I want the Patriots to lose: Reason 4

On December 12, 1982 the New England Patriots hosted Miami in what has become known as the "Snow Plow Game". Here's the story in a nut shell: Snow, lot's of snow. No score. 4:45 left in the game. Patriots coach hails the stadium snow plow operator. He veers off the field onto the field to quickly clear a patch for the New England kicker to kick a game winning field goal. Dolphins lose. Patriots win. I know this game was played some 25 years ago, but it tainted my childhood. From that day forward I hated the Patriots. The venom continues to this day.

A loss for words

I was blown away by this video. Port-Au-Prince, Haiti is only 750 miles from West Palm Beach, Fl.



Watch here

Florida Primary

I went to my local voting precinct today at 5 PM and cast a vote for the person I believe to be most capable to lead this country for the next 4-8 years. With 57 delegates up for grabs Florida is a pretty important state. The party leaders have slapped Florida on the wrist by discounting the Democratic delegates completely and cutting the Republican delegates in half. All because we moved our Primary up. Politics, you gotta love 'em.

So you wanna know who I voted for?

2 weeks and counting....

Our schedule for the next 2 weeks is going to be crazy! Besides having to get all of my bases covered in my ministry, we have tons to prep for with our travels. We have to pack enough clothing for 1 month (including toiletries, etc.), pack for our sons as they own absolutely nothing, electronics (video camera, still, laptop, external HD), paperwork (a whole large backpack dedicated to paperwork). I'm sure that there is more but that's the basics.
For those interested, here's our schedule:

2/12 Leave US

2/13 Arrive Moscow

2/15 Medical exam

2/16 Leave Moscow flight 779 Aeroflot

2/17 Arrive in Krasnoyarsk

2/18 Visit children

2/19 Court hearing

3/5 Leave Krasnoyarsk for Moscow

3/5 Arrive in Moscow at 8am

3/5 Medical exam

3/5 Apply to US Consulate

3/6 Receive visa

3/7 Apply to Russian Consulate

3/10 Receive Registration

3/11 Leave Moscow for US (YEAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!)

I want the Patriots to lose: Reason 3

I lived in New England for 6 years of my life. As a life-long Miami Dolphins fan I used to get an ear full from the most obnoxious loud mouthed fans ever. The only thing I can compare Patriot's fans to are University of Florida Gators fans. Just over the top, can do no wrong obnoxious. I will never forget the heck I got in 1986 when New England beat Miami in the AFC Championship. I have never lived it down.

Good Bye!

Today I went to the Orange Bowl Stadium in Miami to say good bye to the grandest of all sports venues. It was amazing to see all of the Dolphin and Hurricane legends walking around and yes, play a flag football game. Here are a few pictures

Hit Me On My iPhone

WARNING: Watch this and crack up. Freakin' amazing!



Watch here

Good news....

Stay tuned. We have some good news concerning our adoption.
UPDATE: Penny has writen of our lastest adoption good news HERE

I want the Patriots to lose: Reason 2

The cut off sleeves. The heather gray, lack of color. Yuck. This is not personal, but dude, the Patriots have good colors, red, white and blue. Wear 'em! I know this seems shallow, but, it is my blog! Please don't read into this, there is nothing spiritual here. I don't like his hoodie.

On the road.....again

This morning Penny and I made another "quick" trip north to our state capital, Tallahassee. They should really consider making a sub-station capital city here in south Florida. This trip was a big deal, we actually MAY be able to announce a court date soon.

Only in Russia....

Found this earlier. After being in Russia and having to deal with the bureaucracies with our adoption, I believe every picture to be accurate.

See all pictures here

I want the Patriots to lose: Reason 1

For the next couple of weeks leading up to the Super Bowl I will share reasons I don't want the Patriots to win the Super Bowl.

Tom Brady is a ho. I mean the guy doesn't know what monogamy is. Not a very good role model for my 2 sons coming from Siberia. Could you imagine if this guy was of another ethnicity, he would be So labeled. This doesn't take away from the fact that he is THE greatest quarterback ever.

Jesus People

An old friend of mine, Dan Ewald, is a TV script writer in LA. He's a great guy and is incredibly talented. If you are up for a good laugh at the expense of the "pop' Christian culture, you will get a kick out of this. If not, oh well. Good stuff. Vote "Funny" at the end of the episode. If you like the first, there are 5 more episodes. Watch them here.



Watch here

Some Thoughts....

Our Student Ministry site is up and running. Let me know what you think. Link here.

ADOPTION UPDATE: nothing. Please pray for us and most importantly, our sons in Siberia.

