IT FUN!) Again, the Main thing is to keep the Main thing the Main thing. In this grand quest, don’t allow yourself to reinvent the objective. Granted, a lot of side eddies will emerge, (and many of them positive!) but “stick to your knitting,” and complete the mission of one day’s reading. When you focus on just finishing one day’s reading first and foremost, this journey will become fun.

TIP: I keep a Bible in my car for when I’m waiting to pick up kids, one in the kitchen, and one by my bed. “The eye is the lamp of the body…,” (Matt. 6:22) ergo, sometimes just having the Bible in your field of vision will cause you to read it.

MOTTO: The motto at the Bolder Boulder (CO) 10-K Race is: “Oh Yes You Can!!” God has wired us for slow and steady success. You are proving that .Dare to succeed in finishing this Book of books.

THIS MOST AMAZING BOOK- Written and researched by Guy Andrews, Summerfield, NC.
FACT: The legendary Mutiny on the Bounty took place on April 28th, 1789 in the South Pacific. Nine of the mutineers eventually settled on Pitcairn Island, about 1350 miles from Tahiti. After surviving the collapse of this small island colony in 1793, once violent refugee John Adams was in the tempest of his own internal mutiny. He had joined Bounty’s crew in England to escape British justice, but after learning to read from fellow mutineer Officer Ned Young, he came into a confronting encounter with the Bible and was radically transformed. He became the kind and respected leader of Pitcairn, so much so that he was allowed to remain on Pitcairn after being visited by the Admiralty in 1814.
QUOTE: Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) “The Bible is not merely a book; it is a Living Being, with an action, a power, which invades everything that opposes its extension, behold! It is upon this table. This book, surpassing all others; I never omit to read it, and every day with some pleasure.”

Would you believe it- the Clemson football program has one the best graduation rates in the nation. Read the article here. Among ACC schools, only Boston College, Wake and Duke boast a better graduation rate.

• If you believe in fewer taxes, less Government...then you might be conservative.
• If you believe George Bush is not a liar...
• If you believe Fox News is fair and balanced...
• If you believe Rush Limbaugh...
• If you believe Global Warming still needs to be investigated...
• If you believe sex outside of marraige is wrong...
• If you believe taxing the poor to pay for our kids education, (the NC Lottery), is a bad thing...
• If you believe abortion is not an acceptible form of birth control...
• If you believe abortion is immoral...
• If you believe sexual harrassment is wrong...
• If you believe homosexual behavior is a choice and in any way detrimental...
• If you believe Christianity is not a threat to to your freedom...
• If you believe Bill Clinton is a pathological liar, you are either an honest liberal or...
• If you believe "the rich" pay their fair share of taxes...
• If you believe supporting the troops means supporting their cause...

There's a great thread over at Word Up, (where else?), where Potato Stew asks me, "what do I consider extreme left."

Extreme left stands? Here's a few things that come to mind that are signs you might be a liberal.

• If you believe in abortion without restriction and it should be promoted as birth control...
• If you believe Pro-Lifers don't care about women...
• If you believe Gay marraige is no big deal...
• If you believe Christians who believe homosexual behavior is sinful are hateful...
• If you believe anyone who argues against Gay rights is bigoted and/or hateful...
• If you believe enviromental issues are beyond debate...
• If you believe Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton speak for black people...
• If you believe Christianity is a threat to your freedom...
• If you believe US war efforts are creating more terrorists than they are destroying...
• If you believe abstinance doesn't work...
• If you hate George Bush...
• If you believe Bush has killed more people than Sadaam, or that Bush is a war criminal...
• If you believe in taxing the poor to pay for our kid's education, (the NC Lottery), is a good thing...
• If you believe in people paying more taxes...
• If you trust the Government with more tax revenue, while believing that Bush and most Repuplicans lie...
• If you still believe there were no WMDs...
• If you believe Fox News is extreme Right Wing...
• If you believe it was wrong to out Valerie Plame, but okay to leak classified reports in a misleading manner...
• If you believe you are open minded and Conservatives are close minded...
• If you think Clarence Thomas is stupid, and/or that he harrassed Anita Hill...
• If you think Bill Clinton's numerous sexual harrassment charges, indictments and cover ups were part of a Right Wing Conspiracy...

Thursday we'll be preparing the following meals at Dream Dinners. I got so many inquiries, I thought I'd print the order so you can see how it works. Because there are over 70 portions, we qualified for $100+ discount. The average cost per serving is $3.14.

Order Itemization
Qty Size Title Family Savings Price

1 Medium(3 serving) CHICKEN PAELLA $10.35

2 Medium(3 serving) CHICKEN PARMESAN $9.45

1 Medium(3 serving) ORANGE-CRANBERRY
GLAZED CHICKEN $7.50

2 Medium(3 serving) GRILLED CHICKEN WITH
SESAME-HONEY BUTTER $8.40

2 Large(6 serving)GARLIC & BALSAMIC
MARINATED FLANK STEAK $20.70

4 Medium(3 serving) STEAKS HUNAN STYLE $10.35

2 Medium(3 serving)PORK CHOPS WITH SWEEt
GINGER & APPLES $8.25

1 Large(6 serving) PORK ROAST WITH BLACK BEANS
& GOLDEN YELLOW RICE $20.10

1 Large(6 serving) CLASSIC LASAGNA $18.60

1 Large(6 serving) HEARTY BEEF STROGANOFF $18.60

2 Medium(3 serving) "MUY BUENO" CHICKEN FAJITAS $9.30

2 Medium(3 serving) "BUILD YOUR OWN" CALZONES $9.30

Session Details

Okay- NC STATE won big tonight. But when it was plain they were going to lose, ESPN started the campaign for Amato. "46 wins in 6 years!" "How could anyone argue with that success?" "They must be crazy to not be pleased with the job Amato has done."

