Since the tickets were part of Mark’s year-long 50th birthday celebration (!) and for a couple of his all-time favorite bands, the Doobie Brothers and Chicago, there was no way in you-know-where we weren’t going. Being the always prepared and industrious person that I am, I ran to Target and purchased two $7.99 rain ponchos, and at the appointed time we loaded up the car with the new ponchos and umbrellas and headed out. Of course, we took the trusty Lancer in case of hail – wouldn’t want to damage the pretty Passat.

With threatening skies and a few lightning flashes we watched the first act (a cheesy one-man Il Divo ripoff lounge lizard type – what a waste!) and settled in for the Doobie Brothers set. Sidebar: I’ve never been a huge fan of the band, but they are incredible musicians – they were pretty much flawless. About halfway through their set, I began receiving texts from Aimee and Jessica: tornado warnings in Johnson County and two small touchdowns at the airport. Now we had a trifecta of weather awesomeness.

We managed to stay dry, texting for weather updates all the while, until the very close of the Doobie Brothers set – then the heavens opened, the new rain ponchos came out of their bags and onto our bodies, and the concert was put “on hold” while we and 3,000 of our closest friends huddled under the small pavilions at the amphitheater’s side.

After about 50 minutes of waiting, we noticed activity on the stage. Although it was still pouring, the show evidently would go on. When the music began, Mark and I stayed under the pavilion like weenies, but finally we said “what the heck – it’s only water” and ventured back into seats.

It wasn’t just the music that transported us backward in time last night. For about an hour we were kids – it didn’t matter that it was wet, cold, and uncomfortable…to say nothing of the fashion statement our rain ponchos made. I will always treasure the memory of singing “You Are The Love of My Life” and “Saturday in the Park” at the top of my lungs, soaking wet, squeezed under a partially broken umbrella with my husband, with rain beating down on our Target ponchos and the scent of new plastic in the air. Life just doesn’t get any better…

j

Praise the LORD, O my soul!

²I will praise the LORD as long as I live;

I will sing praises to my God all my life long.

³Do not put your trust in princes,

in mortals, in whom there is no help.

⁴When their breath departs, they return to the earth;

on that very day their plans perish.

⁵Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the LORD their God,

⁶who made heaven and earth,

the sea, and all that is in them;

who keeps faith forever;

⁷who executes justice for the oppressed;

who gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets the prisoners free;

⁸the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.

The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;

the LORD loves the righteous.

⁹The LORD watches over the strangers;

he upholds the orphan and the widow,

but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

¹⁰The LORD will reign forever,

your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the LORD!

I’m thankful for my husband, his love, his support, his encouragement, and his cheerleading for me all these years while he waited for me to grow up. He’s my biggest fan (like I have lots of fans…ha). I tell him all the time that love really must be blind because he thinks I can do anything. But that just makes me realize how lucky I am to have someone who feels that way about me. And he knows me better than anyone. That’s just cool.

To celebrate our anniversary we’re getting away for a couple of days to an inn that’s an old church. Check it out! Mark has always had a dream of renovating a church and living in it – this is probably the closest we’ll get.

later

j

But I digress … Anyway, the station has a weather blog. I am obsessed with this blog. I read it at least five times a day. No lie. It’s most fun when there’s a big storm forecast. Doesn’t matter whether it’s a blizzard or severe weather, people go crazy speculating about what they think will happen. Some people even ask the team what the weather will be like for their kids’ birthday party at 2 pm two weeks from Saturday at the park a mile from their house. Pretty insane.

Here’s the weird thing though. Even though I read this blog all the time, I have never commented. Not once. I’m a part of this community without being a part. I even feel like I know some of the posters, but they don’t even know I exist. I’m an insider, but a silent one.

I guess that pretty much sums it up. I’ve always been a little bit of an insider who chooses to stay on the outside. Anyone else ever feel like that?

I identify with their dissatisfaction – I “get it.” I am so there. 100%. But I finished the book feeling even more dissatisfied. And I’m not sure why.

Maybe it’s that I’m not sure these people can truly be called “revolutionaries.” For someone following Christ, is it “revolutionary” to want to know him more deeply? To feel great compassion? To work to right injustice and inequality? To be concerned with the disenfranchised? To live in community? To worship with other believers? To not want a status quo life? Aren’t those things what Christ called us to in the first place?

Granted, these folks are waging a revolt against the local church in America, NOT against living out Christ’s example. So many churches are marketed, sanitized, politically correct (as long as you vote Republican), and well…comfortable. That’s what Barna’s “revolutionaries” are fleeing. Comfort. Safety. Security. The “known.”

