da Blog

Alright, since it’s nearing Christmas, I’ve been thinking about what to get my siblings. This year has been the hardest one yet, so I’m taking ideas.

But, of course, the process of looking for presents brings me to stuff I want. It’s hard to separate the two. So, instead of giving you my “Bottom 10 Things On My Amazon.com Wishlist“, I’m going to give you the wishlist of things you cannot find on Amazon.com.

Of course, the best place for funny stuff on the ‘Net is HomestarRunner.com. Sure, I’d love a Strong Bad T-shirt or an oppertunity to Kick The Cheat, but the creme de la creme are the strongbad_email.exe DVDs. I mean, since mom and dad only have dial-up, that’s the only sane way to show them the world of Coach Z and the KoT – on the TV. Plus, there’s tons of bonus features. Heck, right now they even have a combo deal.

Another important thing is my collection of Phil Keaggy CDs. Not only are there bundles of CDs I would really love to add to my collection, this Christmas season there’s some only ’70s re-releases that I’d love to have. Way back in the day, Phil was the leader of the band Glass Harp, and their albums are remastered and on CD for a limited time only. I’ve priced them on eBay for months, and those CDs usually go for $30-$50 each when they’re not in print.

Alright, enough shameless promotion of myself and my wishes. Oh wait, what else is a blog for?

So what am I thankful for this Thanksgiving?

I’m thankful that I got to hang out in pools and waterslides like it was the middle of the summer! (In reality, it was a high of 20 degrees outside, and I’m talking Yankee temps, not real temps.) My family took a two-night trip to The Wisconsin Dells, a touristy spot that makes it’s bread ‘n’ butter on summer waterparks. At first I thought we were just gonne be stuck in a hotel for a couple days doin’ nothin’, but when I got there I found it wasn’t any old hotel. The Great Wolf Lodge doesn’t just have 500 rooms and look Log Cabin-style, it’s got some great waterworks, and almost all of it is indoors!

We went down at least six different waterslides at least 50 times in those couple days, plus spent a lot of time in the “lazy river” and even more in the hot tub (the one that’s for adults only, of course). One of the funnest attractions is a playground area, on top of which there is a 1,000-gallon bucket that dumps the water all over the room every five minutes. Their biggest ride is the tornado ride, where a four-person inner tube enters a crazy ride of water, swirling funnels, and screaming. And remember to watch the first drop! I surely wouldn’t mind going back sometime next year, when they’ll have a whole new section of their indoor waterpark with a wave pool and at least four more nice waterslides.

What else besides keeping the “Theme From Summer” going? Well, it was great to hang out with my family, especially since I hadn’t seen half of them in the last three months. It was tons of fun, even though my parent’s house just makes me sick.

Oh yeah, and I’m thankful for beer too.

Life. It’s amazing, but it’s tough.

This afternoon some very important people in my life hit me over the head with a two-by-four. It’s a shame they had to do it, but all too often I need a kick in the ass to get me moving. Thanks, Lord, for letting them do it in a very kind and generous way.

Please keep me in your prayers. I’m mostly over the easy part of realizing that they were 100% correct in what they said, but the hard part is following through. It will be a great excersize, though, in perseverance and endurance, because I realize I’ve hardly ever done something with my whole heart and mind before. But I’ve got to, so I will …with your prayers and God’s grace.

“…And I regret my ways
You never left
Remind me once again so I won’t forget
You’re never far away.”

“OK, music man, so what’s the latest big thing in music today?”

Don’t worry, I have your answer. If you’re a podcaster, don’t worry, they’re not on the big labels …yet.

The band used to be the independent sensation called The Rock ‘n’ Roll Worship Circus. And they were amazing in their own right, flourishing in the world of independent rock music. They traveled all over the world of rock ‘n’ roll, from Radiohead to The Beatles, all in one album. Plus, it was some of the best worship music around, and I’m sure it got some youngsters into worship that were looking for a professional rock sound that they weren’t getting from their church band. They were on a mainstream label for a couple years, but it seemed that it was not meant to be.

But with their new disc, which released independently last week, is of an entirely new genre. It’s 100% experimental Brit-rock, reminding the listener of Radiohead or Pink Floyd. And although the music is still God-centered, it’s not about the worship anymore, it’s about hearing the Word proclaimed. The band is now officially called The Listening, and I can’t wait to get my hands on a copy of the album. The question is: How long will it take for a label to scoop it up? Or are they going to stay independent? (Oh yeah, check ‘em out on Myspace too.)

Last night I got to watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It was an enjoyable time. It remained true to the books and was, as always, a great visual treat. Of course, though, it was all about high school. There was a dance, guys asking them out, etc. The best part was the Quidditch World Cup, because they had a cool Olympic-style stadium for Quidditch and all, although it was a ibt short.

After work today I’m gonna stop by my mailbox and pick up my Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith DVD. It’s gonna be sweet. I probably won’t get a chance to watch any of it until Thanksgiving, but oh well.

I have all the Star Wars movies now! Yes, that makes me a real geek, I think. But somebody found something fun to do: watch all of the movies at the same time! Here’s the start of what he found – some very cool stuff.

Deepspace5 – “I hope you appreciate your purchase.”

Yeah, she surely did that. And now Gotee Records wants to take that papercut and pour lemon juice on it …again.

In June of 2002, Jennfer Knapp played a June 1st show in St. Paul, MN with Jars of Clay and Shaun Groves and, since then, has not been seen (to my knowledge). The official word is that she’s taking an undetermined-length sabbatical. In other words, like dc Talk, she might be back …someday.

But, in order to make sure we remember her after all those years, they decided they might as well release a live album. And so, later this year, they’re gonna do just that. Now, I’m sure it’s gonna be pretty cool, but is that entirely necessary? I mean, she only had three albums, she already had a greatest hits album, and now she needs a live show? How about we just save up our pennies until the day she comes back instead of spending hard-earned cash on another repackaging of 10 songs I already have twice?

It just pisses me off that labels can get away with this crap. It ruins the artistry, in my opinion.

“Just let it go…” Some say I’m stuck in the 90s.

I’ve been listening to Take Me To Your Leader and I thought it would be fun to listen to music from 1996 and 1997 only today. There’s a lot of quality stuff in there from Rebecca St. James, Jars of Clay, the first Switchfoot album, the breakout of delirious?, etc.

I’ll tell you how it was later. Maybe tomorrow I’ll do a day full of music from the 80s…