What utter BS.

Before the first game I wrote about Amato- how State should stick by him. But his whine after Akron kicked his ass not only embarrassed the school, it embarrassed the ACC. Last week, his team was destroyed by Southern Miss. His response? "Why me?" He is a sham, a con man, and a mediocre at best head coach.

Why post this? Because ESPN thinks he's the greatest coach in the Southeast. They are setting NC State and their fans up. He's on their payroll. If this game saves his job, he is still a coach who routinely loses to average teams- who pads his schedule to eake out 6 wins in order to be bowl eligible. They should be praising State for sticking with him, not blaming alumni for growing impatient after 7 years.

It is Friday and it could not have come at a more opportune time. Last Sunday morning my wife, son and his wife, and I arrived at the Denver Airport at 9:00. We arrived in Greensboro Monday Morning at 3:30am without our luggage. The combination of jet lag and ’the longest day,’ (courtesy of American Airlines), has left us to meet our busy workdays in a dense fog of restlessness.

Which leads me to a life lesson I am still learning about- the hard way. It involves how we react to others. In my family, (my parents and more so, my sisters and I), we tend to believe the world revolves around us. Here are a few simple examples.

• I see an old friend for the first time in years and greet him heartily, “John how ya doin? Whereya been?” To which John replies rather curtly, “Hi Chip, Sorry – can’t talk right now,” and hurries off as if I am the plague. A week later I bring John up to my family or friends, “Who does he think he is? What a jerk!”
  
  A week later I find out my friend’s company is bankrupt and he’s being investigated by the IRS.
  
  
• My wife and I have a great meal together and watch a fun movie. At bedtime, she becomes agitated and fretful. To which I respond, “What the hell did I do?” I quit talking to her-well into the next day.
  
  My mom calls and reminds me yesterday was the 8th anniversary of her father’s death.
  
  
  
• A local blogger gets angry and misunderstands every thing I say. While I may tone down my response in writing, my face is flush with anger and I am ashamed- not at what he said or I said- but the fact I’ve let some jerk get under my skin again.
  
  Maybe the blogger is going through a divorce, flunked a test, his dog died, he’s on the wagon, out of work, out of money…
  

We should treat people the way we want to be treated, that’s part of the Golden Rule. But I often forget that loving my neighbor means putting his needs in front of my own. That includes giving him or her the benefit of the doubt before I react to the way he or she treats me.

Yesterday I went to a citywide prayer breakfast honoring our local leaders to hear an old friend, Paul Lessard. He hit a homerun.

In his speech, Paul quoted from a paper his 17 year old daughter wrote when she was 15. It alluded to her greatest fear being that she would lose focus on Christ, her "magnificent obsession." Those two words, "magnificent obsession," have stayed with me.

I do believe in Christ, but is He my magnificent obsession? I hardly know what it means. I asked my wife, my best friend and son in law, and they all agreed it is a challenging phrase. Just considering its meaning has allowed me to view my life from a new perspective.

One of my mentors used to say, "if you believe there is a God, even in the smallest way, what else could be more important?" Think about that. My question for myself..."Why am I so pre-occupied with my career, marraige and politics- if I believe in Christ?"

As for young Taylor Lessard, it will be much more impressive if her obsession with Christ still has her fixated at age 25, 50 and even 90... I have no doubt this will be the case.

1: Do you like the look and the contents of your blog?
Yes. But I do want to get back to the language aspect. MS Spaces was alot easier to design. It looks snazzier...
2: Does your family know about your blog?
A few do - my wife does and she thinks I (and most bloggers) are narcissistic, mean-spirited and wasting time. My parents and sisters know about it, but hate any conflict or the thought I might offend others. My son (27) laughs about the conflicts. Mary Mac (24) and her husband read it. My youngest (20) doesn't read it or mind it.
3: Can you tell your friends about your blog? Do you consider it a private thing?
I do let a few reminders of my blog slip in conversations w/friends, but they don't seem to want to read it.
4: Do you just read the blogs of those who comment on your blog? Or do you try to discover new blogs?
I read alot of blogs, I usually follow tips from national bloggers, scan Gboro101 and Wordup
5: Did your blog positively affect your mind? Give an example.
Yes and no. I do enjoy debate and (in Greensboro) the constant challenges to my views. But no- I often find myself upset and even a bit nauseus when I know people are furious at me. There are a couple of local bloggers who have made it clear publicly and privately they want nothing to do with me. That crushes me.
6: What does the number of visitors to your blog mean? Do you use a traffic counter?
I do use one. I look at it. On spaces,t here was a great deal more traffic.
7: Did you imagine how other bloggers look like?
Not really.
8: Do you think blogging has any real benefit?
It makes me a better writer.
9: Do you think that the Blogsphere is a stand alone community separated from the real world?
I guess its an obsession with some.
10: Do some political blogs scare you? Do you avoid them?
Nah- even the most hateful ones are just someone ranting. Love em.
11. Do you think that criticizing your blog is useful?
Sure.
12: Have you ever thought about what happen to your blog in case you died?
Nope
13: Which blogger had the greatest impression on you?
Michelle Malkin, Ed Cone, Gboro101
14: Which blogger you think is the most similar to you?
Noteworthy and I are on the same page politically. Joel knows me the best.
15: Name a song you want to listen to.
Wow. Bobby Darrin, "What a Difference a Day Makes."
16: Ask five bloggers to answer these question on their blogs.
Just don't have time.

...habits. (Is that what it's called?)

Or claim Islam as your religion, just to stay alive, even if you were an athiest?

