Idiot Wind

How to Restore Your Lineberry Furniture Cart!

2010-08-27T16:40:00.000-07:00

My Lineberry Cart restoration adventure. As mentioned in the previous post, this info is from a beginner, for a beginner.

Find a Cart
We just got married in May, and needed a coffee table. We bought one on Craigslist, thanks Ikea. But I ended up not liking it; too cheap looking. I kept looking for more tables on Craigslist, and found a few "Lineberry furniture carts" that people were turning into coffee tables. Seemed easy enough and I really liked the retro look. Then I saw the SAME tables for sale on Restoration Hardware's site for $1300 (now they're around $900). Off to calling random people about their 100 year old carts!

I met a guy in Bunn, NC to look at his cart, and it was way too rusty, and the wood looked like it would have been too much to deal with. Contacted another guy who had one for $195, but the wood was water logged and very brittle, pass. The third try: found a cart at Market Imports in Raleigh. Great people, cool reclaimed stuff (some overhead), but got a really good deal. TIP: Don't give in too quick - there are hundreds of carts out there. Go ahead and haggle too, I mean, it's Craigslist.

Get an SUV or Truck, and lift with your legs
It took 2 dudes to load the cart into my Explorer. The cart has to be over 400lbs. Awesome. It was so heavy that when we returned home, dilemma. I actually took the cart's cast iron pieces off while it was still in the SUV. Saved some time and muscle strain. If you can, get a strong friend to help you move it to your garage, man cave, or back porch of your one bedroom apartment. I worked with the latter. TIP: Get a clean work area ready, equipped with a drop cloth (I chose a piece of old carpet). Another TIP: Take plenty of pictures of the piece before you dismantle it. Trust me. Lots of pics.

Get a belt sander
One of the first mistakes I made was trying to get 100 year old gunk off a table with Kleanstrip. Don't waste your time with chemical stripping.
As I said earlier, I have incredibly limited resources, and I thought stripping it would be easier than sanding. Get a belt sander from a friend. Or buy one from a pawn shop - with the economy like it is, pawn shops are filled with used tools. Buy a 36 grit sand belt. Hammer the nails into the wood to avoid tearing the belt. Go to town, sanding WITH the grain. Took 30 minutes, whereas the stripping and scraping took hours and did NOTHING. Sand it!

Rust

Your cart's iron pieces with undoubtedly have some rust on them. You have a couple options. One, get a wire brush and scrub 'em with WD40,and rinse. Two, get Naval Jelly for those tough rust spots (in the wheels especially), and follow the directions carefully. Use a wire brush here too. Get some latex gloves and cover your mouth. This stuff is pungent, but it works quick and cleans deep. TIP: This is the elbow grease part, wear old clothes. Rinse well and dry.

Options for priming, painting, patience
Hey beginners, there is no way you will finish this in a day. Pace yourself and slow down so you won't skip any details. Painting. I had some people suggest that I leave the iron in its natural state, and not paint it. But after looking on RH's website, a dude's Etsy page, and a couple other Google image searches, I opted for the a flat black finish. I just dried the iron pieces, cleaned them with some 0000 steel wool, primed them with a couple coats, and then finished with the flat black. Take a day or two to allow for proper drying. Stupid NC weather; the humidity was around 80-90% which slowed the process up. TIP: You can put car wax on the iron to seal it or something. I didn't. Got tired of looking up techniques and getting lost on unhelpful wikihow pages.

Stain
This was one of the hardest things for me. I'm a perfectionist, and I had no furniture staining experience. I had no clue the difference between water and oil based stains, or how to sand the wood in between coats, how much stain I would need, and the list goes on. After literally 6 trips to Lowes Depot, and after 5 different stains (!), I found it.
I wanted the sandy, natural look, without all the shimmer and gloss. So after all that searching, I found a water based stain by Minwax called "desert sand." Stained the whole thing with an old white t-shirt, and went back to have a drop of 109 added to darken it up (made it a cocoa color). Coated the top with the darker stain for subtle contrast. If you like this look, you're very, very welcome for this info. TIP: Don't forget to get the Minwax Polycrylic sealer to finish the job. I did 3 coats, sanding with 220 grit sand paper in between coats. TIP: Kind of a generic tip here, but read the can before you start. You will mess up if you don't (see end of article where I outline mistakes I made).

Nuts and Bolts
This will vary from cart to cart, but I found that replacing all the hardware was the best way to go. The bolts were stripped and badly dinged up, and the nuts were rusted. And they were 3/8 x 2.25 carriage bolts! The hardware available today only comes in 2 or 2.5 in, not 2.25 in. Kind of a small detail, but I wanted the bolts to be flush with the nuts. So I swapped out bolt after bolt and tried many options before discovering that a 3/8 x 2 carriage bolt with no spacers or lock nuts worked perfectly.
TIP: Take your bolts to the hardware store. Do your measurements, it will save you many return trips to the store and many headaches. Also, I went with square bolts. Check the "specialty bolts" drawer at your hardware store.

Black out the bolts
Dilemma. There are no black bolts. You can get them powder coated, or paint them yourself, screw them on, and they touch them up. I patiently primed and painted the bolts (much like the iron pieces), and let them sit for at least 24 hrs before I touched them. This strengthens the bond. Clean and sand your bolts for a better bond. TIP: Get a spare piece of card board and arrange the bolts on it for painting. They'll stick to the cardboard and break off easily when you start to use them.

Put it together
Now the fun part! Hopefully you have been patient. I flipped my cart upside down on my make shift sawhorses, and attached the corner pieces and wheels. The new nuts and bolts came in handy here, as screwing them together was incredibly easy on the hands and their new paint job. To tighten the bolts I put an old t-shirt over my wrench to protect the finish. Remember when I said take pictures? The middle wheels were a bit of a challenge to install, but I was able to look at my old pics to figure out where the washers went, which way the wheels faced, etc. Then the cart was ceremonially flipped over and rolled into the house! TIP: Even after the meticulous prepping for the paint job, there was still some debris from the black paint that I needed to lightly rub off. I caught this before rolling it onto our white carpet, whew. You can steel wool it or just wipe it with that old t-shirt you used to tighten the bolts.

Touch Ups and Consequences
Once flipped over, there were some spots I missed with the spray paint. I crafted a piece of cardboard to protect the wood, and touched up as necessary. Take your time. I missed one piece and sprayed about 2 inches of the wood. Bah. Sanded it off. Now that the cart is inside, you will probably notice a few things you would have done differently. Another coat here, a quick sand here, more attention there, etc. I just had to realize that the cart has character. The blemishes are part of its 100 year existence. Cool. Also, your cart may rock, or teeter a little. Mine wasn't bad enough to spend time on it. We're fine with it!

You're Welcome
I know that someone will find this beginners' DIY helpful. As stated before, I contacted at least 5 people on some useful tips on how to restore these carts, with no help at all. Below is a list of what you may need. If you have any other tips or comments, please feel free to post your thoughts! For those following the steps, please post your progress! Let's see some before and after shots!

My $60 Store List
Belt Sander with 36 grit belt (borrowed)
Drop cloth
2 Combo packs of sand paper
0000 Steel Wool
2 paint brushes
1 wire brush
WD40 and/or Naval Jelly
Latex gloves (painter's mask/goggles if you're extra-careful)
Metal pans (used old pie pans)
2 cans Rustoleum Flat Black
1 can Rustoleum Primer
Minwax water based wood stain: Desert Sand/Cocoa
Minwax water based polycrylic
28 3/8 square specialty bolts
28 3/8x2 carriage bolts

My Mistakes
Applied a polyurethane right after sanding before deciding on a stain
When testing stains, I opted to paint the whole table. Once it absorbed, and I didn't like it, I had to sand the whole table again to re-stain. Stain small sections first.
Made my list too late (too many return trips to hardware store)
Ripped a sanding belt because I didn't hammer down the nails enough
Went with a chemical stripper over sanding at first
Lost a couple receipts

Did this article help you out? Please donate:

New Project: Restore an Antique Lineberry Furniture Cart

2010-08-26T11:13:00.001-07:00

I'm going to walk through how I've restored my old cart for a couple reasons:

1. No one wants to buy a $1300 coffee table from Restoration Hardware
2.These carts are everywhere and range from $50 to $350 used
3.Anyone can do this with about $100 of Home Depot goods and some elbow grease
4. No Lineberry cart "vendors" gave me ANY hints, techniques, suggestions, etc.
5. There must be others out there searching for this kind of DIY project!

I will be posting my progress, failures, and suggestions in the coming days. There will be, undoubtedly, some misinformation, due to my inexperience. There will be some carpenters and iron-workers who may post and say I wasted my time with something, should have bought such and such a product, or flat out did a few steps wrong. That's great! I think that is what a lot of DIY's out there are looking for. So get ready, and feel free to comment if you found this by googling!

Anyone interested?

What if you saw this on Craigslist?

2010-04-17T19:17:00.001-07:00

I sure did. And I'm pretty sure some kid got pranked.
And yes, I called the number. The kid's name is Daniel.

Caribou Journal

2010-01-14T09:55:00.000-08:00

One entry: "Pray for Haiti"
Another entry: "Or actually do something useful about it"
Yet another entry: "Or do both"

The Proper Response

2010-01-13T09:15:00.000-08:00

Another natural catastrophe struck Haiti. There is still no word concerning causalities. Their National Palace, parliament, and tax office collapsed, as well as some sschools, and hospitals. Their Arch-Bishop Joseph Serge Miot was among those killed. And in complete disarray, "people wandered the streets holding hands. Thousands gathered in public squares to sing hymns."

