I Kinda Like John Edwards

I always tell my Democrat colleagues that had their ticket been reversed in 2004, then they'd be in the White House right now. But with Kerry as the nominee, that sealed it for Bush.

I actually kinda like John Edwards and think he has one of the better messages out there with his "Tale of Two Americas." He is trailing behind Clinton and Obama big time, but I think there's a chance he could pull a surprise in Iowa. Maybe not, he could get trounced, but I don't think he's done yet.

I also like hearing what Elizabeth Edwards has to say. She's not afraid to put it out there and say things everyone's thinking but no one wants to say (maybe she should go on "The View"). She said something recently that I told my colleagues after the 2006 election bloodbath. I told everyone that the only thing that could reenergize the Republicans is a Hillary Clinton ticket. She has been demonized over the years, and with her as the nominee, that could actually give hope to Republicans.

I don't think she's as bad as everyone makes her out to be, but I'm not sure I want her to be president either. But Elizabeth said, “I don't know where it comes from. I don't begin to understand it. But you can't pretend it doesn't exist, and it will energize the Republican base."

Could be.

Bathroom Techniques

Another Republican lawmaker biting the dust. Yet another so-called man of upstanding virtue caught in the act. I don't have any sympathy for Larry Craig. You get caught doing what he was evidently doing in an airport bathroom, ya got it coming.

But I really had to laugh at one of his defenses. You see, he tapped the guy in the next stall with his foot, which was evidently a signal of, well, whatever. What was Craig's excuse? Honest to goodness, he said he had a "wide stance" when using the bathroom, which caused his foot to inadvertantly bump that of the police officer in the next stall.

A wide bathroom stance?!? I didn't realize there was such technique involved when using the facilities. Wow, you could come up with all kinds of football metaphors here with the stance and what he was wanting to accomplish. But, we'd better just stop now . . .

Being Chastised by the Eye Doctor

For the last few days, my left eye has been really red. Not really painful, but just very red and irritated. I've had this before but have always chalked it up to my contact lens causing it. So, I kept putting in my lenses anyway, figuring it would clear up.

Well, yesterday afternoon, the pain started to get a little intense, and any sunlight at all was literally blinding me. So, I called the eye doctor to see if I could get in. Luckily, there was an opening. So I drove over, which I had no business doing. I had to pull over about 4 times because I was at the point I was sqiniting so bad I could barely see out of just one eye. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Well, I finally got there and was subjected to the worst experience ever at an optometrist. For over an hour, he kept putting drops in my eyes and then looking at them through this extremely bright light. He'd pause, put in more drops, then back to the light. I was about to confess my links to terrorism so Mr. Bauer would stop the torture, but finally he was done.

It just so happened Dorene was there for Cameron's annual exam. The doctor spoke to her and said that if I had kept putting in my lenses, I could have lost the eye. It turns out I have a severe cornea infection. It's a good thing Dorene was there because I could not drive home by any means. Dorene had to walk me to the car because I couldn't open my eyes.

Added to the torture was the fact we had to take my car, which has no air conditioning and it was over 90 degrees on this day (she drove in our van, but we left it there because the brakes are going out). Yikes, what else could happen? The sunlight was so bad that I had to throw a jacket over my head to block out all light, which made me look like a major dork to people driving by us. We finally got home and Dorene made me, per doctor's orders, put in eyedrops on the hour.

I don't think I'll need much persuading this time to seek out the doctor if my eye starts acting up again, because the experience yesterday with the drops and bright light was one I don't care to go through again.

The Dog Days of Michael Vick

I have nothing more to say, I just wanted to put in my own cheesy headline of the Michael Vick story.

Pulse Fest 2007

Today I spent all day at the World Pulse Festival, an annual Christian music festival held on the grounds of a contemporary Christian radio station in South Bend. The festival typically occurs on a Saturday when I work so I have not been able to attend for years. However, this year I didn't have to work so I was finally able to make a return trip.

