Quotes

For some years now I have been collecting quotes. Things that people say, or things I read that catch my fancy. I've got about 16 pages now of quotes and as I read back through them I can see the different stages of my life.

I've selected a few quotes from each "era" and posted them here. Some are funny. Some are deep. Some are sarcastic. Some are just...well...different. Hope you enjoy!

"Our non-Christian contemporaries are looking for something real. What we offer them must be genuine enough to withstand a careful and thorough probing. Sick of phony solutions, they're even more feed up with phony people." - Paul E. Little

"It has become fashionable to be "broad-minded", a category into which more and more segments of society are striving to fit. Broad-mindedness is the keynote of our generation. Hollywood broad-mindedly hustles the philandering husband and faithless wife onto the wide screen for the applause of the broad-minded masses. The chiseling cheat has his applauders, the price-fixing executive his apologists. Minds have been stretched so broad that in many cases little of moral substance seems to be left between the ears." - Liberty Magazine

"A parallel expression we hear is, 'I don't feel the need of religion', as if the truth or falsehood of Christianity depended upon one's feeling of need ...The truth of Christianity cannot be determined by psychology. The truth can never be determined by what we want it to be." - R.C. Sproul

“Sometimes I look at Sandy sleeping, unaware of me, vulnerable as a child, and remember that she lived a good part of her life before I even entered it. The face of a sleeping woman, of this sleeping woman, is profound. With its soft lines, with its hidden eyes, with its closed lips, it says: ‘Eleven years are barely enough to get beneath the skin - let alone to the heart - of the mystery that is a woman.’ This woman is my wife. But she is also a sweet stranger, beyond the knowing of a lifetime. She surprises me, and I am glad for that because it renews our marriage.” - Rodney Clapp

“If I took Jesus seriously, and truly asked God to let me do His will in my life, would I be where I am right now?” - Jack Perry

“The dumber people think you are, the more surprised they’re going to be when you kill them.” - William Clayton

Eric

So Much For Lent

I'm a bad Catholic. Okay...I'm not Catholic (I wear orange on St. Paddy's Day!) but I tried this whole "give up something for Lent to focus myself on Christ and His suffering" deal. What I found out is that giving up food is dumb. I need to give up something else...maybe a kidney or something. ;)

Actually, I've spent more time in prayer and thinking about Christ and my life in Him in the last week or so because of my desire to observe Lent. While I'm still eating lunch, I do wind up praying more. It's not so much "praying" as we are taught in Sunday School, more along the lines of conversations between me and God. Actually, more along the lines of me talking, God (like a stereotypical therapist) going, "mmmhmmm...I see" and me understanding what He's talking about. Make sense?

Sure it doesn't. You see, I've never been able to sit still enough to hear the still small voice; to see the moral behind the story; to appreciate the sublety of the meaning behind the painting. Being ADHD...I see, acknowledge, go "WOW" and move on. This week, I've been hearing the still small voice a lot more than before; I am beginning to see the moral of the story before it's spelled out for me and the sublety of the art, which I could see in retrospective, is becoming more apparent on the first viewing. It's as if the clouds of ADHD-induced fog is beginning to lift somewhat after 40 years of trying to determine if that large lump of stuff was something that maybe I shouldn't have stepped into. Usually, I discover too late that the lump of stuff I stepped into was dog-poo and the odor I first smelled was a good clue!


Out of the mouths...

My son warmed the cockles of my heart (I think I posted this but can't remember). He stated to his mother how he couldn't understand why men would be attracted to other men when woman are so hot.

Yes.

My boy.

Straight and horny at 13.

Thank you Jesus!

This comes about from the fact that one of the teachers at his school who also choreographs the kids singing/dancing program in the summer, www.kuia.org, is gay. The teacher is "married" and my son also wanted to know, "Who's the man and who's the wife?" My wife shot me a look saying, "Don't you EVEN go there!" And it comes from the buzz from "Brokeback Mountain".

He's so straight and horny at 13 that on "Deal or No Deal" on TV...he chooses his briefcase based on the hottness of the girl holding it!

Now...I just need to keep my little girl (11) from discovering boys. ;)

Eric

Looks Like I Picked A Bad Week To Stop Eating!

Whoo Boy. Looks like I picked a bad week to skip lunch for Lent! It seems every day this week I've had a late flight that would make me miss dinner which meant I would be flying in a hypoglycemic state.

Not a good idea with paying passengers on board. Thank God for "Balance Bars". Lots of protein!

So maybe I need to give up something else? I don't know. I do know that I have been praying more now that I'm thinking about it more. I do know that letting it growl a little longer instead of satisfying the desire has focused my attention on what I think about most...my stomach! I don't know if the last two years of dieting and keeping off the 30 pounds I lost has made me crave some of the old foods I...well...craved or if it is just the stress but I swear, if someone plopped down a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts, hot from the store, I'd eat every last one of them and woe to the person who tried to stop me...you'd pull back a bloody stump!

I'll try something else to fast from next week. Maybe my weekly frou-frou coffee.

In other news...I'm being tempted to jump the Microsoft ship and go to Linspire. Linspire

Check out Chris Whitehead's blog from the sidebar...he's the one who's been tempting me with Linspire.

That's all for today...

Eric

Shades of Catholicism....

...or if my Baptist friends could see me now!

About a year ago I catechised myself. That is, I went through the Westminister Shorter Catechism. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It reminded what I truly believe about the Bible and what I truly think is man's interpretation of the Bible and what I remember my Baptist upbringing alluding to the catechism as being "too Catholic"! Ha!