"The hospitals cannot handle all these victims," said Dr. Louis-Gerard Gilles. "Haiti needs to pray. We all need to pray together."

I can not give you a great argument for why God allows these catastrophes. I really can not. But I can quote Christ's words in the Gospel of Luke:

There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.

"Haiti needs to pray. We all need to pray together."

Wha-oh

2009-12-22T19:15:00.000-08:00

Here

And do read most of his posts.

"Hearts on Fire" contest/engagement story in the mix, here's an excerpt from my FINAL Hebrew paper...

2009-12-21T09:09:00.001-08:00

In response to the sixth commandment, mankind naturally fails in keeping it. He fails accidentally, as a manslayer, because he lives in a rebellious world ruined by sin. He actively fails in his premeditation, proving the filthy, wretchedness of his own heart. God communicates the warning “You shall not murder,” because he knows what is in all men. Men will kill because they are murderers. Jesus Christ beautifully developed this command in Matthew 5:21 – 26 by attributing hate of one another as equal to murder. Later in Matthew, in response to the rich young ruler’s response to have kept the Ten Commandments, Jesus’ reply points out that the young man was still not righteous (Matthew 19:18-22). Jesus would state that most important command is to love the Lord with all you heart and love your neighbor as yourself. The command against killing is not meant to provide humans with an ethical checklist in the sense of creating their own righteousness. As murder is equal to hate, the point of the command is to drive man in-ward, into his own soul, to arrive at the conclusion that he cannot keep this law, or any law that God demands, perfectly. What is then communicated in the law is the separation of the character of man from the character of God, and this leaves man helpless. Glory be to God, that Jesus Christ comes in flesh and fulfills the entire law, including “you shall not murder” and offers the gift of salvation from bondage of sin to those who would become children of God.

Great Stott!

2009-09-16T15:38:00.001-07:00

Man, I've read The Cross of Christ three times now, and it still so good.

On the Last Supper, and the need to appropriate the death of Christ personally:

"Again He took and blessed the cup, but then he explained its meaning as he gave it to them to drink. Thus they were not just spectators of this drama of the cross; they were participants in it. They can hardly have failed to get the message. Just as it was not enough for the bread to be broken and the wine to be poured out, but they had to eat and drink, so it was not enough for him to die, but they had to appropriate the benefits of his death personally. The eating and drinking were, as still are, a vivid acted parable of receiving Christ as our crucified Saviour and of feeding on him in our hearts by faith." (cf. Jn. 6:53-55)

pg.70

Whew

2009-08-28T13:37:00.000-07:00

Concerning the parallels of Adam and Christ in Romans:

We may not try to trace parallels in every detail; in the operation of redemptive grace there are factors which far transcend the operations of judgment in our relation to Adam's sin, as Paul observes in Rom 5:12-19. But a parallel to this extent is surely not without warrant, that as representative solidarity with Christ in his obedience unto death and in his resurrection secures and insures subjective renewal in regeneration, so representative solidarity with Adam in his sin involved for posterity their subjective depravity as well as the forensic judgment of their being "constituted sinners."

From Murray's The Imputation of Adam's Sin

"Dogmatics in Outline" insights:

2009-06-03T17:27:00.000-07:00

"Christian dogmatics will always be a thinking, an investigation and an exposition which are relative and liable to error…as a science [it] takes about the content of the proclamation in the Christian Church."

(i.e. Thinking through the whole of Scripture, understanding it to be Christ, and the labor of laying down principles as incontrovertibly true THAT the proclamation of Christ would be more pure and more powerful. This is me talking.)

“If we look past [Christ], we must not be surprised if we fail to find God and experience errors and disillusionments, if the world seems dark to us. When we believe, we must believe in spite of God’s hiddenness. This hiddenness of God necessarily reminds us of our human limitation. We do not believe out of our personal reason and power. Anyone who really believes knows that. The greatest hindrance to faith is again and again just the pride and anxiety of our human hearts. We would rather not live by grace. Something within us energetically rebels against it. We do not wish to receive grace; at best we prefer to give ourselves grace. This swing to and fro between pride and anxiety is man’s life. Faith bursts through them both. Of his own strength a man cannot do it. We cannot deliver ourselves from pride and anxiety about life; but there will always be a movement of defiance, not last against ourselves."

"Wisdom is the knowledge by which we may actually and practically live; it is empiricism and it is the theory which is powerful in being directly practical, in being the knowledge which dominates our life, which is really a light upon our path. Not a light to wonder at and to observe, not a light to kindle all manner of fireworks at – not even the profoundest philosophical speculations – but the light on our road which may stand above our action and above our talk, the light on our healthy and on our sick days, in our poverty and in our wealth, the light which does not only lighten when we suppose ourselves to have moments of insight, but which accompanies us even into our folly, which is not quenched when all is quenched, when the goal of our life becomes visible in death. To live by this light, by this truth, is the meaning of Christian knowledge."

And finally,

"Where there is faith, man in his complete limitation and helplessness, in his utter abandonment and folly, possesses the freedom, the freedom royal in all humility, to let the light shine of the doxa, of the gloria, of the glory of God. More is not required of us but that is required of us. This public responsibility of our trust in God’s Word and of our knowledge of the truth of Jesus Christ is the general concept for what in the Christian sense is called confessing and confession."

And breathe...

Step 1 of 6 this Summer

2009-05-28T12:42:00.001-07:00

May 2

2009-05-02T09:49:00.000-07:00

1. A video with Mike Rowe from dirty jobs. (also check out TED.com)
2. Here's a website about the new epidemic: doihaveswineflu.org

Canes Win!

2009-04-21T20:09:00.000-07:00

Normally I wouldn't write about a hockey game. But this one was sweet.

Canes 4 Devils 3

Rachel's friend had 10 extra tickets to tonight's game. Carolina Hurricanes vs. New Jersey Devils. Playoffs. The seats were on the first level, right behind the Devil's net, so we got to see a couple goals scored up close. Thrilling. The idea of hockey is not laughable to me, but somewhat, mystifying I guess. Put big men in even bigger pads, strap knives to their feet and try to smack a rubber disc at a net. I guess I'm not cold blooded enough to grasp it inherently. But I did appreciate the game tonight.

Experiencing this game made me feel like my life was a little more complete. The loud cheering, the boisterous atmosphere, the high stakes, the last second goal and the final eruption, all that made me feel a little more human. Loud speakers, and being surrounded by many more die-hard fans sort of helped. Odd. I feel like I have one more trick in my arsenal of personal experiences. One more story to tell.

I know what you're thinking. If you were not a State fan, you would have this high much more often. Well. You're probably right.

Ark the Chinese Builders Bring

2009-04-15T13:17:00.000-07:00

Making Noah proud in Hong Kong. Brought to you by Breaking Christian News.

Web and the Extreme Pro-Lifers

2009-04-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

I had a couple more hot seconds today. Which is great. Little boring but great.
Yesterday I worked a looong morning shift, crammed for a Hebrew exam for 2 hours, then took the exam. Then hung out with Rachel a bit - she's slammed with lab reports, 3 papers on cultural events, one on bone fusion, and heaven knows what else. All that with leading a bible study, working in a lab, playing club ultimate for State - pretty busy all the time. Which leads me to my next point.

I frequent a few news sites when I first start up my MBP. Wired.com is always first. Today they had a column with their resident Mr.Know-it-all, an Ann-Flanders-type deal. That story led me to Clark Wolf's homepage at Iowa State. Then I looked into a syllabus of his for a bioethics class he taught last year sometime. Scrolled down and found a reading assignment on the Ashley Treatment. What? How did I miss this last year?

This girl's parents decided to keep their little girl, well, little. She had severe mental disabilities and in order to spare her more pain, they basically extracted her womanhood. You can read more about it here. They also cemented her bones with estrogen therapy so she would stay the size of a 10 year old.

As far as blogs go, this certainly is not a current events update. But man that is twisted. What do you think?

I went through a "Frasier" phase for a while...

2009-04-08T13:40:00.001-07:00

Here are some vocab words from the show:

Hothouse flower – someone who needs pampering or special conditions
Charlatan - a person falsely claiming to have a special knowledge or skill; a fraud
Flop sweat – nervous perspiration caused by a fear or failure before an audience
Busman’s Holiday – vacation during which one engages in activity that is similar to one’s usual work
Asinine - extremely stupid or foolish
Rapscallion - one who is playfully mischievous or a scoundrel
The Eleventh Hour - the latest possible moment
In Flagranti Delicto – caught in the act
Anon – soon, shortly

And now I will recount one of my favorite memories of Theology so far...

Dr. Hogg just finished an explanation of the location of inspiration in Scripture, and a guy raises his hand. I can't remember his question exactly, but it was something rambling like,

Guy: "Uh Dr. Hogg, with what you just stated concerning the revelation as found in, ah, the Old Testament, or was it the...(checks his computer), or maybe it was the New Testament, in Galatians, then how...where are we to find a correspondence or, or evidence of the new work that, that the Holy Spirit is actually present or if the Father is in the Spirit present?" (Something like that)

(A good four second pause)

Dr. Hogg, looking up: "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention to what you were saying, what was the question again? I was watching an episode of Frasier in my head, and Niles was trying to put out a fire in the kitchen while Frasier was entertaining guests..."