The Festival has grown immensely from when I last attended. When I went about 10 years ago, the groups were The Imperials, Phillips, Craig & Dean, and Billy Crockett. Yeah, not too exciting. This year, the lineup was Kristal Myers, Superchic(k), Sanctus Real, Desperation Band, Kutless, Third Day, and Michael W. Smith. Yeah, they've "slightly" improved the lineup. Attendance has also skyrocketed. There had to be thousands there today and for good reason. The festival is free (parking costs, but that's it).

But this year there was an added bonus. My niece Paula and her husband Tom, and my nephew Benjamin came over from Ohio with their youth group to attend the festival. They came up on Friday night and stayed at our church as we hosted a "Pre-Pulse Festival" party along with a church from Michigan. That was a lot of fun and it was great to see my nephew and niece interacting with their youth (they are great leaders).

After serving everyone breakfast this morning, we headed out to the festival about 90 minutes before it was scheduled to begin. People had been camping out since about 2:00 a.m. so we knew we wouldn't get front row seats. That's okay, even being pretty far back you could still see well and there was a jumbotron screen which also helped. Typically this time of year it is very hot. But today, it was 78 degrees, which was absolutely perfect.

The first artist was Kristal Myers, who someone commented looks like Paris Hilton . . .and she does. Her music? Boring! Let's move on. Next group was Superchic(k) which consists of two sisters singing lead and their band. They weren't bad but I wasn't all that crazy about their music. So, the festival didn't really begin for me until the next group, Sanctus Real. I had just seen them earlier in the year in Fort Wayne. I enjoyed them then and enjoyed them again today.

I had never heard of the Desperation Band so I figured I'd go check out the merchandise tents during their set. But I stuck around anyway, and this is one of the great things about seeing a big lineup of bands which contain ones you've never heard of . . .you may discover one of those bands is actually quite good. That's how it was with Desperation Band, which is the worship band from New Life Church in Colorado Springs (Ted Haggard's former church). They started out with "I am Free," a song they had written and had been performing on their own, but it only became more widely known when the Newsboys included it on their newest CD. Desperation Band not only had a good sound, but they looked like they were having a lot of fun out there (something lots of bands don't seem to get). The set was extremely short, only about 4 songs. I'll be checking out their CD's now.

Next up was Kutless, and they were loud and crazy and full of energy. I'm not a huge fan of their music, but they are a very good live band and they were my favorite act of the day. Benjamin took most of his youth group closer to the stage so they could get some "moshing" going. He said it was moderately successful although some older folks with earplugs gave them some dirty looks (what they were doing that close to the stage anyway, I have no idea).

Third Day is a band I have always been continuously disappointed at when it comes to their CD's. A few good songs here and there but they never seem to let loose in the studio. Live, however, is a different story. They were doing some major rockin' and Mac Powell is a great lead singer. On tape, I think they can be pretty dull, but in person, they are probably one of the better bands out there.

Finishing out the day was Michael W. Smith. Basically, his set was pretty yawn-inducing, save for a couple songs here and there. It started raining and about half the crowd (including us) were headed to the exits during his set. I first saw Michael W. Smith in 1985 as the opening act for Petra. Needless to say, he was a far different live performer back then. His "Big Picture" tour of 1986 still, for me, ranks as the best Christian concert ever. Youth today can't believe it when I say one of the loudest, most rockin' and jammin' concerts I ever went to was a Michael W. Smith concert. Today, he's gone all profound and "worship moment" on us, so it's kind of impossible to imagine him in any other context than up there singing praise and worship songs.

It was a great day and Paula and Benjamin said their youth had a wonderful time. We hope to make this an annual tradition and have them back next year.

Raising Ebenezer

Last Sunday, we sang the classic hymn, "Come thou Fount (of every blessing)" during our morning worship. As we sang that one line, "Now I raise my Ebenezer . . ." I turned to Dorene and asked her what the heck that means. Wondered if anyone knew.

So, I checked it out and the answer was simpler than I thought. It's based on a passage in I Samuel when Samuel erected a rock commemorating a victorious battle in which the Israelites reclaimed the Ark of the Covenant over a battle with the Nazis, I mean, Philistines.