In the comfort of my home and under no threat at all, I'd hope to be true to Christ and refuse to submit. Because I may never have to face such an event, I want to be clear that it is wrong to judge anyone who has had to make such a choice.

Jesus teaches us that we should not fear enemies that can destroy our bodies, but fear the One who can give and take life and destroy our soul. Matthew 10:28 "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell."

So should such a day come- I hope to choose Christ.

From Guest Blogger- Mebloggin:

While looking over Clemson stories in The State newspaper (Columbia), I ran across this story ofmy nephew's latest exploits: Lovelace ruins suspense-Chapin runner posts nearly 25-second win; Borowicz earns girls title for Mann.

Luke is running a 15:30/3 mile cross country race on a regular basis. (That's really fast.)

...That was the first headline we saw after arriving in Denver Colorado. I grabbed the paper and soon realized I wasn't in Carolina anymore.

UNC -U of Northern Colorado's 2cd string punter stabbed the first string punter in the leg, presumably to get his position as starter Here's the story.

We are in Denver for one of the coolest conventions on earth- CEDIA. I hope to have some cool pictures of the tech stuff, but I am really excited to introduce you to some really unique sites- ala http://greensboring.com/.

Note to Cara Michelle: There are homeless folks everywhere you turn in downtown Denver, but they are quite different from my experiences with East Coast people. Alot look like hippies, alot are obviously mentally ill and alot of public drunks.

Here is a great example of bloggers doing the media's work.

Update: You know, if Brian Maloney were a liberal blogger who had single-handedly blown the whistle on the financial shenanigans of a conservative radio conglomerate, he would be the toast of the media establishment. He'd be invited on all the prime-time talk shows. He'd be a "Person of the Week" on the nightly news. He'd get a profile in People magazine. But he won't get any of that. Meanwhile, get up to speed on Air America's road to bankruptcy here:
Air America: Out of air in NYC
Air America: Top exec bails
Air America: sinking ship
Air America: Losing flagship station?
Air America: The saga continues
Inside Air America: Al's pal bails...and Philly station ditches, too
Air America: Groveling for cash
Inside Air America: The loan scandal deepens
Air America scrambles
Inside Air America: Al Franken's lying lies
InsideAir America: The Sheldon Drobny Files
Wednesday scandal updatesNew York Post: The Money Pit
Inside Air America: The Lizz Winstead caseFraudulent Conveyance 101Multicultural Radio says Air America owes it $1.5 million
Inside Air America: An investigative blog report (Part II)
Air Enron: Morning updateInside Air America: An investigative blog report (Part I)
Air Enron: Al Franken needs helpAir Enron
updatesAir Enron: The dam bursts
Air Enron: NYTimes corrects
Air Enron: MSM errs and lags
Air Enron: The NYTimes speaks! (or rather, whispers)
Air Enron: Heads roll, victims shafted
Air Enron: No letting up
Air Enron: Franken speaks again
Air Enron: Elite media blackout contd.
Air Enron: quotes of the day
Air Enron: Spitzer steps in
Air Enron: questions, questions
Air Enron: the blame game
Air Enron: thumb-twiddling MSMSilence of the race hustlers
Air Enron: Al Franken speaks
Air Deadbeat: the saga continues
The Air America loophole
Air America is scrambling
Air America: Don't blame us
Air America: Stealing from poor kids?!

Billy Jones let his emotions get the best of him, I hope, here in this post "...Greensboro's more affluent sons and daughters are skipping out of the current wars just like the cowards they've always been. "

I read his words and my hands begin to tremble in anger and disgust. Say it aint so, Poet! You can't mean it, because it simply isn't true.

UPDATE: Billy responds on his site: "Kicked dogs always hollar loudest."It's your war Chip, you fight it. I have family members in Iraq so you can just kiss my ass you coward. "

Billy- What you are saying isn't just wrong, it is ignorant. This war is being fought by volunteers. There are many other things wrong with this, but I have a feeling you are alone on this one... at least I hope so. I'll let it go, because the real shame is that you truly feel this way.

There is an irony regarding the stats in Roch's original post- people purchasing lottery tickets may end up financing wealthier students' college education. Grimsley and Page have far more students (in number and percentages) that attend 4 year colleges than Dudley and Smith.

Remember the story of the Clemson frosh footballer who adopted his brother? The NCAA has ruled the Clemson family can help the young man out.

What a difference 25 years makes! Now Clemson and virtually all Division 1 schools have compliance departments, rather than 1 officer. It has kept alot of schools out of the degree of trouble that was fairly common place in the 1980's.

Amongst the many 9/11 entries, I ran across this one from Sarah Beth Jones. I am in total disagreement with her conclusions about the Bush administration, but there is no question- from reading her entry- that she is as much a patriot as anyone. Her article along with current events lead me to ask, where does dissent cross the line from patriotism to treachery?

The current events I am refering to involve the efforts of various liberal groups to censor and/or prevent The Path To 9/11 from airing. Doug Clark asks why?- what's the big deal- the film exposed as much if not more security blunders in the Bush adminstration leading up to 9/11?

The reason these actions by Move On and others is treacherous and unpatriotic is that they are really angry over how the film portrays our enemy. (Clinton and Berger were just trying to protect their own interests).

The movie portrays the enemy exactly as the Bush adminstration does- and therefore tends to validate many of his covert and military actions. That's why they didn't want it to air. That's why these people are acting unpatriotic.

My wife remembers it more than I do, even though it was my dream. I was still running and I tripped and even as I began to fall I couldn’t stop running. She remembers because I woke up yelling just before I landed from the phantom fall. I remember waking in a sweat and being overwhelmed with relief that it was just a dream, my run from hell was over.