Hot Second

2009-04-05T12:12:00.001-07:00

Finally got one of those lazy, sunny days on our hands. Though pollen is caked on my car and circulating through my nasal cavities, it's still very nice to be alive. I'm sitting here with Rachel at Caribou, with not much to work on, thought it was time to update.

Mom is getting "better." The docs' found a trace of cancerous cells in her brain, so they're attending to that at the moment. I have no percentages of how bad it is, so we still wait and pray.

Did music for Jim and Meghan's wedding yesterday. Beautiful ceremony. I played piano for the first time in front of a crowd - pretty stressful. Before the ceremony started, when they were seating people, the wedding planner asked me to play some background music for 35 mins. Then I played How Great is Our God, then Take My Life on keys. My fingers are still a bit sore from that.

I'm still working at Caribou, still in school, still dating the same beautiful girl.
Trying to figure out what to do this summer...

New Bike - 1978 Dawes Echelon

2009-03-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

"New" Dawes road bike. Here's the message boards where I found out the make and model.

I can't figure out if he is acting...

2009-03-16T19:09:00.000-07:00

Joaquin Phoenix's new career:

Happy 2009

2008-12-31T20:29:00.000-08:00

Oh Nine.

Good Morning a.k.a. Moblie uploads that might just make your day

2008-12-27T20:35:00.000-08:00

It will barely be midnight when I post this. But why not...

Hope everyone had a great Christmas. Mine was, well challenging. Since my parents are divorced, my holidays are pretty much divorced. I went to 5 different places for Christmas Eve/Christmas. On top of that, my mom was in the hospital for some weird nausea she was having, and I was/am sick with the flu. And, on top of that, Rachel is now residing in the glorious Dominican Republic for a medical/missions trip. And I just slept all day. Enough of that raincloud. There are some brighter moments to update you eight on:

Got my brother a '75 Fuji bike

3rd row seats at Duke Chapel for Handel's Messiah

Rachel's sister Rita ran her first marathon (Every word "r")

Mom's cat still growing

Becoming a Shift at Caribou

Christmas Decorations?

Got a new Driver License at the DMV

My swanky new v-neck Vans shirt

And a Merry Christmas to you too, Will

How to stay warm this Christmas...

2008-12-10T18:06:00.001-08:00

1. I laughed for a couple minutes once I found this. (Watch the video) I just laughed again.

2. Grow a beard and work at Caribou.

May it be noted

2008-10-29T17:14:00.001-07:00

in regard to my "Idiot Wind" header, that I have been advised to clarify that no persons' name is to be associated with the word "Idiot," despite its apparent close proximity to the word. That is all...

The 100th Post

2008-10-17T07:34:00.001-07:00

In lieu of this grand occasion, I give you this.

Another Update

2008-10-16T15:48:00.000-07:00

To keep you in the loop

1. Mom had surgery, they removed the tumor
2. During the surgery the doc had to maneuver around a nerve next to her vocal chords; He must have nudged it - one of her vocal chords is temporarily paralyzed
3. The surgery was successful, but there is still a chance the cancer will come back
4. More chemo to come in the next 6 weeks

Thanks again for the prayers

Two Videos

2008-10-16T15:41:00.000-07:00

Found this on a friend's blog
(You may want to skip the part at the beginning when "Lawrence" is talking...)

Thanks Will

As luck would have it

2008-10-09T19:36:00.000-07:00

First, a picture of the drink screen at Caribou yesterday. I was on bar.

Second, a picture of an empty fortune cookie I received tonight at dinner. An empty fortune cookie. No fortune. What's humorous is that after our waiter handed out the magic treats, I bluntly stated that there is no such thing as luck.

Try this out

2008-10-07T14:39:00.000-07:00

Noisetrade.com

Derek Webb's artist-to-fan site, with lots of free (or pay what you want) music.

Here we are...

2008-10-05T13:41:00.000-07:00

1. My mom's tumor shrunk 90%. She's happy about it, as is the family, and she will be having surgery this Wednesday.
2. I'm restoring an old Peugeot UO8. See pics.
3. Rachel and I are going to Providence Baptist now, which turned 30 yrs. old today.
4. Every State football game a new set of drunks sit behind us. Where do they keep getting these tickets? I think a local pub gives them away in drinking contests.
5. I have fall break this whole week.
6. Ben Folds came out with a new CD. Might not get it this time.
7. Never go to Flythe Cyclery on Peace St. The worst. I mean, horrible.
8. In my opinion, The Office redeemed itself last Thursday.
9. Can someone tell me who Phil Wickham sounds like?

I was going to give each of these events a whole post, but, eh. I will also be accepting names for the Peugeot I'm fixing up. Until next month...

New Header

2008-09-08T19:16:00.000-07:00

All's OK. Mom's getting better/worse. The treatment is working well; she has a few more weeks left. I'll post more soon...

Up to Date...

2008-08-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

I need to change that trivia question. It was Marx, by the way. And now another update. You want the good news or the bad news first? Okay.

The Good News: The cancer was in fact localized and did not spread to her lymph nodes. They found it in the beginning stages. They are going to treat it with...

The Bad News: Radiation and Chemo Therapy. It starts this upcoming Monday, and takes 6 weeks. She'll go in almost every day.

I'm not so much worried about her receiving the treatment. She's a fighter and she said she wants to see her grandkids. Now all the pressure's on me. Not really, but what I am having a hard time envisioning is her reaction to a nicotine-free existence. They say smoking goes hand in hand with many activities, and kicking the habit is basically a lifestyle change. You really can't understand this unless you grew up with a smoker in your house.

So many of my memories of my mother are tainted by a Basic Menthol Light 100. It was like having another sibling. Smoking after meals, on long car trips, outside relatives' houses on the holidays, before and after my games in high school, et cetera. I'm not trying to make her out as a monster or anything, she has other great qualities, but let's call it what it is: disgusting. Like a sad, smelly puppet.

Now that that is off my chest I'll remember to keep you all updated with, well, what is going to come out of her chest. Thanks again for the prayers...

Not the best update...

2008-07-27T12:49:00.001-07:00

For the past week my mom has been in the hospital for tests. She's smoked for some 30 odd years, and it caught up to her. At this point the doctors say she has non-small cell stage IIIA lung cancer, which is of course, "[When the] cancer has spread to lymph nodes on the same side of the chest as the tumor (ref)."

Tomorrow, Monday, we will receive results of both the initial histopathologic biopsy, as well as the second round of exploratory surgery the doctors performed this past Thursday. She most likely will have to go through chemo-radiotherapy. Basically the good news is that there are four stages of lung cancer.

So that's the deal. For all those praying as of now, I ask that we petition for a physical as well as a spiritual recovery. As my mother is becoming the centerpiece of familial anxiety, I realize all the more the impact that her salvation would have on so many loved ones. Thanks guys...

I drew this for 45 minutes at work.

2008-07-25T17:50:00.000-07:00

Thumbs Up in My Neck

2008-07-17T15:20:00.000-07:00

I was driving today and saw a man jaywalking that reminded me of a hitchhiker I picked up one time. I was a sophomore at Southeastern, driving home in the rain, and picked up this dude who was drenched. Dirty jeans, ragged shirt, unkempt dreads and crazy eyes, this guy. We drove into Youngsville I think it was, and he began telling me he was a martial arts expert, with extensive training on pressure points around the neck area. With a rain soaked finger he prodded my neck, explaining that if he poked me hard enough I would pass out. He didn't, so I didn't, and after that test we had an interesting conversation about spiritual things. Oh, memories.

Rethinking Richmond: Part 3

2008-07-14T12:33:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Rachel!

Headed back up to Richmond this past weekend - this time with Rachel's sister. What can I say, it was great to have some company in the car. We arrived around 7 p.m., and went out to eat at Nacho Mama's. CaryTown once again impressed me. After the meal we went to the $2 movie, "Made of Honor." Probably one of the corniest, most uncomfortable movies I've ever seen. The Grey's Anatomy guy was in it with that girl from MI3. So bad. Sooo bad. Sorry if you liked it, but, man that was a bad movie.

Saturday we graced Carytown again, scoping out shops and such. Found an American Apparel store, bought some shirts. Then to Short Pump Mall. Oh my. I was very tired of shopping at this point. After that we ate some chicken alfredo at Rachel's and went to a minor league soccer game. The Richmond Kickers (great name), played some Pittsburgh team and beat them. Lots of yellow cards and one red one. That was the funniest part of the night. After some failed corner kick, the ball was cleared and as the other 20 players headed down the field, one guy just clobbered another guy. The ref wasn't looking, but the line judge was. Caught 'em. I think I was one of five people to see it. The guy got kicked out of the stadium and had to sit in front of the team bus. Everyone was laughing at him.

Sunday, Redemption Hill again. This time an assistant pastor spoke on Jonah, Luke, and sovereignty. Ate at Sticky Rice, took a nap, watched Rachel's ultimate team almost win, and headed home.

Also, listen to Jim Gaffigan. Rita and I were cracking up listening to him on the way home.

Eno

2008-07-10T19:56:00.000-07:00

Time to support the environment! Everyone's doing it right? I remember 5 years ago when people laughed at me for buying a Civic. Ahead of my time.

