What I’m Listening To: "The Luckiest" by Ben Folds. Apparently this song has been out for a while, but I only recently discovered it when Ben released it on his latest album, "Rockin’ the Suburbs."
What I’m Reading: Isn’t it funny that I LOVE reading when I’m not in school, yet when I’m in school, I can’t stand it! Over my vacation I read A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis. I’m now reading Too Small to Ignore: Why the Least of These Matter Most by Dr. Wess Stafford of Compassion International. This book has many aspects to it: biography of Stafford’s life growing up as a missionary kid in Africa, role of child development, child advocacy, and awareness of global poverty. It’s a great read that will break your heart, give you hope, and spur you to action.
What I’m Watching: I’ve been watching John Adams, the HBO miniseries on Blu-Ray. It chronicles a big portion of his adult life in service to his country. Watching this reminds me that even back almost 250 years, that people were just as divided then, as they are now. We have a lot we can learn from history.
Highlight of the Past Week: This is so hard to choose. I’ve been enjoying watching the John Adams miniseries, reading my book, bought a new mattress (which was desperately needed), and had a great time at Chad’s New Year’s Eve bash. I can’t decide. I will say that it has been a great time off from work. I’ll be taking this next week off to do a one-week long class on leadership in urban ministry. I’m not looking forward to the early mornings, but I know that I’ll be greeted with a warm cuppa coffee and hopefully a safe drive into school every day.
What I’m Looking Forward To This Next Week: My schedule is mostly filled with school… but you could say that I’m excited about my friend Johnny’s baptism tomorrow. I’ve been watching him grow over the past many years that I’ve known him. It’s been fun to watch, he’s a good man.
Quote of the Day: "Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us." – Hal Borland
Tonight was a great night filled with inspiration, mixed with snow. I don’t know quite how to describe it, but I’ll try my best.
I was leaving Lynn and Carl’s last night when I decided to take the scenic route. When I worked at The Children’s Museum and Ivy Tech, I was extremely intentional about not taking the most direct route home, which was Meridian Street. Once I would get past 38th and Meridian, I would start traveling through the neighborhoods: Pennsylvania Street, Washington Boulevard, Central Avenue, College Avenue. Driving down these streets you begin to notice the character of the houses, beautiful houses and beautiful neighborhoods.
And so, as I left Lynn and Carl’s house, I cranked up the heat in my car and put on some jazz music… Art Tatum and John Coltrane to be exact. I cannot begin to tell you how at-peace I felt. With virtually no other cars around, I felt like the city was mine and time was of no importance. So I drove, admiring the houses while Tatum played on the stereo and the sound of snow crunched underneath my tires.
Then it happened, I passed a pretty decked-out house around 54th and New Jersey…
I have to tell you that it was a pretty rainy Christmas this year and for some reason, Christmas just didn’t feel like Christmas. But when I passed this house, I was immediately amazed, like a little child riding around looking at Christmas lights with his parents. The soft glow of the lights against the white snow, the cardboard Santa Claus in the upstairs window, the leg lamp in the downstairs window… WOW!
Nothing could really top my experience at that point… I was so excited to find this house. I have a fond place in my heart for old houses and when they’re decked out in Christmas awesome-ness, it makes me love them that much more.
As I neared the end of my scenic car ride, I decided to do something I don’t normally do… I grabbed my tripod from inside the apartment and drove around Carmel and took a few pictures. It was such a great night to be out, just me and the snow plows. It was cold, but I thoroughly enjoyed taking some photographs. Here’s a few I’d love to share with you…
1) My Statue Neighbor Gets in the Spirit
If you’ve ever been in my neighborhood (the Arts & Design District of Carmel), you’ve probably seen these statues. Every day I drive past them and every night, I see the streetlamps cast their light on the statues. Some find these statues weird, creepy, and a waste of money. I, however, like to think of them as friendly faces that greet me on my way home. Over the month of December, the city put Santa hats on the statues, here is one of them…
2) The Gazebo at City Hall
I had been perusing through the local paper when I noticed that the City of Carmel had their Christmas tree lighting around Thanksgiving. Having missed this spectacle, I was thrilled when I drove by and saw that the tree and all the decorations were still up!
Well friends, I hope you enjoyed the blog post. It was a great night and I just felt so inspired… but alas, it is now 1:40 a.m. and I must be getting to bed. I hope all of you had a safe, happy, and blessed Christmas!
What I’m Listening To: "A Mad Russian’s Christmas" by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It reminds me of the good time I had at the Trans-Siberian concert last Christmas with Chad, Stephanie, and Ashley!
Highlight of the Weekend: I was fortunate enough to get a three-day weekend, woo hoo! Perhaps the biggest highlight was seeing my best friend Rachel get married to the awesome Austin! Rachel has been such an awesome friend who I got to intern with a couple of summers ago and when I came back on staff, she was still here. So suffice to say, her and I had some great conversation… let’s not forget all the times we watched The Office! Ha ha!