It was October, 1994 and I had just completed 26.2 miles in a driving rain with the world’s most popular woman, and 16000 others, in the Marine Corps Marathon. My first marathon was on one of the nation’s most difficult courses, the Charlotte Marathon in January, 1994. I had run it in 4 hours, 15 minutes. At the time, the last mile and a half of that 26.2 mile race was on Morehead Street and entirely uphill.

I chose to run The Marine Corps Marathon because it famous for flat terrain, incredible views to keep your mind off the pain, competition between the Corps and other military branches, and encouraging crowds. Oprah chose to run it because it is known as the “People’s Marathon. She’d just lost an admirable amount of weight and inches, so she’d secretly packed a film crew with her own personal trainer and headed to Washington D.C.

Marathon runners enjoy an unmistakable boost from 2 separate sources in most organized marathon races that they cannot recreate while in training. The first and most obvious is hydration. You’ve heard about runners breezing along and suddenly they hit “the wall,” usually between the 18th and 21st miles of the race. The wall is a direct result of dehydration, the depletion of essential body fluids. In organized marathons, ample water and Gatorade are provided at every mile and all but the elite take advantage of it.

The second and most surprising boost is crowd support. Virtually every mile of a marathon is lined with people, mostly strangers urging you on. I can’t exaggerate what those cheering crowds meant to me. In both marathons, I was scared to death of failing. During training I endured shin splints, cramps, blood blisters, lost toenails and watched helplessly while better runners than I suffered more serious injuries, dropping out of the training altogether. Both times I’d brought my family to the race, how could I fail in front of them? The crowds get in your face- yelling your name, (if you are smart enough to tape it to your chest), “C’mon Chip!”- “Look at you- you’re doing great”- “Lets Go Chip!” It may sound trite or corny, but whatever you call it, it worked on me.

Running with Oprah.

Most marathoners aren’t concerned about anyone else, they just want to finish the race and some have a reasonable goal of how fast they should finish it. But Oprah changed all that. No one wanted to get beat by Oprah.

In fairness to Oprah, the Marines wanted to protect her and so they placed her at the worst possible starting position for an amateur, the front. In large marathons, runners are placed in groups according to their expected finish time. Oprah should have been at the 4.5 hour mark, behind some 12000 runners. Instead, she was lined up with 100 of the world’s best marathoners, a couple of thousand elite runners, and another 4000 truly gifted runners. Imagine running while thousands of fellow marathoners blow by you for virtually 26 miles.

It rained hard for the next 6 hours. At every mile marker onlookers would call out the time, “She’s 15 minutes ahead!” “You got her- only 12 minutes ahead.” Oprah’s around the corner- 5 minutes ahead!”

Public Urination and The Ultimate Humiliation

I arrived at the Iwo Jima Memorial early and fully hydrated. I knew from Charlotte that everyone has to relieve themselves- both ways, numerous times. I wanted to beat the crowds to the port-o-johns. Guys, of course, have it a lot easier than the girls when it comes to peeing. In both Charlotte and in D.C the first few miles of the race had hundreds of runners veering off course- guys peeing in bushes- gals squatting under trash bags. A few had to publicly do the ultimate; I’ll let you guess what that means.

Anyway, I was there early and went often. An hour before the race a light drizzle turned into a downpour. I cheated up to the 3 hour mark and was surprised to find 2 good friends from Greensboro. 15 minutes later I began asking God- why me? I had to go again, soon. Each of the hundreds of toilets had lines of 40-50 runners. I had one ally, the hard rain. So I jogged a mile or so back until I saw an empty field. Why was it empty? We were starting the race on a closed off highway. On the other side of this field was a steady stream of traffic from another highway. “What the hell,” I remember thinking, “I’m 300 miles from home.” I cursed, squatted, and let’er rip. When it was over- as if I needed more humiliation- I discovered I’d chosen the only field in Washington without a tree and therefore not a leaf, in sight. Disgusted and full of shame I began jogging back to the start.

How hard was it raining? By the time I reached the 3 hour mark and my Greensboro friends, (brothers Tommy and Michael Gray), all evidence of my shame had mercifully been washed away. A stranger, an older man broke off a piece of a power bar and handed it to me, “Power up,” he said with a smile. I was touched, so I took the candy and started to pop it in my mouth when I remembered where my hands had been. Instead I thanked him, and said, “I’ll save it for Haines Point- for luck,” and pretended to put it in a pocket I did not have.

Running + Rain = Pain

Just before the starting gun, the bottom dropped out of the sky... so hard you couldn’t look up at all. With the rain and the crowded field of runners it took us around 10-12 minutes just to reach the starting line. The first mile we were barely jogging, I think it took about 12 minutes. Around mile 2 we could run our pace, (9 minute miles), but it was crowded and we were already running through huge puddles of water. (No one likes to run in wet shoes, especially 20+ miles!) About every minute I’d hear a sickening sound- Splat SPLAT!- signifying a tripped up runner hitting the pavement.

Truly Amazing Sites & Highlights of the 1994 Marine Corps Marathon.

All around us were amazing fetes of strength from various military troops. Things like platoons in full gear, flag bearers never wavering for 26 miles, soldiers who simply took up the challenge –in uniform and boots- the day of the race.

Around mile 10 I was breathing hard, never a good sign, but I remember looking up and seeing the Supreme Court building. As if on queue, the newest appointed Justice at the time, David Sutter was standing alone under his umbrella. “Hiya Judge!” a runner yelled. Someone chided, “Its Justice, not Judge- jackass” which led to a gang of us cheering, “Hiya Judge!”

Catching Up With Oprah

The last time I saw my family, they were screaming, "You are only 3 minutes behind Oprah!" I caught up with her at mile 17. She was running with a film crew -who were on some sort of trailer beside her, passing her water and cheering her on. About 3 yards behind her was her personal trainer, a tall, well built manly man. (We learned later he had to keep slowing her down- her first miles with the elite runners and the cheering crowds had her way ahead of her pace, about a 10 minute mile.)