The Festival for the Eno is a yearly event where earth lovers frequent some park in Durham for a heat-filled day of craft glancing, folk and African music, and global eateries. You'll feel just like a nonconformist consumed by wanderlust. Rachel and I had a good time - eating pupusas, which, if you've never eaten a pupusa, shame. Look it up, it's not gross - we watched a Bohemian parade, walked down to the river but didn't swim, crafted bowls and German Shepherds out of clay, and finally, received glorious farmers' tans. At least I did. She got more of a spaghetti strapers' tan.

All that to say, it is a great experience; especially if you enjoy the outdoors, culture, and people watching.

No pics here; if you want to see some you can go to Rachel's facebook...

Best Colbert Quotes

2008-07-03T13:44:00.000-07:00

List of memorable quotes from the Colbert Report

ˈpoŏ sh ˌəp

2008-07-03T13:15:00.000-07:00

Chip and Lauren have started this new workout called one hundred push ups. See their blog for their progress. Sounds hard, but the workout lasts only 6 weeks and is doable. Really doable. Only 30 minutes a week. I started today. The best part is, if you complete the workout, you can put a shiny electronic orange completion badge on your blog. Or print it out and wear it on your chest, continually.

2000

2008-06-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

Just another quick nod to the men and women who inspire me to keep blogging.
You 8 are my favorite readers.

2008-06-26T17:28:00.000-07:00

When I purchased an iPhone, I bought into the idea I would need extra insurance on it. You know, if I accidentally dropped it, or if, well, anything happened to it. Now with the 3G iPhone coming out, I almost regret buying this package. Apple is sneaky. Unlike the old iPhone, the new one will require in-store activation. I.e., you can't buy up a hundred of them and sell them on eBay. I thought about selling mine, but who wants to lock themselves into a 2 year plan with a phone that really can't compare with its heir? No one. Right, so I decided to look into the AppleCare plan that I bought, you know, to see if I dropped it, if they would replace it with a newer phone. To my dismay, they will not. I did find a gem written in the terms and conditions of the plan that I'd like to share with you all:

Concerning the type of accidents not covered:

"Extreme environment (including extreme temperature or humidity), extreme physical or electrical stress or interference, fluctuation or surges of electrical power, lightning, static electricity, fire, acts of God or other external causes..."

That's right, careful readers. Apple has positioned itself as a company against the very hand of God when it comes to coverage. Whatever legal reason they purport for this addendum is beyond me, unless some zealot argues his way to court, citing that God miraculously destroyed his phone. Why stop with acts of God? What if an alien abducts and defiles my phone, mistaking it for some sort of anthropoid? Well that would fall under the category of other external causes I suppose. What I'm trying to get to here is, does anyone want to buy an iPhone for, ahm, $100? $50?

Glen Beck on Conservativism

2008-06-26T13:35:00.000-07:00

Article on conservative vs. republican.

Rethinking Richmond: Part 2

2008-06-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

You guessed it, I went to Richmond again this past weekend. This time was busier than last time. Friday, Rachel and I ate at Café Gutenberg - café by day, bar by night. Reminded me of Humble Pie in Raleigh, but with higher prices. After that, we walked down to Brown's Island that night and watched a show. At that point, I had probably walked 6 miles. Then, come to find out, Baby Mama was playing at a local $2 theater, so we went to that. The bad news was that I had no cash, and Rachel had spent two of her last four dollars on a diet something drink 30 minutes before. We were already late for the movie, but the cinema guy told us we could walk some 6 blocks to an ATM. In other words, we weren't going to see the movie. Dejected and wandering, we walked up Carytown. Not one block of doing this and I looked down and found a five dollar bill. And that's how that story has to end.

Saturday, whew. Eight of us drove up to DC to go to the Smithsonian, see monuments, etc. So we packed into two fuel efficient cars and drove the two hours each way. I was crammed in the backseat of a two door civic, seated behind a self-proclaimed Sunday driver. Rachel, bless her heart, planned the whole trip superbly except for the first stop. Our plan was to drive to the closest Metro, and catch it into DC. Turns out, one of the closest Metros was in a very sketchy part of town. The girls were freaking out, so that dog didn't hunt. We ended up driving into DC and parking behind the Capital building for free. Then the walking, O the walking. Not the best trip to wear a pair of Chacos flip-flops. Idiot. And I always thought you couldn't get blisters on the top of your feet. We walked all over the Smithsonian. I can't even recall what I saw. Planes, jungle, "name brand" sunglasses, crappy modern art, monuments, a couple metro stations, food, taxi, more. One of our last stops was the zoo, where we walked, ahm, 3 miles at least. Then another 3 back to the metro. Then another 2 to the car. Then we drove to Nationals Park to see the Nationals get beat by the Rangers. Overall I think I walked 20 miles on Saturday.

Sunday, chill. We up and went to Redemption Hill, a church plant of Vintage21 in Richmond. They meet in an elementary school at the moment, but have big plans for Richmond. You can't tell, but I just looked up a lot of info on the legal issues surrounding religious organizations meeting in public buildings. Some trial made it to the Supreme Court and the judges sided 9-0 with the churches/religious groups. Booyah. After church, we ate at Sticky Rice - so good. I, for one, hate sushi. I said it. I realize at this time and place in my life, considering my friends and co-workers, it is blasphemous to do at least two things: not eat sushi, and not back Obama. Oh well. Just like I enjoy being full after I eat, I enjoy knowing my morals are shared by someone being elected to the most powerful office in the world. But I'm also a realist. Obama is going to beat McCain, and Rachel will eventually make me eat sushi. See how that second statement softened the first claim? Rachel also had an ultimate game on Sunday, so I went and cheered for that. They lost horribly, but she scored. Genius.

Then I drove back. I'll put some pics of the trip up a bit later.

Attack!

2008-06-20T21:22:00.000-07:00

Recently I ate some fast food. Some fast food with ketchup. Then I thought, "wait a second, I thought tomatoes are giving people salmonella..." Aren't they? Then what goop are we eating with our fries that no one seems alarmed about? How long do these liquid salt packets sit boxed up in warehouses? Months? From CNN.com:

"The reported advance in the investigation came as the toll mounted, with 552 people identified as having contracted the strain of Salmonella Saintpaul since April in 32 states and the District of Columbia."

I searched and searched, but I could not find the irritable scientist who decided to bacteria slap the Apostle. Even Wikipedia had nothing.

In case you do get sick, this lawyer seems like the guy to call.

2 Things

2008-06-18T16:06:00.000-07:00

Get Firefox 3 and Coldplay's Viva la Vida.

Rethinking Richmond

2008-06-15T13:02:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I went up to the capital of VA to see Rachel. She was one of 15 people accepted to do bio-med research at VCU for the summer. That's right. Genius.

The first time I walked aimlessly around Richmond was years ago (hey Chip and Lauren). This time Rachel and I walked at least eight miles, scoping out Carytown, coffee shops and the History Museum.

Carytown: Your local strip with countless galleries, restaurants, boutiques, and shops. It's like an artsy, worn-in Franklin St. For the first time I realized how flat parts of the city were. All the indy VCU kids rode modified beach cruisers everywhere. It made me want to dirty up my vans and get more tattoos. But I did have Chacos. The architecture around Carytown was really something. Two to three story Victorian pads with only 5-6 feet separating them. From what I could tell, almost all of them were filled with college students. It was like San Francisco with, well, no hills.

Science Museum: Used to be an old train station. We must have been the oldest, youngest kids there. It was your basic hands-on kids museum with exhibits ranging from space travel to binary code. The latter was pretty funny. They had a "mezzanine" floor with 1980s exhibits on binary code. You could take a sheet of paper filled with 1s and 0s and find the letters of the alphabet. The interactive computer modules reminded me of computer lab time in elementary school. There were even a couple machines on that floor that didn't even work. Loved it. There went the 80s.

Baseball game: The Richmond Braves, or Ducks, were playing the Charlotte Knights. I was the only person cheering for the NC team, as Rachel donned an old Atlanta Braves t-shirt to the game. A lot people were almost injured. The "protective" net behind home plate was inadequately small, and foul balls were zipping into the stands. It really is a great way to encourage concentration at a game. Rachel and I would be talking and hear a crack and just cower. You never knew if you were next.

The same day we also went to see M. Night Shaymalamianans "The Happening." Very attention-grabbing, yet not very satisfying in the end. Okay, spoiler alert: there actually is no ending. It's like he gave up on climatic twists. If you want a seven word description of the movie, I'd suggest: "Gasp! What? Gross! Gasp! Awe. Gasp! And..." I'd wait for the dollar-fifty release if I were you.

What Rachel is doing: Researching, ahm, artificial... Okay, she is taking silk, from silk worms, spinning it (?) and putting it in people's bodies. Repairing torn muscles/ligaments with synthetic, silky implants. And taking classes. Far away classes.

So there's a little slice of Richmond! If anyone has any parcels to send to Rachel, I'll be making the trip at least 6 more times this summer...

C'mon, Really? ...Really?

2008-06-09T19:13:00.001-07:00

A good reason to be up after 1:31 AM

2008-06-07T22:11:00.001-07:00

I, along with 3 other friends, signed a new 1 year lease on our house at Bloodworth. During the walk-through with the landlord, we discussed various problems with the security of the house, and asked that he fix them. Namely the broken locks on the windows, poor lighting outside, etc. Yesterday I sent in the lease, with a good amount of money. Come Thursday, my roommates said that some items of theirs were missing. Come sometime from 2-8:30pm today, the back door was kicked in.

