Told You So...

At 5:00 this morning (November 28, 2005)on the way to work I was unexpectedly treated to a Joe vs the Volcano reference. What was I listening to at that time of the morning that could offer such a classic cinematic gem?? Was it "The River"? - No. Was it "The Arch" - No - not even the Arch. It was none other than 91.5 KSIV Bott Radio (yes Laura my radio does get this station). I know that you're now wondering - out of the many quotable quotes in the movie which one was referred to and why - so here is the paragraph that it appeared in.

Copied from the Back to the Bible website

Woodrow Kroll: Yeah, there are others, of course. Those are the two major ones, the two primary ones. We're going to talk about that first one today. How God has revealed Himself through natural phenomena. There was a movie some years ago called, Joe Versus the Volcano. And I didn't see this; but someone told me that Patricia, in this movie, says this. She says, "My father says almost the whole world's asleep. Everybody you know, everybody you see, everybody you talk to, he says, only a few people are awake. And they live in a state of constant, total amazement."

End of Back to the Bible quote

Can't you hear the sadness in the tone of his statement "And I didn't see this; but someone told me that...? Please oh please spare yourself from this sadness - watch Joe vs the Volcano today - with a friend - or two.

Winter Jam 2006

Added 2 new links to Winter Jam 2006, and ConcertZ.org - check them out. New artist for 2006 Krystal Meyers is 16 years-old - check out her web site - you can listen to her music.

Another Movie Quote

How's this for knowing your career direction:

I don't want to sell, buy, or process anything as a career.

I don't want to sell anything bought or processed,
or buy anything sold or processed,
or process anything sold, bought, or processed,
or repair anything sold, bought, or processed.

- John Cusak's character in Say Anything

Movie Quotes

Can you guess the movie these quotes come from?

#1
Actor 1:
I like being part of something that's bigger than me - than I. It's good for your soul to invest in something you can't control.
Actor 2:
You're a romantic. You have a lyrical soul. You can love under the best and worst conditions.

- Ben (Jimmy Fallon - Fever Pitch)

#2
I have never known that kind of faith. It makes me sad that people like Fred and Alice who have lost everything can still be open to love-- while I who have lost nothing am not.

NOTE: Names were changed to make it a little tougher to guess.
- Lena - The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants

Ryan of Doom Quiz

I thought this quiz...
featured on the blog of doom, was rather interesting and not one of the dumb ones, so I'm gonna do it myself.
Three Names You Go By:
1. Joe
2. Dad
3. Mr. Schmidt Sir


Three Screen Names You've Had
1. Jobywon45
2. Vzh4h9
3. jschmidt2002

Three Things You Like About Yourself
1. My easy-going nature
2. My academic ability
3. My job

Three Things You Don't Like About Yourself
1. I am socially challenged
2. I worry too much
3. My hair is too gray

Three Things That Scare You
1. Being responsible for a family
2. Anything I don't have control over
3. Being embarassed

Three of Your Everyday Essentials
1. Music
2. Working Vehicle
3. Food, clothes, air, and water are good

Three Things You Are Wearing Right Now
1. Kurt Warner St. Louis Shirt
2. Vans
3. Baggy hand-me-down jeans

Three Of Your Favorite Bands/Artists
1. Def Leppard/Green Day
2. Audio Adrenaline
3. R. E. O. Speedwagon

Three of Your Favorite Songs
1. "Untitled" by Simple Plan
2. "Better Days" bu Goo Goo Dolls
3. "In the End" Linkin Park

Three Things You Want To Try In the Next Year
1. Java Programming
2. Get a real Christmas tree
3. Being a better Spiritual Leader

Three Things You Want in a Relationship
1. Respect/trust/openess
2. Oneness/team spirit - "can do" attitude
3. Fun/Shared interests

Two Truths and a Lie
1. I am 47.
2. I have sung solos in choir and chorus.
3. I still can run a mile in less than 5:30.

Three Physical Things That Appeal To You About The Opposite Sex
1. Eyes
2. Smile
3. Hair

Three Things You Just Can't Do
1. Stand by when someone is getting picked on
2. Stay angry for long periods
3. Have a consistent quiet time

Three of Your Favorite Hobbies
1. Tae Kwon Do
2. Listening to Music/Watching Movies
3. Sports Biking, running

Three Things You Really Want To Be Doing Right Now
1. Watching a Movie (Better Off Dead)
2. Reading Blogs
3. Finishing up Christmas shopping

Three Careers You Are Considering
1. Marriage counselor
2. Programmer
3. Youth Pastor

Three Places You Want to Go on Vacation
1. Dude Ranch- Wyoming
2. Virgin Islands
3. Hawaii

Three Kid's Names
1. Ryan
2. Rebekah
3. Reagan

Three Things You Want To Do Before You Die
1. Be published
2. Learn to sing well enough to sing a solo
3. Learn to play the drums

Three Ways You Are Stereotypically A Boy
1. I like guy sports
2. I like to sweat
3. I like to hit things

Three Ways You Are Stereotypically a Chick
1. I like tear jerker movies
2. I sing along with the radio
3. I fill in surveys like this

Three Celebrity Crushes
1. Kirsten Dunst - Spiderman
2. Danica McKellar - Winnie Cooper from Wonder Years
3. Julia Stiles - Prince and Me

Why I am not a Scrooge...