By the time I reached Oprah, my shoulders were cramping badly, presumably from my posture in the rain. I was at a loss for words but there was no way I’d let this moment pass. I remember being shocked at how small she was. Anyway, I came along side of her, tapped her elbow with mine, and said something like, “Oprah…your looking good.”

My son Charlie, 16 years old at the time, jumped the rope to run me in the last 8 miles. I had finished Charlotte and its “Morehead Mile” strong (my sister Ann ran me in), and DC was supposed to be much easier. Around miles 18-20 there is one hard stretch at Haines Point- the tip of a peninsula where onlookers are not allowed. It gets awful lonely and quiet at the very moment you need the crowds the most. My time was good, but my entire upper body was cramping. You have to discipline yourself to walk through water stops to make sure you get enough water down. It is incredibly painful to stop running and walk, only to start running again. I could not have made it without Charlie’s encouragement. (Hard, unless you are a billionaire with a film crew passing you water whenever you need it. Oprah has often bragged she didn’t stop to walk once, not realizing she had it much easier by not having to walk through water stations.)

In 1994, the Marines made a cruel an uncommon mistake with the 24th and 25th mile markers. The actual distance between those mile markers was over 1.5 miles. I really thought I was done for, but that meant there was only a half mile to go by the time I reached the 25th mile. The final 0.2 miles is up hill, straight to the Iwo Jima Memorial. I was so ready to finish this run from hell, I actually sprinted the entire 2 tenths.

"Americans are puzzled over why so many people in the world hate us. We seem so nice to ourselves. They do hate us though. We know that and we're trying to protect ourselves with more weapons...We have to do it I suppose but it might be better if we figured out how to behave as a nation in a way that wouldn't make so many people in the world want to kill us."

Read it all here.

A friend read my piece below and called to say Andy Rooney said the above. Then I heard Rush Limbaugh mention Rooney's piece as well.

Of course, Mr. Rooney, we know they hated us in 1993 as well... so anyone who would infer that they hate us because of Bush would be wrong.

The Path To 9/11 starts only 38 days after Clinton was in office. Blaming terrorism on Clinton is just as foolish as blaming it on Bush, so why are the Democrats so threatened? Could it be because the movie focuses more on the real bad guys?

Sure- US law enforcement and CIA efforts were hampered by our lack of collusion and policy, but there is one message the movie makes over and over and over... "the bad guys want us dead because they are evil."

...was from one of the terrorists in the first bombing of the WTC in 1993. It went something like, "...when the Americans learn their people died simply because of their misguided policies in the Middle East, they will change those policies."

If that part is true- the terrorists could not have captured the liberal or progressive mindset more accurately in 1993 and especially in 2006. Think about it. Liberals ask questions like, "what have we done to be so hated?" Most progressives take issue with the term "terrorist," preferring "insurgent" instead. Many have charged or implied Bush is a terrorist and seem to champion any setback of our methodology for thwarting more terror attacks in America. Most progressive thinkers in the US are mortified over how the world views our country since we became proactive in eliminating the threat of terrorism.

Today is the 5th anniverserary of 9/11. It is a day of of mourning. A day to remind each other that all the deaths and sufferings were delivered by an evil and cowardly enemy. It doesn't really matter who among us was responsible for not preventing the attacks. It does matter that we have taken the battle to the enemy... and that we never stop until the threat is destroyed.

Fecund wisely waves off Converge South Dinners. His reason? Its a bad idea for wives to collude.

The first time I met Hogg was at a Grimsley game last fall. Now my wife and I are social creatures, so when I pointed to a handsome guy with a grey bufont and blurted "Hey- that must be David Hoggard," her natural reaction was- "Oh good, is he a friend from high school?" To which I murmered, "Oh sh..." I was not allowed to discuss blogging in Elizabeth's presence. I now had to introduce Elizabeth and myself to the Hoggards without a frame of reference. Almost a year later I still have to be guarded about my blogging with Elizabeth, but Hogg can testify that I've become much smoother at introducing him without bringing up blogging.

Years ago I learned the wisdom of avoiding certain social events with some people. In the early 80's I worked as agent for Northwestern Mutual with 5 other young men. We were competitive, opinionated and broke- all of which led to long hours together- which leads to way to much personal knowlege about each other's marraiges.

We decided to form a caravan of our 6 families and make a special trip to NML's annual meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconson. As fate would have it, our only dinner together came on the same night we'd arrived, (a 700 mile trip). Of course we were tired. Of course we drank to much. Of course one of us talked to much. Of course we all paid a terrible price for our comraderie.

You know the rule, "what's said in the locker room, stays in the locker room."

Last night in the Clemson/BC game there was a reviewed play that still leaves me scratching my head. BC threw a 9 yard pass that was caught simultaneously by the receiver and a Clemson defender. As the receiver was going down, he lost control of the ball. While he was on the ground, the Clemson player gained control of the ball. At no time did the ball touch the ground.

Original call: Interception.
After Review: Indisputable evidence the receiver was on the ground- Reception, BC.

All the replays showed that the receiver lost control before hitting the ground, but the Clemson player did not gain complete control until the receiver was down.

• It can't be incomplete if the ball never touched the ground.
• I say bad call- the replay team focused on the wrong thing- they were focused on when the Clemson player took complete control of the ball- which was after the receiver was down.
• They should have focused on when the receiver lost control of the ball.

Jubal, 1956.
Why watch this movie?