After an hour with a local cop, Ed and I left Bloodworth to stay with friends/family for the night. Talk about an unnerving feeling. The officer said that there were so many break-ins and homicides the past few days, that there were literally only 2 cops at the station dispatching other cars. There are a few things fluttering through my mind right now.

One, I realize that we live in a sketchy part of town. We are no strangers to dealing with/ministering to vagabonds, drifters, drug addicts, etc. But it seems that the protection we felt, whether it be sincere or naive, was crushed with that back door.
Two, to expound, does one seek to break a lease, and accept this as an unintended consequence? Or simply accept it as a consequence for a larger picture of changing downtown Raleigh?
Three, I need to reconcile my actions with my convictions over the love of certain possessions. More than that, I need to know that my safety is not something I control.

It's not the first time I have had something stolen from me. But it is the first time that I have been locked into a legal agreement to occupy a place of residence that has recently proved itself dangerously volatile. Good night soon.

Hmm

2008-05-29T09:59:00.000-07:00

I bet Mitt Romney is uber glad he dropped out of the race when he did.
After all this controversy surrounding the Mormon ranch in Texas.
Just thought of that. Political zinger of the day...

Photo Update

2008-05-25T17:54:00.000-07:00

Click on the talk bubble to read captions...

Sigh...

2008-04-22T08:57:00.001-07:00

church sign
Uploaded by luvnews

The Homegroup

2008-04-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

Michael's been coming to our group for 8 months or so. Someone invited him after meeting him during an outreach ministry. Michael's from Miami, and moved to NC looking for a job. He's homeless, but he's aspiring. And he loves to write poetry.

Last Monday he invited our homegroup to an open mic night at Cameron Village library. Around seven I made my way over to the poetry night, and as I walked in the reading room I was overwhelmed. Almost all of our homegroup was there, as well as 10-15 other people from Vintage21. That's over 20 people. It may seem insignificant, but for me it was quite defining. Tyler (pastor V21) always talks about "living life together," and "laughing over good food until you cry," stuff like that. You know, the beauty of Christian fellowship and community. And I've known that. College, Camp Willow Run, my time in El Salvador - all taught me the importance of community and accountability. But here in my mid-twenties, while working and pursuing a master's, this kind of community demands a more persistent pursuit - for me at least. One of the brightest days in my week is Thursday, when our homegroup meets. Here is something I jotted after last Thursday's meeting:

Something hit me tonight. It was not like a punch, but like a burst of cool sultry air. I sat on a thick couch, just listening to my friends around me. Here we are, twenty somethings, filled with food and laughter, reveling in the wisdom of the Scriptures. I think I was just happy to be out of routine, ignoring the day. I honestly misplaced my thoughts of work and school and deadlines and of commitments. I just sat there.
It seems appropriate that we take our time. In an age of immediate knowledge and gratification, there is no way to speed up getting to know someone. Fine wine is only opened after years of settling. So as I gazed around the room, I realized this is a beautiful time in my life. I live downtown. I see skyscrapers in my windowpanes. I meet and minister to the homeless. I sink into sheets knowing I have an exciting job. My family is near, my food is near, my Saturday night plans are endless and my church is within walking distance. And I reflect, to Whom do I owe this great pleasure?

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow...

2008-04-16T12:44:00.000-07:00

Luke told me Southern put on a screening of a new Ben Stein movie. Looks like it'll ruffle some feathers. Here is a link to the site for trailers and shorts.

&c

2008-04-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

Reading Religious Affections by Edwards, came across this &c like 100x. It means "et cetera." How do I know that? My friends at acronymfinder.com helped on this one and they can help you too! Settle the debate, use acronymfinder.com for all your acronym related arguments. Do you know what NASCAR stands for? ESPN? ABBA? Find out right away at acronymfinder.com.

NEW! You can now search for over 850,000 postal codes!

AC Slater

2008-04-08T18:33:00.000-07:00

Our indoor soccer team won a game today. We are now 1-3. I scored and got an elbow to the temple. Signing out.

Kitty Hawk Trip

2008-04-07T16:13:00.000-07:00

Witnessing Covenants

2008-04-07T14:06:00.000-07:00

"No government official is inaugurated unless he or she promises, in the presence of the citizenry, to be faithful to the constitution. Why, then, should not the promise of lifelong faithfulness, which we as husband and wife should give each other, require public declaration in the presence of family, friends, acquaintances, and especially the church?(267)"

I knew a guy in college that felt he and his girlfriend were spiritually married, though they never had a public ceremony. You know, the "we took vows before God and don't need the state to tell us we're married." Maybe you don't. His situation was one of those nagging thoughts that came up when I would think about marriage. Nagging enough to get my attention, but not pertinent enough to require immediate research. After reading this chapter in Douma on the 7th commandment, I realize how ridiculous that idea is. We're not in a deserted island/end of the world scenario. Making a union public for the sake of accountability is a high calling - then to take vows before that audience and God Himself? Beautiful and obligatory.

April Fool

2008-03-31T16:19:00.000-07:00

A funny trick for a friend with a Mac.

For Your Viewing Pleasure

2008-03-29T12:56:00.000-07:00

Some sites to check out:

Hulu.com: Tons of streaming TV shows and movies - the YouTube rival with forced commercial breaks

Redlasso.com: News site where you can search for and clip your fave shows/controversial events for blogs, etc.

Breitbart.tv: More clean current events

Deal of the day!

Classic Leprechaun Vid

2008-03-17T17:38:00.000-07:00

And now some SPD/Irish trivia:

- The official symbol of Ireland is a harp
- St. Patrick the evangelist died on the 17th of March
- Today the Irish wear bundles of clovers in their hats and pockets
- There is 1 four leaf clover per 1000 three leaf clovers
- Ireland aka the Emerald Isle

My Foot Hurts and I Love Jesus

2008-03-17T07:57:00.000-07:00

Rachel and I went to Kitty Hawk a few weeks ago to visit Chip and Lauren. Wonderful trip. I got to drive an old Jeep on the beach, spend some qt with friends and see Chip in a giant easter bunny costume.

Another noteworthy item: Rachel and I ate at the best BoJangles in NC - it's in Plymouth. The sanitation grade was 98.5, the dining room was spotless, the food was perfect, the tea wasn't nasty or watered down. Go see Chip and Lauren and stop there twice.

And the title quote is from a tipsy man I overheard in a gas station. He kept repeating it over and over. I may make it into a song. Here goes.

I've found that while creating a post, a lot of work goes into it that you, the reader, can't see. But while I wrote about the title, I looked into that old Jars of Clay song "Jesus Blood Never Fails Me Yet." I heard it was about a drunk guy who just kept singing the same thing over and over. Turns out Jars of Clay didn't write it, and the guy wasn't drunk. There are some videos on YouTube about it. You can see it here or here. The first vid is a bit edgier. Thanks Gavin Bryars.

Flat

2008-03-09T14:34:00.001-07:00

While driving downtown in the rain, I sideswiped a curb and blew out my right front tire. If you think changing a tire is hard, try doing it in the rain. Buah. After I put the donut tire on, I drove over to my parents house to borrow my step-dad's truck. It's a stick, and I'm ok at driving a stick. I'm getting a new tire Monday. Now for the crazy part.

I drove to a coffee shop to read a bit. The wind was howling as I made my way down the breezeway. While in the coffee shop, I got the idea to see when the State game was. I am not that excited to see State play these days, but I decided to go watch the game. It was really like I had to leave at that time. I got my stuff together and went to the truck. As I walked up the stairs to go home, I see the truck rolling across the parking lot. Toward a Lexus and a Pathfinder to be precise. I ran like mad, caught up to the truck and dug my elbow and shoulder into the hood. My feet started sliding, but I managed to stop it, no joke, 5 feet from the other cars. Some other good Samaritan came over to hold it while I jumped in and started it up. It felt strange to know that God was tugging at me to leave the cafe when I did, so as to catch the truck right on time. Either way, I haven't had the best luck driving lately.

Jonny Surname

2008-03-03T12:17:00.000-08:00

Recently a bill passed in NC that allows adopted persons the right to reunion with their original birth parents. Consequently, that may be the most boring hyperlink ever. What? Strange topic?

My father was adopted when he was a year old. From? We don't know. Circumstances? Not sure. There's actually a lot our family doesn't know, about, well, the family. So after some seven months of bouncing around the NC House and Senate, HB 445 will allow him access to that information.

He told me that he wanted to find out where he was from, and what kind of medical history his parents had. And to see if we are heirs to some successful enterprise. But more the former. In all this, I just want to know what my last name should have been. Hopefully not Beard.

I did some reading online about the whole ordeal and found a blog called, ahm, go see it. Interesting stuff, apparently there is quite a political struggle going on regarding adoptee's rights. Can of worms, this one.

Well, I'm off to read a bit. I had an eye exam today, and they dilated my pupils. I really can't see anything up close. I may even be misspelling words as you read...

Living the Anti-Thesis

2008-02-25T13:56:00.000-08:00

I was reading The Ten Commandments - Manual for the Christian Life, By J. Douma, when I came across the statement found in the title^. Douma's commentary is to the point. He goes through Exodus 20, digging up the text and explaining the intricacies of each commandment.