Been watching Cheers. It might be the best comedy ever. I love that show!

The political scene is getting interesting. It may end up being McCain on the Republican side. That would be strange. I don't really like the guy.

We are getting a cold front here in SoFlo. Supposed to be in the 60's. Brrrr.

On my iPhone:
Theory Hazit - great hip-hop album all the way through. No worries of f-bombs and sex talk. Skillet - good Christian hard rock.
Mark Driscoll pod-cast - good Bible teacher
Hillsong United Live - Salvation is Here, All I Need is You, There is Nothing Like

Nice app I'm trying it's called Quicktate. It transcribes all of your voicemail to text and e-mails it to you. It responds pretty quickly.

I'm so excited to go to the last game ever in the Orange Bowl next Saturday. It is a sad thing to see such legendary stadium go away.

I like the direction that the Dolphins are going. We shall see.

Scariest man ever

Gangster, "Bird Road Rudy" Villanueva from Miami. Very scary. Agreed?



I stand corrected. Curtis Allgier from Salt Lake City takes the cake. Thanks to an anonymous Life & Times reader for this correction.

Beat that!

For those of you dealing with snow, freezing rain, sleet or just plain ol' cold, this is for you! I took this at 8 AM today as I was walking on the beach and having some time with the Lord. Not bad, huh?

Will's next big flick....

I love Will Smith. This movie is on my list of movies to see this year. What do you think?



Watch here

Siberian love story

Anytime I hear of anything "Russia" my ears perk up, my curiosity gets tickled and I have to find out more (for obvious adoption reasons!). Please read this story about a Siberian couple that was separated for 60 years. Very touching, with a little bit of Russian/Siberian history.

Read story here

ht: marko, neatorama

Should I update my iPhone?

Watch this video to see Playstations Twisted Metal 2 on my iPhone. Should I update the iPhone Firmware and lose these cool aps?

UPDATE: After updating the Firmware on Penny's phone I was not impressed with the new features enough to update mine. So no, I will not be updating.

Financial integrity?

AlterNet reports that U.S. Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) is leading a Government investigation and seeking detailed financial information from six mega-ministries. Here is a snippet from the investigation:

Joyce Meyer Ministries in Fenton, Mo. Grassley asks Meyer and her husband David to explain expenditures like a $23,000 commode with a marble top, a $30,000 conference table, an $11,000 French clock and a $19,000 pair of vases for the ministry headquarters.

Any thoughts?

iPhone web cam? Seriously.

My favorite Apple blog reports that a iPhone web-cam is in development. Wow. Read here.

Help a brutha' out....

I want to try this. My blogging friend Tim Schmoyer (he's a trusted youth pastor in Minnesota) has had tremendous results (free X-Box, iPod Touch and some cash). Please just click this link and become one of my referrals. It doesn't hurt and you get free stuff in return. I have signed to get a surround system.

Link: http://sony.v-bux.com/index.php?id=9260

Pray for our sons!!

I'm so there!

Date: Saturday, January 26th | Event Time: 10:00am – 5:00pm | Game Kick-off: 3:00pm

Flag Football Game:

UM Legends vs. Dolphin Legends

* Jim Kelly vs. Dan Marino
* Howard Schnellenberger vs. Don Shula
* 20 minute halves
* 50 yard field
* Seven on seven

Autograph Sessions

* All Day
* Free to the Public

Orange Bowl Stadium Legends

* On Field Presentation Honoring the following:
* 1972 Dolphins
* Quarterbacks from the University of Miami National Championship teams
* Don Shula
* Howard Schnellenberger
* Dan Marino and 1984 Dolphins
* Booker T. Washington H.S. Football team (State Champions)
* Miami Northwestern H.S. (State and National Champions

Mac owners only

For all of you Mac owners out there MacApper has put together an AMAZING comprehensive freeware list. If you are looking to pimp out your Mac computer with useful free apps than this is the list for you. It is broken into section and quick descriptions of each app. Some apps that I have downloaded are Handbrake (DVD ripper), Joost (web TV), Skype (VOIP), Flip4Mac WMV (watch ANY video format on Quicktime), Miro (web TV) and VLC (alternate media player). Enjoy!