• 3 great performances- Glenn Ford, Rod Steiger, Ernest Borgnine

Glen Ford, one of my favorite cowboy stars, plays a young drifter who stumbles (literally) into one the first Montana ranches. Borgnine plays a tough, good natured, beloved rancher who takes Jubal under his wing and is duly rewarded with Jubal's work ethic and loyalty. Steiger is one the top hands- and his role is right up their with some of his best performances. He's one of the best bad guys I've ever seen.

Jubal's character is complex and well developed. Really that is the movie's strength- all 3 characters are built that way. You'll see a very young Charles Bronson, as well.

This team,The Boondock Saints features Stan the Man, Ted Williams, Larry Dolby ( 2cd black player in the bigs?), Grover Alexander, Johnny Pesky (still alive- lots of pics of the old man hanging around the duggout)


This team, the Grimsley Whirlies features Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and Ozzie Smith:

Interesting thread on Ed Cone's (who else?) site about Elizabeth Edwards coming to Converge South... it is a good illustration of the dark side of the Greensboro blogging community.

I started the thread with an honest and respectful question- and received respectful answers from Ed, Fec, even Elizabeth Edwards- and others.

But there were others- Sue, Billy, Greendog, Ruby- who reminded me why I don't look forward to meet ups and things like Converge South. Ruby, for example, called some of us with questions "trolls." Greendog, a cowardly soul who chooses to insult while hiding behind his anonymous moniker, urges those of us with doubts to stay away. And then there's the ever prominant Greensboro bloggers Sue and Billy going out of their way to insult anyone they disagree with. If this is how Greensboro bloggers try to make people feel welcome to an event like Coverge South...

As insults go, this thread is mild by their standards, but the point is there was no cause to be disrespectful at all. I acknowleged that landing Mrs. Edwards was significant, but Ed is absolutely starstruck with John Edwards- and- this blogging community is overhelmingly political and liberal to boot. Like Sam, I'll go listen to most national figures, but I still wonder what she has to do with blogging. It is a fair question.

I've learned to live with the Greensboro style of debate on blog sites. I've learned alot from folks that I disagree with, and I have made a few friends. I blog because I want to write. Some of you are trying to make a living from writing- something that is very difficult to do. I respect that. But why be with people who don't respect you, insult you and make no effort to hide their disdain for you? That's what politicians do, not bloggers.

Democrats are telling Americans we are stupid. Stupid, there is nothing else to call the Democrats' efforts to stop ABC from airing The Road to 9/11.

I've heard about it- a gripping docu-drama about terrorism and the US, beginning with the bombing of The World Trade Center in 1993 right up until 9/11. Given the dates I just mentioned, of course it won't reflect favorably on the Clinton years. (Bush had not been in power 9 months on 9/11/01.)


The main reason it is stupid to whine about this movie is that Americans already know our government was caught with its pants down. We know Sandy Berger was caught stuffing secrets in his pants and socks. We know Clinton was playing with girls and cigars while talking with Arafat and othe Middle East terrorists on the phone.


Evidently key Clinton officials are contradicting some facts in this movie, but why should they bother? The entire Democratic leadership promoted Michael Moore's ficticious documentary. Who are you going to believe? Clinton, Sandy Berger, Albright? Of course not... not even if you are a Democrat.


It doesn't matter if Clinton and his people were inept, the moment Bush sent our troops into harms way whatever led to 9/11 ceased to be relevant... at least not to Democrats.


When smart people act stupid and moral people abandon principals, it is usually because their passion overrides their rationale. Clinton's passions led to his lying to a grand jury. Many liberals' passion for Democrats in power caused them to abandon victims of sexual harrassment and in the end, sneer at truth itself.

I don't care what you think about Clemson or football players, you need to read this:

CLEMSON, South Carolina (AP) -- The alarm sounds at 6:15 a.m. and Clemson freshman Ray Ray McElrathbey starts a routine like few others in college football.
Along with classes, film work, defensive back meetings and football practice, McElrathbey sees that his 11-year-old brother, Fahmarr, is dressed and fed, finishes his homework and makes it to middle school on time.
Read it all here.

Hattip to Justin "Amato" Smith

Home automation includes some of the following applications:

• Home Theater, Lighting Controls, Security, HVAC Controls, Structured Cabling.

Its popular and one of the fastest growing sub-sectors of residential building. Despite the problems that I will list below, the systems mentioned above are guaranteed to enhance the lifestyle of homeowners.

The problem is engineering- and like all broad subjects there is Good News/Bad News.

Let's pick on my favorite automated system, home theater.

It starts with the receiver.

• The Good. Today a $400 surround sound receiver is an engineering marvel because it incorporates 6-7 speperate digital amplifiers, state of the art processing, video switching, smart remote controls and more.
• The Bad. You have to be an engineer to utilize it. Perhaps the most important function of good engineering is making the product easy to use. We have hundreds of extremely smart clients- doctors, lawyers, authors- who cannot work audio-video equipment. They often describe themselves as stupid or electronically challenged- and that is exactly how engineers must think of them.

Just consider remote controls.

• The Good. There are 2 companies, AMX and Creston who make one touch remotes that anyone can use without training. They will control lighting, theater, security, heating- anything. Alot of univeral remotes under $300 , like receivers, are engineering marvels- they will do it all.
• The Really Bad. Those remotes from AMX- they are mainly designed for Hotels, or Casinos, Board rooms... they start at around $4000 bucks. They also require professional integration and programming. The <$300 univerals? There are no user friendly remotes (that can be programmed by most any user) on the market today. We do not sell remotes unless we program them ourselves. We can't. They come back everytime. Think about it this way- a cheap Apple or PC costs less than $600 and can far surpass any univeral remote- IF SOMEONE WOULD PROGRAM IT FOR ALL OF US!

How about High Definition TV?