Thus, my light bulb moment:

"We may certainly deduce from the negative formulations that man is a sinner inclined to transgress the law. In the law we have a mirror in which we look to see ourselves as we really are: you shall not kill, because you are a murderer; you shall not commit adultery, because you really are an adulterer! It is absolutely necessary that we come to know the law in this unmasking function (usus elenchticus)...the law of God liberates us from conceit and self-righteousness. It tells us rather clearly that we had better not look for our salvation in being decent or moral or law-abiding, but that we can be declared righteous only through a living bond with Christ - who has fulfilled the whole law.(10)"

2008-02-19T19:51:00.000-08:00

You should really check out the blogs/podcasts/writings by Al Mohler, Ravi Zacharias, and Peter Kreeft. Theologian, Apologist, Philosopher.

1000

2008-02-18T12:40:00.000-08:00

I just saw that we've reached one-thousand views on this blog. To all 7 people who are reading this, thank you. It's all about grassroots. Have a great day.

The Situation Room...with Charles Barkley.

2008-02-18T11:36:00.000-08:00

I have plenty to do, but I heard about this video and had to post it.

Why is Barkley on CNN? Well, because he is a consistent blooper reel. I really don't care what an aged, ex-NBA player has to say about politics. But I do understand that slap-stick interviews get more ratings.

In regard to Sir Charles' claims, I realize that some candidates/political leaders toss around their "faith" to garner votes. But what kind of guy goes on national television and calls all conservatives "fake Christians?" Even Blitzer was taken back by that comment. I really don't think our country can be united under this kind of press.

Best quote of the interview:

"And when I look at [Obama], he represents everything that's good in the black community. He's intelligent, he's articulate, he's a...we a, we need that, you know. Most of our role models are athletes or entertainers."

Athletes and entertainers. If you are saying that the your own image needs to be reformed for the good of the public, well, I agree. This TV spot was bad for Mr. Barkley in another way. At the end of the interview, he announced his plans to run for governor of Alabama. You know, Alabama, that crimson Republican state that Huckabee won. If Barkley does end up running, something tells me this tape may show up. Here's a shirt for you:

Yeeha.

2008-02-09T15:11:00.000-08:00

My grandparents decided to take the fam out to celebrate a couple birthdays. Their place of choice? Normally it would be the Angus Barn, or Tripps - something nice, kind of classy. Yet today, 7 adults and 3 toddlers sat snug around a table at Golden Corral. Very funny meal.

Times are tight - my grandmother even told the whole family that we could only get water, "because when you're in a recession, you drink water!" Make your body happy. That reminds me of an old Aquafina commercial...

2008-02-05T14:24:00.000-08:00

Although I believe life begins at conception, it's still nice to have a day where people congratulate you for being born. I'm actually glad that people don't congratulate me for being conceived - that is one of those, well, more difficult thoughts.

But hey, I am 24 now. And it was a super Tuesday. And a fat Tuesday.

Speaking of elections and celebrations, I would like to apologize to Mike Huckabee. Ever since I posted that pic of McCain on this here blog, John's numbers have sky rocketed. Even Mitt got scared and dropped out, thankfully, might I add. So I'll try to alter that photo a bit. Later.

This week went well. I handed in that Erasmus paper, killed some quizzes, and survived another week of life at the Bou. Here are some random things to get you through this weekend:

An interview with NT Wright on the misconceptions of heaven.

Colbert, Stewart and Conan fight over Huckabee:

Huckabee on ice:

How not to use Craigslist.

Some news stations report Tom Jones has insured his chest hair for $7,000,000. Well, I checked his official site.

That's all for now - I'm out like Ty Lawson...

Erasmus to Mirriam

2008-01-29T16:18:00.001-08:00

I was trying to read "The Praise of Folly" and came across this statement:

"Whoop Holiday!"

I laughed out loud. I think this phrase should be more common place...speaking of which:

I invented a word, and for the first time, I will be attempting to put it into type. The word? Well, here is some background first...

Many people say that chivalry is dead. You know, men doing courageous and courteous acts for women. Apparently, a lot of guys have been slacking off. Every so often I'll see a girl get the door for a guy, or hear of women being the sole leaders of setting boundaries or goals in dating/marriage relationships. This is a reversal of what was chivalry. Indeed this is "evolrish." More complicated explanation:

One night at Camp Willow Run, I was sitting around with a couple friends talking about chivalry and what not, when I got the idea to record my voice on a PC and reverse it. Thus "chivalry" reversed is "evolrish." Next step, contact the dictionaries. I did.

I submitted the word to Mirriam-Webster, and this is what they said:

"Dear Jon,
Thank you for writing, but I'm afraid we don't accept word submissions"

I thought this was an auto-generated reply, so I tried again and got this:

"Dear Jon,
Thanks for your e-mail. Your coinage is clever, but I'm afraid that
cleverness is not the criterion on which a word is entered into our
dictionaries. As I said in my earlier reply, we don't accept word
submissions."

So turns out that a "word," if that's what they call it, has to be cited thousands, if not millions of times in various publications before it is even considered.

Conclusion: With your help, we'll be rattling off "evolrish" in no time. Please forward this entry to all your famous friends/influential writer-types.

Maybe I understand Erasmus more than I think I do...

Catch Up

2008-01-29T16:03:00.000-08:00

Hello all!

It's been a while. The problem is, I have many things to blog - these sporadic thoughts during the day - but I forget. Been pretty busy with Caribou and school, so here are some updates:

- Got "employee of the quarter" award - which means I received an awkward fitting teal polo to wear at work, with something uncomfortably embroidered on the back

- Started classes: I'm sure I'll be citing things from my Christian Ethics class here soon

- I actually got an iPhone for Christmas...well, the plan was the gift. But I'm on a family plan still, and we were already AT&T customers, so it was cheaper

- Found a great place to eat downtown: Humble Pie - thanks to Dan Hawkins

- Put up pics on Facebook of Luke and I in Greece and Turkey

More to come.

While in the Granite State...

2008-01-16T18:59:00.000-08:00

A quick vid of spotting John McCain in an airport...

Happy 2008

2008-01-15T18:19:00.000-08:00

A little late, but what the hey.

I took a rest from blogging, not because there was nothing to say, but because I just didn't feel like typing it. And I was busy.

I have a lot to talk about, but I'll try to spread it out a bit.

Here's an old commercial that I was in for the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle. This actually aired on TV in the Triangle. Thanks to Bobby and Jim. I star as "glutton #1".

More to come...

Posts, not commercials.

About that iPhone...

2007-12-12T20:20:00.000-08:00

GOOD NEWS! GOT IT!

Well, didn't get the phone itself, but even better, I got a $600 check.

The whole process was laborious. I don't recommend it to anyone. This was just something I wanted to do to see if you really could take advantage of those little sidebar advertisements. However, if you are thinking about trying it, some tips:

1. Check out scam.com to see if that site is legit
Good site where I learned some dos and don'ts.

2. Create a secondary email address
I stopped deleting all the spam from my gmail account, and now it's around 1200.

3. Get a gift Visa card to fill out the offers
This way you can't get taken advantage of if something does go wrong.

4. Be patient but persistent
I called and emailed the company probably 20 times total. The process took over 9 weeks, but it probably would have taken longer had I done nothing.

It is also a good idea to avoid offers that make you list friends email addresses to participate. All I had to do was complete 5 offers, that ranged from $1 to $10 to sign up for. Over all I spent about $35. Another potential catch is that if you sign up for an offer over $600 you have to submit a W9 form for IRS gift reasons. I looked into the integrity of the site I was using and it was reputable. I saved all of their emails and "Terms and Conditions" policies to make sure. It ranks in the top 100 most visited sites in America. Overall, grueling process, but it was worth it.

Bob Dylan's Brush

2007-12-12T20:07:00.000-08:00

Random collection of some Dylan paintings in Germany.
You can also read about it here.

Chaco Sockos

2007-12-09T18:48:00.000-08:00

The jig is up.

Who doesn't love Chacos? You? Well, then this post isn't for you.

Chacos are the world's best sandal. Period. I even started a Facebook group about them. The only downside is that you can't really wear them in the winter...

A while ago I had an idea to make some socks you can wear with Chacos. I told Luke about it, and that's about as far as I got. I do not know the first thing about marketing an idea to anyone, so, I forgot about it. Whoops.

Turns out some guys in Florida also came up with the idea and have since cashed in on it. You can see their website here.

Kudos to them. I like my product name better though.

One man's trash...

2007-11-29T11:30:00.001-08:00

So if you frequent Goodwill, you will be surprised at what you find. Old records, used couches, sketchy golf clubs, the stale air of dead possessions*...yes. But guess what I got today.

$6 Wallabees.

Great shoes that cost over $100. So that's the good news.

Bad news is that they're women's. But good news is that Rachel wanted some Wallabees. So, technically bad news is good news now. It's a win, win, win situation.

On a related note, at Caribou this morning, a man in a corduroy jacket reported the men's restroom was a little dirty. Being the only male on that shift, I had to assess the situation. It was around 7am and we were pretty busy, so i decided to wait a minute to go look at it. A minute turned into an hour. I finally trudged into the bathroom, weathering laughs from my fellow employees. Brevity will serve us well here. On the walls, floor. Paper towels etc. stacked up a half foot high in the corner. Who in the world.
I'll tell you who... we noticed after a while that the same man who reported the incident kept going to the bathroom - he went at least 4 times. Culprit? Well, there's no proof anymore, thankfully.

The Fuzz (part 2)

2007-11-26T17:42:00.000-08:00

Twiddily dee, twiddily doo, blue lights.
I saw the cop following me as I was taking Rachel home after an amazing date. I knew as I was being pulled over that I had done nothing wrong. I knew it.