MacApper List

Barry Obama (it just sounds better)

Let me preface this rant by saying that I am not endorsing Senator Obama for President. I am a self-proclaimed theologically conservative Christ-follower. I believe in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Barry Obama (as he is known outside of D.C.) encompasses those 3 things too, just in a different spiritual and political context. Let me explain, if I can. Monday Penny and I saw The Great Debaters. What a great movie! There are critics who would say some of the messages were too liberal. It all depends on how you look at it. I tend to be very understanding and sympathetic of some of the left-leaning politics that are embraced in the movie because of the horrific treatment of black Americans in the past and sadly still today. In the movie, Melvin B. Tolson (played by Denzel Washington) is a professor, who on the side was rallying some crop-sharers to form a union. He was labeled a communist and was roughed up by the sheriff and his men. In the movie, there were rumors and gossip circulating about his “politics” similar to the campaign of Barry Obama. He has been labeled a liberal, left wing, nut and has had gossip/rumor based e-mails sent out about him by some self-proclaimed conservative watch dogs. The two roles of Barry Obama and Denzel’s character are similar. When the general election rolls around in November, it will be interesting to see if the right wing conservative will vote for his or her candidate based on their theological conviction or just vote against the liberal. It’s a shame that we label, gossip and call someone names all in the name of righteousness. I think Christ-followers are above this, don’t you?

9 years ago tomorrow....

Penny and I made a lifetime commitment to each other in holy matrimony. I can honestly say that Penny is my best friend and I feel incomplete when I'm away from her. Today we celebrated our anniversary early by getting lunch at Cheesecake Factory and catching a matinee, The Great Debaters. It was a great day just hangin' out with my girl!

Adopt-a-block day

For the 5th month some men from church continued our adopt-a-block with Urban Youth Impact. UYI serves one of the most crime-ridden, economically depraved communities in America. We have been picking up trash, mowing lawns and just plain ol' community connecting and it's been amazing. I would encourage everyone to have some sort of outlet like this in their lives. Here are some pic's from today's endeavor.

E-bay sale of the day......

Sad, very sad. Click here
What is the strangest thing you have seen for sale on E-bay?

Musical Confession

I was one of those kids that enjoyed hip-hop in the '80s. Good story tellin' lyricist's are the best. Throw in a DJ to mix some beat and it becomes an amazing poetic-musical symphony. I saw this video today and it threw me back to those good ole' days. Please take time to watch this video and check out Theory Hazit on the inter-web.

Went bowling....

I left Jupiter at 5:15 AM and arrived in Jacksonville with the fellas around 9:30 AM to begin a day of college football. Texas Tech ended up pulling a shocker out in the last minute to beat Virginia 31-28. Here I am sporting a borrowed Texas Tech jersey. Notice my undershirt....

New Years thoughts....

Blog - I hope you like the new look! I will continue to post for Life & Times, often.

Reading - I am planning on reading more in 2008. Every year it seems that I set out to read more but it usually dies out the busier I get. I plan on reading 2 books a month, simple enough, yet challenging for me. My Biblical reading plan will be simple. I am taking the advice of a good friend and I will read 4 chapters of the Gospels daily. This means I will read the words of Christ through monthly and 12x of the year. Different than last years through the Bible in a year plan.

Physically - Penny got me the Perfect Push Up for Christmas. I am committing to do the included workout. I need to get in good physical shape for my sons!

Family - Penny and I will be welcoming our 2 sons to our family this year. After 9 years of marriage, our family will double in size. Please pray for us as we adjust to being parents to these very special boys.

Spiritually - I know that I will grow in the Lord this year. Because of my commitment to reading the Word every day I trust growth. I will also make this a year where I sharpen my understanding of the body of Christ. This year I want God to give me a deeper understanding of His body.

Church - In April we are planning on opening our first permanent facility. Very exciting but again, adjustment will be necessary. It will be so nice to have a physical home for our church. It will open up more ministry and community opportunities but also will bring us new challenges as a church.

Entertainment - Lets break it down to 3 movies, albums and TV shows that will be apart of my life this coming year.
Movies: Cloverfield (1/18/2008) - the new JJ Abrams (LOST) movie about something crazy that takes place in New York. Many believe it is Godzilla movie. I don't. Iron Man (5/2/2008) - another super hero movie, but it looks real good! Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - the last of the Indiana Jones movies. I know that Harrison Ford is crusty but it's Indy!!; Others - The Happening, Hancock, The Dark Knight
Music: Lenny Kravitz, "It Is Time for a Love Revolution" (2/5/08); U2 (no name, some time in late 2008); Gnarls Barkley (no name, some time in early 2008)
TV: The Office, 30 Rock and LOST

Politics - This election year will go down in history as one of the most over-hyped, tabloid riddled presidential election ever. It seems that our election is in the hands of the paparazzi and each candidate is a caricature. My prediction: Ron Paul will become the Ross Perot of this election and split the Republican vote giving Hillary a 43% vote and win over the Republican candidate.