• A great improvement, no doubt. Did you know the first 60 or so channels on digital cable (here in Greensboro) are not digital? Did you know digital is not the same as high definition? Did you know there are various new connections needed to acquire HD? Or that Circuit City charges $700 for the best available connection? Or that you can get HD over the air...if you have a good antenna, a TV with an HD tuner and a good installer?

The list goes on and on. There are truly great, inexpensive systems available in all fields of home automation, but no one has taken the time to make them user friendly.

Here's a great example- IBM's Home Director. We were one the first small companies to sign on... around 1999. IBM chief Lou Gershner called Home Director "the final frontier." Their goal was to put this product in every new home built in America. Minimum, stripped down cost was well over $1000 (up to $15000) installed. When we went to IBM for training, there was a huge pirate flag flying (indoors) over the Home Director unit, symbolizing a new way of thinking within the Big Blue.

The internet was coming, but I was bothered that there was no market demand within existing homes. During class I asked one question that nobody before me had thought to ask. "When cable TV was introduced to the market, how did they deliver their product?" The answer is (and still is) they drilled holes through walls and floors in the rooms you wanted to watch TV.

Within 18 months, IBM spun off the "last frontier."

(One of the main benefits of Home Director was structured cabling- an organized process of bringing in signals ( Cable TV, Phone, High speed Internet) and distributing the highest quality signals throughout the home with cabling. The automation was driven by x10 technology.)

Mebloggin asked for my opinion of local bloggers. I answered, but with trepidation. Here is my take on a few bloggers-

• Ed Cone, Lex Alexander are experienced, professional writers and all of us should pay attention when they correct us. What I appreciate about both of them is that they will stay with an argument to its end- and they have moderately thick skin.
• I've written about this before- Ed's site and Greensboro101 are my favorites.
• My take on Lex is that he is smart, too defensive and absolutely hates being labeled.
• Hoggard, Joel Gillespie, Guarino and Joe Killian are great writers and extremely smart. They go out of their way not to offend people they dissagree with.
• Beth (Greensboring) is - I think- as creative and humorous as many national bloggers. You only cross swords with her when you have to.
• There are 2 resident geniuses- Dark Moon and Potato Stew at Plead The First. PS is always inquisitive, respectful and enlightning. DM is extremely observant and direct. Both of these bloggers' fate is sealed. They will be turned away from the Dark Side.
• Sue is smart and cynical. She never concedes. I read her blog because I think she has captured the pulse of the left.
• Mr. Sun kicked me off his site because I told him if he spoke to my teenage daughter like he wrote about proms, I'd kick his ass. He failed to grasp my humor, but his site is truly on a national level- beyondanyone here in Greensboro. He just hates to be criticized.
• Chewie and Patrick Eakes have been off the radar for a long time, blogging very little. Patrick runs his own business and is busy being a husband, Dad and community leader. Patrick has an uncanny talent for picking winners in Golf. I think Chewie travels alot- don't know for sure. Chewie seems to have a big heart, great taste in cars, but when she is repectfully challenged she is quick to take offense. But both have extremely thin skin and are quick to insult people who disagree with them.
• Cara Michelle- don't read her blog if you don't want to be challenged. She's a peacemaker on other sites and no one is more helpful to others.
• Bubba is someone I totally agree with- and I cannot wait to meet him- based on his Bio.
• Fecund is all over the map on every issue. He's quick to anger, but he is really funny, honest and a fun read. Like Bubba, I look forward to meeting him.
• Sam, the young student is really a remarkable read.
• Matt Comer is a genuine leader.
• One really unfair and trite method of argument many Greensboro bloggers employ in debate is to ignore the subject matter and -in the most condescending manner- point out spelling errors and misuse of words or factual errors unrelated to the point of the argument. In contrast, Cara Michelle will politely point out a misspelling and goes overboard not to belittle the culprit. Ed and Lex may be blunt- "words have meaning"- but they do it in a challenging manner rather than a humiliating one.
• Hope I haven't left anyone out. There are alot of commenters (like Spagnolia and Mebloggin) that add as much as most bloggs. I miss Wharton- though I'm glad he is still around.
• Where is your blog, Mebloggin?
• UPDATE:- Dr. Mary Johnson, Hraka and Caserta are on my must read list.

Noooo- I am not talking about every case, just when one party decides they aren't happy and wants to leave. A friend calls it "shooting yourself in the foot...with a shotgun."

The birdshot shell represents a marraige without children. The more deadly buckshot represents marraiges with kids.

His explanation goes something like this. A man who becomes unhappy and wants out of the marraige will eventually discover his unhappiness had little to do with his wife. We know this to be true. So by projecting his unhappiness on his wife, he leaves- or shoots himself in the foot. He'll be damaged for the rest of his life.

Worse, he never understands the impact of using a shotgun to shoot himself in the foot. He crushes his wife, sure- but what about their friends, extended family, all the people who identify with the couple in some positive way? The pellet spray covers a wider range than he intended.

Now if that man has children of any age, the damage becomes criminal, regardless of his intent. The children are permanently disabled by the blast- in a spiritual and emotional sense.

Now if that man is an acting Pastor, he's not using a shotgun- he's using a pipe bomb that will harm hundreds and in some cases- thousands.

I have witnessed the damage from birdshot, buckshots and a pipe bomb. Sometimes I watch helplessly while dear friends pick up a shotgun to take aim at their foot. At times I even dream about picking up the shotgun myself. What stops me? I know- beyond any doubt- my wife has little to do with my being happy.

So if you are pondering leaving your spouse because he or she doesn't make you happy, remember that in the end you will have not only maimed yourself, but everyone else you claim to love. Before you can fix anyone, fix yourself.