Officer: License and (yada yada yada)...please

Innocent Jon: Here you are Sir, what seems to be the problem Sir?

Offy: (slowly reaches for pepper-spray) Have you purchased a new car recently young man?

InoJon: Ahhhhhhhh, No Sir.

Offy: I've been following you and ran your plates. DMV records show you are driving with a canceled license plate. It says you turned it in. I'll be back in a moment.

IJ: Bwaaaaaaaaaaht?

To make a painful dialog short, I got a ticket for...(hang on, I'll get the ticket and quote it...one second here):

"You did unlawfully and willfully operate a motor vehicle on a street or highway, (DISPLAY)(REGISTRATION NUMBER PLATE) knowing the same to be cancelled. (G.S. 20-111(2))."

So! I called some family members to get an idea about what just happened. Talked to my parents, grandparents (who help with insurance), and they had not the fainest idea. So, I called the DMV. Calling the DMV is a lot like waiting in line at the DMV, only, electronically. Very frustrating. Finally got through and told them the situation, and they told me that I had turned in my plate on 4.13.07. That I personally canceled it.

I jumped on my horse and went the the DMV and asked what had happened. They pulled up my records and told me the same thing. I then presented to them my license plate, in its original non-turned-in state, and they contacted headquarters for about 30 minutes. I stood there reading my book, just waiting. In the end, they denied any wrongdoing and sent me on my way with a new plate (I kept the old one to take to court).

Next, I called and emailed the head honchos at the DMV. I eventually talked with the head of the DMV and she apologized and emailed me the records containing my "cancellation." She said I'd get it thrown out in court. Whew. That was fun.

IPHONE update:
I was contacted recently by the company doing the promo, which incidentally began in May of this year, and they informed me I would be receiving a check for $600 for the iphone. They ran out or something. Oh well - cut out the middle man. I was going to sell it anyway. I'll let you know when the check comes...

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Drive safe.

More Huckabee

2007-11-15T18:28:00.001-08:00

Look in the top right corner of the pic - my blog! On Mike's website! I'll be famous soon.

A few other Huckabee observations:

1. Huckabee got a $400 haircut back in May to poke fun of John Edwards. The money went to Autism research. A few days ago, Tom Tancredo, a much darker horse, boasted he was going to get a $400 hair cut. Little late there Tommy.

2. Chuck Norris now approves Mike Huckabee - this is very funny.

A Prairie Home Companion

2007-11-12T18:50:00.000-08:00

This is a weekly NPR show produced in St. Paul Minnesota. So, so funny. Here is a quote from "Thanksgiving Script," a hilarious story about college kids returning home for the holidays.

"Thanksgiving is the closest America gets to an Islamic state. Rooms separated by gender. Men in the living room, women in the kitchen. Men bow down to the football game, women bow down to the turkey."

To listen to the whole thing go here.

On another note, I've also started a new workout plan. It's called "Your Girlfriend's Dad Needs Wood Split." Ok, this is worth a lengthier side note...

I worked at the Bou from 5:30am to 11:00am today, then headed over to Rachel's house. Her dad needed some wood chopped up, so, I volunteered. However, the closest thing my city-softened hands have come to this process is this. So. The first log I picked happened to be a wet one. Not the wipe. A soggy, heavy piece of wood that I hacked at for 8 minutes. Every hit was a resounding "novice" or "weakling." Then Mr. Beard told me to stop, and gave me a dry one. Much easier. From then on out, after a few blisters and a lot of sweat, I made a stack. Thank you, thanks, no, stop it, thank you very much. Now, I'm sore. But at least I know that somewhere, somehow, a family will be warm this winter. That's what makes me do it...that's my fuel. And I needed to impress Rachel's dad.

To Wed

2007-11-05T18:18:00.000-08:00

I shot a wedding in Angier with The Autumn Agency (alwaysautumnstudios.com) this past weekend. I've probably filmed/photographed/played guitar in some 15 weddings now. Come to realize that Christian weddings are really more beautiful. There is a reverence about the whole ceremony. The crowd is expectant. The preacher sincere. The couple gleaming. The reception dry (usually). That translates into an easy shoot, because I feel like I'm part of 'their day.' There is warmth.
Non-Christian weddings are almost the exact opposite. Sure, happy people, but there is a stench of alcohol, cigarette smoke, inappropriate joking, materialism, and overall banality. It's just a motion with status attached and some tax relief. Plus, your there until 12 a.m. filming because drunk people don't know how to stop dancing.

It's plagiarism, to be honest here. Marriage was created by God. That's why we have it. It's a gift to explain a covenant He made with us. You disrespect that when you give no credit to whom credit is due.

Now, as to why Christian marriages are ending up in divorce at the same rate as the rest of the world, I do not know. I don't really respect that statistic, because I've only heard it in sermons. I'll look it up on Barna later.

Okay, now some fun facts!
*Men, you leave your last coat button unbuttoned, so you can draw your sword. It's an old tradition, obviously.
*Firefox is about 58x better than Safari.
*Cariobu launches its Christmas promotions tomorrow. Ridiculous. We're classy though...waited until after Halloween. Oh, and the theme is equally as ridiculous: "Rule Your Yule." I can't even say that clearly.
*Everyone should read the last 2 chapters in "Above All Earthly Pow'rs" by David Wells.
*I have to go to the dermatologist to get cancerous skin removed from my leg.

G'nite!

Whataday.

2007-10-23T20:01:00.000-07:00

Staff infections.
Wildfires.
Dumbledore is gay.

On top of all that, I received a package in the mail today.
No, it was not a sparkly new phone, something far, far more strange.

Allow me to explain.
This past summer, my friend Brandon and I ate at Hardee's once and a while in between classes. One of those days, we received a Hardee's punch card to get a free, I kid you not, fishing pole.

So, that was a surprise. Hardee's feeding me for life.
A bigger surprise was the "warning" label that was casualy printed on the handle of the rod. It reads:

WARNING:
THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS A CHEMICAL KNOWN
TO THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TO CAUSE CANCER,
BIRTH DEFECTS AND OTHER REPRODUCTIVE HARM.

They might as well have sent me anthrax on a stick.
Craigslist here I come!

GOP, Pick Huckabee...

2007-10-22T10:58:00.000-07:00

Wow. Watch all 6 if you can...

After watching this, I am fully convinced this is whom I'll be voting for (should he get the GOP nomination). Other than the fact he is a genuine conservative, ex-preacher, successful governor, and eloquent speaker, he is honest. Authentic. He wants to lead with honor and dignity and restore the United States to our heritage. I hate taking sides so early, especially with a candidate that is certainly riding a dark horse, but if more people could see how good of a man he is, well, they might be more inclined to vote for him. Thus, blog.

Hallogiving's Eve

2007-10-20T15:07:00.000-07:00

I had an appointment with a Mac genius at the mall the other day. As I walked in, I noticed hoards of packaged Christmas decorations sitting in the middle of the mall. Christmas?
It's not even Halloween! Or Vinegar Day (Nov 1)! Or Plan Your Epitaph Day (Nov 2)!
Or Thanksgiving for that matter...

Then I went to K-Mart with Rachel before we went to the Buck50. K-Mart, bless them, has Christmas trees up. And right beside the trees, Halloween masks and pumpkin carving kits. I really cannot believe it.

We are such a consumer driven culture. It's turning our holidays and pastimes into bargain bens.
The problem is, once those "special days" start getting more and more materialized, we will eventually forget why we are celebrating anything. The only thing that unites us as Americans is that we get off work. Well, most of us. I have to work on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve...

Application

2007-10-18T14:36:00.000-07:00

So, as you know, I have been writing papers and reading a lot. Good news! I was actually able to have an intelligent discourse with a Muslim man named Ali last night. He was an intellectual, and wanted to discuss Christianity in “today's world,” i.e. post-modernism (or the neo-enlightenment). Most of the talking points concerned universals and particulars, as well as how to define truth. We conversed for about 45 minutes.
Anyway, I was encouraged, and he got the gospel. Pray for Ali.

post-script

During our discussion, one of his friends, a more devout Muslim, was yelling things like, "Read Qur’an, follow Allah!" or "You study Qur’an, and live well, and go to paradise!"
This made me think of many evangelical Christians and how we respond to the criticism of the world - namely, that there is a right/cordial way to go about defending and explaining Christ. Next time I see a man simply hold a "Jesus SAVES" sign, I'll go up to him and say,

"Yes, Jesus SAVES us the embarrassment of appearing undisciplined and ignorant by giving us the ability to study to show ourselves approved, and thus sufficiently communicating with (and not simply TO) a lost and dying world."

I should get that down to a phrase and make a T-shirt. However, that would make me a hypocrite. Pass this time.

Latricia

2007-10-16T18:17:00.000-07:00

I work with a girl named Latricia. She is very witty...I keep trying to convince her to quit Caribou and do stand up for a living.
Here is a story she related to me [with my emphasis bracketed]:

Latricia: Hey, want one of THESE? [She flung a couple of rectangular cards over her back as she walked by]

Jon: What are those? [bending down and inspecting the cards, then rising...]

Latricia: OK... [very irritated] I took this lady's order at the bou-thru [drive-thru], and she had like, 400 candy apples in the back of her car. I was like, "You working at the Fairgrounds this week, Ma'am?" Lady said [excitedly] "Oh yes!" Then she reached into the back of her car, and I was thinkin like "Yeah! she's gonna give me some fair tickets, coupons, or candy apples or summin. Then she popped her head back around and gave me these cards!"