One of the funnies things I heard was Mike Warnke's tape on being raised Baptist then going to a Catholic foster home. (I know...Warnke's a fraud but he was still funny!) He poked fun not only at Catholics but anal-retentive Baptists. For so long I looked down at Catholics, seeing them as fallen so far away from what Christ wanted for the church. From what Paul and Peter and James told us how Christians should live.

I'm finding that some of the things Catholics do aren't Mary-worshipping-mumbo-jumbo. I'm finding some fun in the Christian Year. I'm discovering new ways to see God in His word and His creation. I'm beginning to think that stain glass windows are the bomb! (Can you still say 'the bomb' or is that so 20th Century??)

Anyways, one of the things I'm am embarking on is going to be Lent. Giving up something for 40 days? No. Not just giving up something for 40 days. I'm going to use this time of Lent, between Ash Wednesday and Easter, to make some sacrifices to help me focus more on Christ. For me, I'm skipping lunch. I know, that's a standard thing but lately, I've been eating more, craving more food, wanting more and more to eat. I've put back on 7 pounds in the last 7 weeks. I don't like it.

But the fast is going to be more than a weight loss program. I intend, when the growlies start, to, at first, pray. A quick prayer for whatever pops into the old head. I hope to move on to reading a Psalm. My St. James Daily Devotional Guide for the Christian Year (http://www.touchstonemag.com/frpat.html) has two readings from Psalms every day. I usually read the morning one but forgo the evening Psalm. I intend to read that evening Psalm when the growlies come.

So that's my plan. Maybe God and I will re-connect on a different level. Maybe He can cut through some of my anger. Maybe He can cut through some of my despair. Maybe He's the light at the end of the tunnel instead of the train I think is coming down the tracks, aiming right for me.

That's my plan...and you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men...I think James had something to say about that!

Eric

Take NBC out of The Olympics!

The Winter Olympics....

I used to love the Winter Olympics; much more than I liked the Summer Games. I think it has to do with the fact that when I was 10, my family lived in England and we got the chance to travel to Innsbruck, Austria just after the winter games had been held there. We got to see the ski jump, the ice rinks, bobsled track among other things. We saw where Franz Klammer went like a bat-out-of-hell in the men's downhill, looking like he was out of control, arms flailing, only to win the gold medal. Being there was made what we saw on television more real.

And I looked forward to watching the games on TV. From Lake Placid to Salt Lake City. But something happened along the way. The games were still good but the coverage began to take on a life of its own. No longer were announcers willing to let the athletes actions speak for themselves, no, we had to hear every nauseating tidbit of inane and arcane information about not only the athlete but the snow, who made the poles, what the fabric of their uniforms was made of, how Chinese and Russian judges were biased, how the Jamaican bobsled team got to the games (great story but I've heard it already and seen the movie with John Candy. No need to rehash it every four years!)

It seems almost as if the talking heads don't hear themselves in their earbuds then the games have no meaning. Come on! If I wanted to hear Katie Couric or Matt Lauer blather on I'd watch "The Today Show" instead of "CBS This Morning"! What I want to see is, during the time I'm awake (ie: before 11pm!), the highlights of the day. If I want to see curling on MSNBC (which I did on Thursday sitting at SkyTrek in Modesto!), I'll Tivo it or take the necessary arrangements to record it.

I guess what bugs me the most is the games have become more about NBC's coverage than of the games themselves. Who cares who announces? Who cares that Katie Couric got taught to ski by Pikabo Street? I want to see Bode Miller! I want to see Sarah what's-her-name! I want to see the US Curling Team for crying out loud!

I really wish FoxSports would get a crack at the games sometime in the future. That'll the ultimate in network over-indulgence!

Eric

Olde Tyme Pictures...

...of the fam!








Eric

How To Deal With Telemarketers

Nuff said...

Eric

Cheney's Fury!

I've been a bit blue this week...planes not working...body not working...eh.

But this...(HT to BHT)...this made me laugh!

Cheney's Fury!

Boy...did it make me laugh!

Hey boys and girls...accidents do happen. They are not always conspiracies. Not everybody has to know right away what happened. Stuff happens. Sometimes you loose an Olympic Silver medal. Sometimes you shoot a political contributor. (Hey...he was a lawyer for cryin' out loud...he probably had it coming!) (j/k).

Eric

"Gonorhea on Valentines Day (VD)"

"...and you're still lookin' for the perfect lay..." - Larry Norman, "Why Don't You Look Into Jesus (He's Got The Answer)

Tomorrow's Valentine's Day and I still have to get cards for the wife and kids. Why? Cause they got me one that's why. VD doesn't have the same appeal it did when I was dating and courting my wife. Now it's just another day to spend money I don't have. You see, my daughter's bday is Nov 30, son's is Dec. 11, then Xmas, then Sister's bday Dec 29. Dad's is Jan 6 and wife's is Jan 16. By Feb 14...I'm broke!

But I'll still do the card and candy thing because that's what I have to do. The kids will be upset if I don't and the wife, even though she says she doesn't want anything she still likes the card and flowers. Tells her I still love her and don't take her for granted.

Eric

Japanese Name

What's yours? (Buchner probably knows hers...she's livin' the dream in Japan!)

Mine is: 藤原 Fujiwara (wisteria fields) 駿 Shun (fast person)

So...I a field of fast flowers...interesting. You can find yours at: Japanese Name Generator

Now...I don't know how accurate this is but it is interesting. I have had a fascination with things oriental/asian for quite some time. I study a chinese martial art. One of my favorite series is a Japanese Anime; "Cowboy Bebop". My newest favorite series is "Firefly" which includes many chinese words and phrases. So much am I into "Firefly" that I uttered the word "gorram" the other day while I was flying!

Anyways...just some fun for the weekend.

Eric