Another Highlight of the Weekend: I have a tendency to procrastinate, so notice my amazement when I actually finished up most of my Christmas cards! I also went out and did a little Christmas shopping. I’m not a big fan of Christmas shopping, as I’d rather give gifts randomly. But all the friends are doing a gift exchange, so I went around and found some things. I even bought a few things for myself including one of those "Fireplace" DVDs that put a fireplace on your TV screen. I also got the new Harry Potter on Blu-Ray and White Christmas. Yup, after not updating my DVD collection in a while, I have three new additions.
What I’m Looking Forward To This Week: This is going to be a short work week with Christmas lunches and parties on Thursday and Friday. After that, I’m going to be off of work (except for a few minor things) for two weeks.
Christmas Movies I Still Haven’t Watched Yet: I love Christmas movies, but there are still some I haven’t watched yet this season:
Ernest Saves Christmas
It’s A Wonderful Life
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
A Christmas Story (had it on, didn’t really pay attention)
The Preacher’s Wife
Picture of the Day: This picture is from Rachel’s wedding. It’s a little blurry because I used my iPhone (I didn’t feel like lugging my good camera around). You can see the flower girl, then John-David as the ring bearer, and Hudson behind them as the bell ringer. John-David and Hudson are the sons of our college pastor David. It’s been fun watching these boys grow up! Hudson took his job as bell ringer very serious!
Quote of the Day: "If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together.. there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we’re apart… I’ll always be with you." – Winnie the Pooh
I got to know Jon’s music a few years back, if not longer (time seems to go by quick). I like Jon for two reasons: one, he’s from Indiana and two, he is heavy on the piano. While other artists in his genre rely on guitar, there’s just so much more you can do with a piano. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the guitar. But the piano can really dominate a piece of music with such range, depth, and power… perhaps musicians are the only ones that can truly appreciate that.
One of my goals for the next year is to get back into playing piano. While I’m not the best pianist, there is something greatly therapeutic about practicing a song so many times that it becomes a part of you. In a way, the notes just go straight from the brain right to the fingers and onto the keys. I’ve decided to make my comeback to piano by learning how to play Jon’s song, "Indiana." I chose it for two reasons (I seem to have a lot of reasons): one, it’s not too difficult to play and that’s the beauty of it. Second, the song kind of mirrors my feelings about my hometown.
I love Indiana. And while I’ve contemplated moving somewhere else (and probably will at some point in my life), Indiana will always be a deep part of who I am. While this song has the theme of a guy whose heart has been broken and uses his home in Indiana as a distraction, I still love it. It doesn’t matter where you’re from, life is going to take you many different places and when it’s all said and done, there will always be home. Okay, enough rambling on about what I think about the song.
Indiana
Jon McLaughlin
I’m glad I never lived next to the water
So I could never get used to the beach
And I’m glad I never grew up on a mountain
To figure out how high the world could reach
I love the miles between me and the city
Where I quietly imagine every street
And I’m glad I’m only picturing the moment
I’m glad she never fell in love with me
For some the world’s a treasure to discover
And your scenery should never stay the same
And they’re trading in their dreams for explanations
All in an attempt to entertain
But I love the miles between me and the city
Where I quietly imagine every street
And I’m glad I’m only picturing the moment
I’m glad she never fell in love with me
The trick of love is to never let it find you
It’s easy to get over missing out
I know the how’s and when’s, but now and then,
She’s all I think about
I wonder how it feels to be famous
But wonder is as far as I will go
Because I’d probably lose myself in all the pictures
And end up being someone I don’t know.
So it’s probably best I stay in Indiana
Just dreaming of the world as it should be
Where every day is a battle to convince myself
I’m glad she never fell in love with me
I found this little gem of a video while going through the old family videos. It was 1996 and my Dad had joined a barbershop chorus called "Pride of Indy." Don’t ask me why he did it, only he can really answer that. But that year I decided to join him and the guys during the Christmas season and it was the first year I was really exposed to four-part harmony.
This video was taken from a local television station’s Christmas special and was filmed at the ArtsGarden in Circle Centre Mall. For reasons I can’t recall, I didn’t take part in the filming, although I was on location while they were doing it. I did, however, come back on another day and perform with the guys during a busy shopping day. I would post video of that day, but our cameraman had a hard time keeping the camera steady… thanks Uncle Larry! Ha ha!
This memory sticks out to me for a couple of reasons. One, it took place about a year after Circle Centre first opened… and for some reason, I thought that Circle Centre was the greatest thing around. Second, and most importantly, it’s time I got to spend with my Dad. I also really enjoyed hanging around these guys, it was a great time!