"Samuel took a large stone and placed it between the towns of Mizpah and Jeshanah. He named it Ebenezer—"the stone of help"—for he said, "Up to this point the Lord has helped us!" —1 Samuel 7:12"

So, the next time we sing this song, I'll be more knowledgeable on the whole Ebenezer thing and know I'm not singing about a character from Charles Dickens. The last time I heard this song in church was during special music when this child from the 60's sang a rendition of it (okay, she was only 20, but dressed like a child of the 60's). Her rendition mixed the traditional hymn with U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." Yes, you read that right. I guess you had to be there, because it was pretty cool.

Witness to (yawn) History

Last night, I stayed up late to watch Barry Bonds break one of the biggest records in all of sports, that of all-time home runs. Since the game was in San Francisco, his big moment didn't come until 11:30 p.m. or so. It wasn't all that exciting. They love Barry in the bay area, which is good for him, because he certainly isn't loved anywhere else.

Almost 10 years ago, I remember watching Mark McGwire break the single-season home run record set by Roger Maris. That was really exciting to watch, as was that whole season as he and Sammy Sosa battled it out (although it's been tainted now with the revelations that both of them likely were steroid users). But on that night, when the Cardinals were home against the Cubs, it was truly a moment to remember when he smacked #62.

As for Bonds, it seems so obvious that he has used steroids. If you look at pictures of him from the late 90's and then now, he is so bulked up he almost looks like Hanz and Franz from Saturday Night Live. Plus, he's basically been a total jerk all his life, which media and players alike have atested to. So now that he breaks one of the biggest records in all of sports, it was impossible to get excited for him. Bob Costas commented on the "Today" show that if this were a criminal case, the circumstantial evidence would be so overwhelming that he would easily be convicted.

Bonds will likely retire after this year. The debate over his record will go on, but maybe it'll be short lived. This past weekend, Alex Rodriguez hit number 500. If he keeps up the pace (and he's only 32), he could approach Bonds in 7 - 8 years. If that happens, everyone will get very excited about it, because A-Rod is very well liked and has not had any inkling of scandal around him.

There is still something to get excited about in baseball this year. The Cubs are making a run again, and I have the perfectly scripted moment. The Cubs get to the World Series, and throwing out the first pitch in Chicago is none other than Steve Bartman, the fan who is blamed for their playoff loss in 2003. That would be really cool to watch.

Mamma Mia, Send Her Over!

Mia Farrow has offered to "exchange her freedom" and take the place of an ailing Darfur rebel leader to ensure safe passage out of a hospital. Don't you just love it when celebrities do this and sound so compassionate and willing to put their lives on the line (puke alert).

What I would just love to see is for the President of Sudan to say, "Okay, come on over." Hmm, wonder if she'd still be as eager?

My Luck with the Cops Runs Out

It's been a while since I've been stopped by the police. It's been a loooong while since I've ever gotten a ticket from being pulled over. I've gotten lots of warnings, but rarely actually get a ticket (insert obligatory Steve-gets-pulled-over joke here).

So, a few weeks ago, we are all headed to Meijer on a stretch of road where everyone does about 60 mph (see, I'm already going with the "everyone else does it" defense). Well, I was actually going 52 mph but there was a cop sitting in what was a sneaky speed trap. The speed limit goes from 40 to 30 to 40 real quick. Well, he got me in the 30 mph zone.

But, I figured I'd still be okay. I went with my usual admit-what-I-did-wrong defense and say that he had every right to stop me. But, I knew immediately this wasn't going to work. The cop as he walked up to me said, "Yeah, I was going to stop the car before you, but you came along and were going much faster." I knew right then that nothing was going to spare me from the ticket this time. He conceded that I was very nice and everything but still had to give me the ticket. Part of me wanted to cry out at the injustice of it all. Yes, those red mini-vans are a real nuisance and should be pulled over. The cop really had an attitude of "Ha, Gotcha!" and then lectured me on how much worse it could have been, yada, yada, yada. But, whatever, just give me the ticket.

When we finally got to Meijer, Cameron was very, very reserved. We asked him what was wrong but he wouldn't answer. Basically, as we ultimately found out, he basically thought daddy was going to get hauled off to jail and it really had him rattled. I mean, it really bugged him a lot. So much so that he reminds me every minute he's in the van now for me to slow down.

I do slow down now, because today I mailed the fine that I owed . . . . . . .$181.50!!!!