And if you are among the walking wounded, seek forgiveness, just like you would seek constant care for your shot up foot. It may not work- the forgiveness may never come from those you hurt. And you'll certainly have to live with the pain... But remember, those who seek forgiveness are the very ones who realize life isn't about their own happiness.

I'm tempted to introduce the Gospel at this point. It is a great story. It's all about forgiveness and do-overs and contentment and yes- even happiness. And you are never asked to give up anything without gaining alot more. But I can tell you don't want to hear it....

On numerous occassions I've read a reminder from Ed Cone and Lex Alexander that "words have meaning." They are usually reminding me and/or others we have been careless with our choice or use of words. (I have a hunch this mantra or something similar was drilled into them in the classroom and by their editors.)

I know early on I was constantly embarrassed or angered whenever I was corrected like that. Yet, if I am honest, I have learned from my mistakes everytime.

There is one contraversial subject that this mantra doesn't neccessarily apply to- naming our enemy in the Middle East. I say it because I've read and understood the logic of not using terms like terrorists, insurgents, Islamic Fundamentalists or Fascists... the list goes on. How do we define our enemy?

One term that I heard used is "evil." There is a large and well funded group in the Middle East who will not stop until the world submits to their God and their leadership and all of the remaining population who refuse is murdered. I guess I'm saying it really doesn't matter what we call them, their actions include murder, oppression, cowardice, lying, disloyalty, cheating and everything else that we all agree has nothing to do with being good.

It is true that at times all countries have participated in some evil deed. But whenever a country or organized group of people state their sole purpose is to

• convert the world to their God, and
• submit wholey to their leadership and
• begin murdering all who refuse to do either,

they become the enemy of the world.

How many times does a fan like me get to live through a family member? Meet #12, Branden Conrad. Go Cocks!

Just got in from a great weekend in Annopolis with 3 pals who attended ECU. Before the 5:30 kickoff, we were treated to a brief tour of the Academy by Junior Midshipman Matt McCallum of Pittsburgh, Pa- my nephew's best friend and roommate (before Brandon transfered To South Carolina to play for Dave Odom.) At Navy home games, virtually the entire student body marches into the stadium, so the only time anyone can spend with their favorite Midshipman is before or after a game.

We knew Navy football is steeped in tradition, that's why we came. Nevertheless, we warned Matt that ECU had it own traditions, namely that at some point during every game there is always a fight between 2 ECU fans, and that when the culprit(s) are cuffed and taken away, the Pirate fans serenade the stadium with that song..."Na na nah, Hey Hey, Goodbye!"

We made sure we arrived to the 35,000 seat stadium early. The first thing you notice about anything related to the Naval Acadamy is that every thing has meaning and none of it is taken for granted. At Clemson or Carolina or ECU, you'll find permanent memorials honoring their great athletes affixed to the inner stadium walls. At Navy, we saw something entirely different, names like SAVO ISLAND- PEARL HARBOR- MIDWAY- CORAL SEA- TARAWA - RABAUSL and others- each commemorating battles where Acadamy alumni had fought and died.

Just before kickoff, the entire student body marched into the stadium by company. The announcer introduced each company as it mades its way to the field- and the company commander. Every time they announced a commander from North Carolina, (I think I counted 4), the ECU fans roared with pride. The Acadamy choir sang the National Anthem - and as they finished- a great ship's fog horn sounded off. Then they announced 2 F16's would soon be approaching from the South. (If one were colorblind, he could tell who the ECU fans were- we were the one's asking which way was South.)

I've seen jets do fly overs before, but these 2 buzzed the stadium by no more than 200 yards. I can't adequately describe the rush we felt or the thunder of the engines. I found myself yelling something incompehensible and feeling so proud and honored to be part of this. I remember feeling embarrased as tears ran down my cheeks, but when I looked at my friends, expecting to be chided, they were as caught up in the moment as I was.

As the stadium quieted the Midshipmen (still in formation on the field) did an about-face and addressed the ECU side of the stadium- (I think about 5-6000 students attend the Acadamy)- In unison they chanted "NAVY -WELCOMES...E-C-U! (at this point they tipped their hats to us), Gooooooo Pirates!" We were blown away. Then they turned to face their alumni and again said something, (we couldn't make it out), while tipping their hats. I believe about 4 companies were dismissed at a time- at which point everyone of them breaks into a sprint and no one stops until they reach their seat.

Three more things of note... everytime Navy scores, the 1200 or so plebes rush the field and do pushups for every Navy point scored. As soon as the final gun sounded, (Navy won a hard fought 28-23 game), the entire Navy squad rushed over to the ECU bench...to shake hands! And during halftime -on the stadium big screen- we were treated to custom tailored drama, ala 24... A young Marine enters his CO's office. The CO explains a plot has been unearthed to undermine the proud tradition of Navy Football. A nefarious group who call themselves the ECU Pirates have been discovered in Annapolis. Subsequent "episodes" throughout the 2cd half show the Marines on a covert mission overtaking a yacht manned by "Pirates."

As a lifelong Clemson fan I have proudly revelled with 85000 others while the Tigers ran down "the hill." (And ECU is an awesome venue as well.) I love visiting the great stadiums and witnessing all the traditions that colleges should be proud of. (I hope most of you have had a chance to vist Kenan Stadium at North Carolina, in my opinion the country's most picturesque stadium.) But for me, at least for now, Navy takes the cake... by the widest of margins.

..and works awesome! Inspired by Ed's link to Jim Caserta, I am reminded of my son's birthday present to me last April. It is the Lutron Spacer- a dimmer switch you can control with your TV remote! It saves me big bucks on energy and bulb life. (I use it in a room with 6 recessed can lights- those bulbs are expensive.)

Good news is it cost $46 at Lowes and can be installed by most anyone.