When I was a child growing up in the olden days before Toys R Us, WalMart, Video games, and parents that spoiled their kids rotten all year long and ... (of yeah back to why I am not a Scrooge) . My 3 brothers and sister felt grateful when we got clothes and books and maybe 1 toy like a sled or a kitchen set. Speaking of a kitchen set, I remember the Christmas when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I had snuck into the dirt hole, that was where a basement should be, under the house we rented and saw a hand made kitchen set that had "from Santa" written on it in handwriting much like my dad's. This kitchen set was a mini size hutch/cupboard with 2 doors above a counter and 2 doors below. Being the oldest, and having to help my mom a lot around the house I assumed that it was for me (please do not dwell on why I wanted a kitchen set - it is not important to the story). After several weeks of keeping this discovery secret, the time came to unwrap the kitchen set. I eagerly anticipated hearing that the kitchen set was mine. What I heard instead was that the kitchen set was for my sister, and I got a red sled. I am pretty sure that I went ballistic and probably crushed my father's feelings when he tried so hard to get the correct gift and instead caused a big scene with a lot of crting and hurt feelings. I remember trying unsuccessfully to trade my sister the sled for the kitchen set. While that incident would support the Scrooge indictment ... "ooh the poor child was traumatized - no wonder he turned out to be a Scrooge". That was not what happened. Christmas was pretty routine for us for the next 10 years or so. There would always be cold weather with fresh crisp air and more times than not snow (we lived in Iowa). Every Christmas Eve our church would have a childrens Christmas show and we would each memorize a line or 2 that we would have to recite at a microphone in the front of the church. Our grandparents would sometimes attend. When we came home from church we would find all sorts of new presents under the tree, and the treat we left out for Santa would be gone. Probably why my mom tool so long getting into the car to go to church. I think the problems leading to potential scroogedom started when I started earning enough money to purchase presents. The first several years I spent a lot of time selecting the perfect gift for all family members. My parents were hard to buy for I don't think I ever found the perfect gift for them. I felt that would have required massive amounts of money for a major appliance or something similar. They were always grateful enough, but I never really believed that it made them happy enough. As I got older, I had less time to try to pick a perfect gift for my siblings and they started getting money of their own now, so if they really wanted something they could buy it during the year. I guess that the feeling of futility of getting a present that would surprise someone, something that they really wanted, something that they hadn't already bought for themself took its toll. I wanted the gifts at Christmas to be very special like the kitchen set could have been, like the original Christmas present. Lately, I can't come close to the old Christmas feeling. In Missouri it's as likely to be green and springlike as snowy in December. The air is not cold and crisp. There is too much noise and cement everywhere. The pace at Christmastime is too hectic. If you don't buy a gift for everyone that gets you a gift then you screwed up. If you get too many presents then your credit card bill haunts you like the ghost of the Christmas just past. I am trying to get over these feelings (as you can tell I have a ways to go) I suppose if (Ryan of Doom take note) I never got our kids anything special throughout the year that it would be easier for me to find something extra-special for Christmas.

About decorations, I do not like our plastic tree(we got it from a person that was moving and didn't want it any longer) , I do not like our lights (see now I sound nore like Sam (from Green Eggs and Ham - my calibur of literary reference). We always had a real tree (but we didn't have to pay a real lot - get it tree lot -lol). Decorating a tree is always a frustrating experience for me that is heightened by trying not to dampen the spirits of the kids that are trying to help but at the same time keeping the decorations safe and somewhat nicely arranged on the tree. I have never gotten into outside lights - I don't think that makes me a Scrooge. I don't believe that I need to go through a light display every Christmas. I look for things that will exude the pureness of the generousity that God had for us when he sent his Son, and these things are hard to find. I think the homeschool choir concert comes pretty close.

In conclusion, I am not a Scrooge. I am a frustrated idealist that has been beaten repeatedly by the commercial, non-reflective, see-how-much-we-can-cram-into-one-season-ness, forget-the real-meaning-for-the-season-ness that our society almost forces upon us. There are times when something as simple as offering a kleenex to someone during a game of Apples to Apples brings my heart the joy that it craves all year long, but especially at Christmas. Something as simple as a new tree may be a good place to start, or another kleenex incident.

Sorry - too tired to proof read.

Read Any Good Blogs Lately

I don't have time to keep up on recent blog activity. Please comment on any updates to blogs that you found especially noteworthy.