It still leaves me a little cold. Maybe it’s that Barna, once the champion of the church growth movement, is now on the other side of the fence – not just tracking a trend, but joining the “revolution” himself and trying to convince others to do the same. Seems like a little self-promotion here. Or rationalization. Maybe it’s my overexposure to marketing – do we really need a book about this? What’s the point? To sell more books? To “warn” church leaders of the exodus from their congregations? Maybe what’s bugging me is deeper than that. Maybe it’s that people are “fleeing” rather than “fixing” – running instead of rolling up their sleeves and doing the hard work of reformation.

Anyway, I guess you could call this a bit of a rant with a dash of cynicism thrown in. I’m not as angry as I sound. Really. But I am frustrated. And I’m not quite sure why.

peace,

j

Gotta watch American Idol – I have my priorities straight. Go, David Cook!

I don’t guess entries need to be about anything profound and they don’t need to be perfectly crafted – they just need to be honest. So here’s your dose of honesty for today: I don’t have anything to write about! Really.

But at least I made an entry. So is this a fake-out blog? You decide!

Seriously, I’m discovering that this blogging thing is sort of a discipline. I’ve never been very good at writing things down, even though I like to write. Journal-keeping hasn’t ever been my thing, but I thought, “Hey, I’m online all day long so surely I’ll be able to blog regularly about all sorts of things: ideas, thoughts, rants, whatever!” Right. Maybe it’s just that I’m old – my kids find things to write about all the time. Or maybe I’m just a slacker.

So, to the 5 people who actually read this thing – hang in there… I’ll try to eat more fiber (ok, that was a lame attempt at humor about keeping regular… sorry!)

And don’t be afraid to post comments. They may actually force me into writing.

Who knows, maybe I’ll post more than once today. That would be something, wouldn’t it.

He said:

________________________________

“I picked up a USA Today and read on the plane this AM. Interesting piece called 10 GREAT PLACES TO MARK CHRISTIANITY’S HOLIEST DAY.

Of the ten, I have been to nine.

Here they are.

St. Peter’s Basilica. Rome. Of course been there often, and so has Jacque.

Bethany Beyond the Jordan. Visited here a number of times. Jordan.

St. Katherine’s Monastery. In the Sinai desert, extremely mysterious. Went here when I climbed Mount Sinai.

Great Theatre. Ephesus in Turkey. Was here twice.

Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Jerusalem. Of course this was a standard stop for us, often.

Cave of the Apocalypse. Patmos. We stopped here on a Greek cruise. Just a cave but hey, John was here.

Grotto of Massabielle France. Went here once. Did not like it.

All Saint Castle Church. Wittenberg Germany. I stopped here several times, once in the first year of living in Germay. Martin Luther place.

Basilica of Our Lady of Guadelupe. First went here with Dr. Reza. Mexico City. Horrible place.

Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Never been here. Spain. (At least I don’t think we have been here.)

Amazing, huh? When are you starting on your list.

You can look these up at 10greats.usatoday.com

rfc

________________________________

To this, my awesome brother said:

“Wow. That is impressive. You ask when I am starting on my list…well, my list is a touch different.

1. Lake Lowell- been there several times…great in the early summer, a touch green at the end of the summer.
2. Kuna Caves- been there a long time ago…quite caveesque.
3. Owyhees- been there, great rabbit hunting.
4. Silver City- in the Owyhees, but never been there…yet….can’t wait!
5. Grangeville- home of the museum of natural history, AWESOME!! Also sang in a wedding there.
6. Sun Valley- been there, home of many superstars, including Arnold, Ernest Hemingway. 1st true great ski resort in America.
7. McCall- practically live there…beautiful!
8. ……

You get the drift. HA HA HA!!

Love ya, glad you made it home.
Carey “

____________________________

To which I replied:

“Of course, yours is an awesome list and I hope to get to ALL these places (and more!) someday. (Lottery, anyone? ) For now though my list is a bit simpler. And you’ll have to forgive the “cheese factor,” but all of it is true.

1. Hearing Aimee belly laugh
2. Listening to Ryan wax eloquent about the latest audio gear (check out his blog ) and watching he and Claire carve out their new life
3. Giving thanks for Scott’s health/new job and Jessica’s promotion
4. Enjoying a warm, sunny day after a long, gray winter
5. Seeing a herd of deer out my back window and finches at my birdfeeder
6. Warm cinnamon rolls every Saturday morning
7. Music that feeds my soul
You get the picture but I don’t want to make you throw up.

Love!
J”

No real point in this post other than I am trying to learn to appreciate the simple things in life. Yeah, I want to “see the world” someday, but college tuition, work, and life in general means that I have to look for smaller ways to “see my world.” But when I look, wow, what I see is incredible!

Later!

J

But here I am.