Jon: [examining] Oh...a business card?

Latricia: Yeah! [angrily disappointed]. A business card! I was like "Get outta here ya carny!"

And that, ladies and gentlemen, kept me laughing throughout the whole day.

Happy Days

2007-10-15T19:05:00.000-07:00

I was working on the last page of a 15 pg. report that is due tomorrow...

Cell Phone Pics: Round One

2007-10-14T18:11:00.000-07:00

Busch Gardens

2007-10-13T07:13:00.000-07:00

Whew.
Got back from Busch Gardens Williamsburg last night.
That was a looooooooong day. I went with Rachel and two of our friends, and I walked at least 8 miles.
Here's some BG advice: always go on a weekday. We found a parking spot right when we got there, hardly waited in line for rides, never bumped into anyone...it was great. I am sore. I can't imagine trying to take a family there for the day.
I am exhausted.
All that and I successfully avoided studying for my online exams for one more day. Basically, I have to take one today, and finish the other tomorrow. I really should not even be typing this up. Ok, off to the coffee man.

iPhone update...

2007-10-11T12:34:00.000-07:00

Read my Aug 25 blog to get some context here.

So I Clicked...and waited...and waited.
And, no joke, I have been a bit skeptical myself through this whole ordeal.
But let's just say there is a way to get around the hoopla if you spend the time researching the site(s) and reading all the "Terms and Conditions." Well, spammers, I read them, meticulously. I provided a pseudo-email address, called you and confirmed many details. And looks like now, the iPhone is almost in the mail.

Oh, and in case I don't get it, this was all a big joke.
Buah...

Bono Bush: Video 2

2007-10-10T10:46:00.001-07:00

Pick Your Poison

2007-10-09T15:45:00.000-07:00

So if it's 95 degrees in October, you wear shorts.
But if you go into any building, you will freeze. I'm sitting here trying to study and my feet are stuck to my flip flops. I can almost see my breath. In El Salvador, people wore pants all the time, I rarely saw a man in shorts, unless he was a gringo. I also burned my fingers today at Caribou. Not like, "Ooee, that shower water is too warm..." but like, a boiling pot of spagetti noodles hit the floor and sprayed your inner-thighs. That kind of ouch.
Luckily, a girl had gone through some kind of kemo, and I found her burn cream in the first aid kit. Though bandaged, one of my fingers is producing tiny blisters.
So if it's 95 degrees in October, you burn yourself.
And to cap it off, here are some funny T-shirt designs that I would have worn 10 years ago...

Random Things You Should Know

2007-10-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

The "IHS" found on some crosses and churches stands for "In Hoc Signo" or "In this sign." It was the sign that God apparently revealed to Constantine that was plastered on some shields, that gave him victory in some wars.

Nalgenes are not unbreakable. I shattered my friend Chip's nalgene in college.

Defenestration means to hurl someone or something out of a window.

Mountain Khakis are the best pants.

If you collect a gallon milk jug full of tabs from aluminum cans, you won't get $100 from the recycling people.

Ergo literally means "therefore"

Jude quoted the Apocrypha.

You can not simply submit a word to Mirriam-Webster to have it inserted in the dictionary.

The national food of El Salvador is pupusas.

I have a midterm to study for. I should go do that now.

God-o-meter

2007-10-08T18:57:00.001-07:00

http://blog.beliefnet.com/godometer/

Worth a looksee...

O Hill No

2007-10-03T08:24:00.003-07:00

I don't quite understand why, but Mrs. Clinton is currently running campaign ads against herself. She notes her bad decision making concerning Iraq and poor health care agendas in the early nineties. Oh, and her cackle. Thankfully someone has cleared this up for us - here's the quote:

“The American people want a leader,” said Clinton campaign spokeswoman Carol Foyler. “And if her rivals won’t come out and attack her, Sen. Clinton is going to show leadership by attacking herself.”

Ahhhhhm...

The Village

2007-10-01T18:13:00.001-07:00

After manning a study table in the fiction section I realized something. Of all the sections of the library, this one is the most frequented (and the hardest to study in). People flutter about, marching up and down the aisles, scanning and flipping through titles, shoving them into plastic green baskets. They seemingly avoid the history, non-fiction, resource, and informational sections. Why is this? I would suggest that they are obsessed with diverting their attention from the trials of this world, so as to lose themselves in a story (Pascal's "Pensees"). I would not have mentioned this if I had not made a trip to the restroom.
The library was about to close down, so I packed up my belongings. I hurried to the restroom. To make a taboo story short, as I was leaving, I noticed a pamphlet on the ground soaked in God knows what. I kicked it, and the title of the tract was "Knowing God Personally." (Let's not get into our presuppositions on tracts, whether or not we should hand them out, etc.) But seeing this gospel material and remembering the fiction section led me to this:

One: This is modern man's response to the gospel. Unsuitable for the intellectual mind...uneventful and unentertaining.
Two: This is the impact God's children have on a literary scale. We stay off the common shelves. I realize there are some Christian authors that contribute ideas of redemption and godliness in the modern digest. But why are there not more? Lewis, Milton, Bunyan, and Tolkien vs. LaHaye, Miller, Bell...and? Someone help me out here.

Well, back to Herm.

Side Notes

2007-09-29T11:29:00.000-07:00

It's really hard to study when you're sick. I don't even know what I have. I think it's from overworking myself. Work from 5:30-10:30am, then class some days until 6:30pm. Mixed with no exercise and unhealthy eating habits = sick.
I have this perpetual headache and occasional nasal greenery. Not the worse – still very, very annoying. And my exams are next week. If you are of the praying persuasion, pray for me.

On a side note...

Have you ever heard anyone say, "our thoughts and prayers go out to such and such…"?
Prayers I get. But "thoughts"? What is that? Thoughts are nice, but useless. Like a car, with...ah, no wheels. You get it.

One other side note...
This is for people who take verses out of context.

Picture Da Vinci's Mona Lisa. Beautiful smile, pleasant features, apparently sitting on a mountainside, etc. Now picture me cutting a nice hole in the canvass, plucking her wondering eye from its rightful place.
You should cringe, or at least tell on me.
Why did I do it? Well, for me, I like the tone of the paint in and around her eye. It warms me when I'm down. Not only that, now I know that she's always looking at me.

Ridiculous.

When you rip a verse out of context, you are essentially defacing a masterpiece. Mere recognition of a biblical verity does not free you to misapply it. As students of the Word of God, we must consider the sentence in the paragraph in the chapter in the section that is in the letter or document. Look at the background context. Study the literary devices used. It is ignorant to do otherwise. All Scriptural meaning will be universal, application is what will vary.

Barry Bonds

2007-09-27T13:02:00.000-07:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/27/sports/baseball/27ball.html

This article describes the future of Barry Bonds' 756th homerun ball. It sold for $752,467, and the new owner wants to have some *special work done to the ball before he donates it to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Funny and sad.

Ideas Have Consequences - Richard Weaver (1948)

2007-09-25T18:54:00.000-07:00

Weaver begins his discourse by identifying medieval nominalism as the principal cause that fragments universals into particulars. To discard universals is to assume man has no authority outside of himself; this leads to moral corruption. As knowledge becomes more and more empirical, man becomes increasingly materialistic, and the metaphysical dream is lost. Virtue is then devaluated. The media becomes indecent, infants and elders are neglected, and heroism vanishes. As a result of this egotism, art becomes impulsive and subjective, and hard work insufferable. Man has become his own ends with comfort as his means. Weaver issues three chapters to reconcile mankind from this moldering mindset. By guarding private property, education, and piety, those who uphold universals and absolutes may revive their fellow man and civilization.

Richard Weaver was heralded for upholding conservative, southern values. He grew up in Asheville, NC.
Ideas Have Consequences was quite a read, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys the history of ideas. You will gain a new perspective about the culture we live in today, if you can suffer a week or two of focused reading in this book.

Eaves!

2007-09-24T17:42:00.000-07:00

I don't try to listen in on other people's conversations.
But recently I overheard some interesting things. Let me set them up for you.

1. Coffee Shop
I'm listening to classical guitar and writing up a paper. Two sorority sisters sit down and begin having a conversation beside me. To quote Stanley from the Office, "Sometimes women say more in their pauses than they say in their words..." Needless to say, he is so right on this one. I had to leave the coffee shop because I heard the word "like" at least 76 times. I couln't take it.

2. Coffee Shop
I was, yep studying, sitting between an Asian couple and three Arab guys, with a Mexican mother/daughter combo across from me, and two guys speaking German in the corner. I didn't overhear too much this time. But quite the melting pot, eh?

3. The Library
By now you've firgured out my daily routine. Sitting at the library, studying mind you, and I heard the following conversation between two elderly women trying to find a library card in their wallets.
(Increase volume by 10x)
"IS THIS THE CARD?" (one woman who doesn't have her specs hands the card to the other woman)
"WELL, NO THIS ISN'T IT...THIS IS A CARD TO GET TEN FREE PANTIES, IT EXPIRES IN 2003"
I have no words to further this entry.

That's it for now.

Old Ironsides

2007-09-21T16:13:00.000-07:00

Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon's roar; --
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.

Her deck, once red with heroes' blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o'er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor's tread,
Or know the conquered knee; --
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!

Oh, better that her shattered hulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!

(one of my favorite poems by Oliver Wendell Holmes)