Well, it's Sunday and i've managed to complete another wonderful training / instructional manual... i'm turning into quite the technical writer while still maintaining the normal duties of my actual job title... i'm still pretty tired and all, but i'm glad to have those both behind me for now... i'm sure there's more coming and all, but right now there's something of a lull... a break in the action... a chance to catch my breath... and, since it looks like i'll be completely offline for the next three days while we frolic and play at the all-staff retreat (really sit around and listen to an endless string of presentations only to retire to a shared room assignment with none of the comforts of home), i'm imagining that my day job will be pretty slow at the beginning of the week...

So what on earth will i do with myself if i have no access to the grand old internet and no television and no privacy?... well, hopefully, i'll manage to get a number of interviews transcribed, get a number of other things written, get a little bit of reading done and, hey, maybe even sleep... i'm actually trying not to think about it too much, since it begins early tomorrow with a four-hour car ride with three coworkers...

Anyway, it's Sunday and, since i'll be out-of-pocket the next few days, i figured that i should get a few things written down to have something to show for myself in my absence... playing behind me at the moment is an episode of Mrs. Columbo which is a bonus feature of the Complete Third Season of Columbo... pretty fun... i love me some Columbo... but now let's move on...

ROCK WHAT YA GOT
to the tune of Hey Hey - Superchic[k]

So, we'll start with some music... i got the new Superchic[k] album the other day and have listened to it a few times... my boys actually enjoy it quite a bit too... they've even informed me that the song "Hey Hey" sounds very much like the modern version of "Cruella De Vil" from the 101 Dalmations DVD... could be... anyway, it's a pretty fun album and everything you'd expect from the group, but part of me thinks it could've been better...

THE BIGGER PICTURE
to the tune of Ignition (live) - TobyMac

so, i wrote this heading in the other day and had no idea what i was supposed to write about... but now i remember... TobyMac is taking a cue from U2 and hitting the big screen... apparently, tomorrow, the Alive and Transported video will be playing limited engagements in theaters... around here, there's one showing at 7:30 PM... but check your local listings if you're into that sort of thing... it's probably a cool idea... my boys enjoy the DVD a lot and it's better for their ears than a live show...

AND LOVING IT...
to the tune of Get Smart - Bob Crane & His Drums And Orchestra

i for one am really excited about the upcoming movie version of Get Smart... i think that Steve Carell is a great choice for Agent 86 and i always enjoy a good dose of The Rock... not so sure about Anne Hatheway or the lack of the 70s era, but i think it's going to be great... until it's ready though, i'm going to sit back and enjoy one of my latest silly acquisitions... the entire original series on DVD, complete with a collector's box that opens in three different directions like the command center of Control...

ONLY ONE
to the tune of Sirius - Alan Parsons Project

So, the NBA Finals are on and man, can they draw games out or what?.... i finally ended up watching game one between the Lakers and the Celtics the other night and i'm pretty tired of hearing about what a storied rivalry it is... great, i get it... i saw some of it growing up... and none of those guys are playing in this series... now, THAT might be something interesting... anyway, it looks to be a good series and i say that as someone who rarely watches the NBA anymore because it's just, i don't know, off... as i see it, it had it's hey day and that's now in the past... doesn't seem to be reviving itself anytime soon... i'll watch these games - all on a DVR delay - and i'll probably enjoy it... and i'm picking the Lakers in seven... (tonight they'll win by about 17)...

IT'S POTTY TIME...

Mute Math is working on a new album (cheers all around)... and they seem to be recording a lot of it in the bathroom... i guess we all potty break the same... (har-har)... anyway check out this preview video...

IN OTHER WORDS
to the tune of The End - Derek Webb

When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box by John Ortberg... Well, i finally finished this book... actually i finished it maybe a week and a half ago, but i'm finally wrapping up this coverage... the final section of the book tells us how to win... it reminds us that we need to focus on collecting the right types of trophies and then, in the last chapter it tells a story about a painting... the painting is called "Check Mate" and the story tells of a chess expert perturbed by the painting's title because, "the King has one more move"... (of course, there's a typo in the chapter title as it's printed on the page headers - "the kind has one more move")...

this really stood out to me because i was playing a game of chess at work and i was informed with a great deal of pride and boasting that i was in check mate... now, i hadn't paid much attention to the game up to that point because there's been a lot of things going on at work and chess wasn't exactly the most important thing to worry about much less strategize for... but, something about the snideness of this guy's voice... "check mate, but you must've known that was coming"... all of a sudden, something within me wanted to win... i had been resolved to lose and chalk it up to distraction... but now... oh, i wanted to win... suddenly the game mattered... and fortunately, when i went to check out the board, i discovered that he was wrong... there was another move... in fact, five moves later, i had taken his rook, bishop, knight and queen... and two moves after that, he conceded to defeat... check mate... that was music to my ears...

it doesn't really relate to the book, but it made me happy... anyway, i thought the book ended rather abruptly, but it's not like the ending was a surprise or anything... it was a good book overall...

NEXT UP
to the tune of You Make It Look So Easy - Stavesacre

Simplicity by Mark Salomon...

so, i've already begun the next book and i'm not sure how much opportunity i'll have to blog about it, because methinks that i'll be done with it rather quickly... i'm about 50 pages in already and i'm totally hooked... and what, with my downtime coming up this week, i may just plow through the whole thing... also worth noting, it's available at the Relevant Book Store for FOUR DOLLARS... normally, i'd be using an affiliate link to try and poach a few pennies from anyone kind enough to buy it, but it's such a good deal and Relevant is such a good place to support that it's the link i chose...

SUMMER READIN'
to the tune of Summer Nights - John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John

I'm also using those two books as my entry into Mark Lee's Summer Reading Club... it's supposed to be really laid back and i don't have much of a clue what the rules are, but since i stumbled upon it and i have a hard time saying no... i'm IN...

AND WITH THAT...

it's time to go... but wait... there's more... a quick glance at the front page will reveal a splendid little interview with Paul Alan... thanks for peeping that...

well, i'm still alive... i haven't gotten to sleep before 2 AM in a while now, but i'm still kicking and making it through each day... and i can see the light of a possible three-day weekend off in the distance... unfortunately, i can't talk about what's been keeping me up at night as i'm contractually obligated not to, but for those of you that i spoke with privately, thanks for the prayers and everything else... i find it interesting that the word of the day, which i have emailed to me, is "tartuffe"... the good news is that i've written my first book... the bad news is that it's a training manual for a proprietary software that is for internal use... so, i've become something of a technical writer... perhaps i should add that to my resume...

Anyway, there are plenty of things to talk about but since i'm exhausted and i've been in and out of meetings all day, i'll be in and out of this as well... who knows what we'll get to...

EDIT: okay, that didn't work... it's now Monday, let's try again... I'm currently watching a silly movie called NEXT... which stars Nicholas Cage as a magician who can see a few minutes into the future... and the FBI recruits him to help them stop the transportation of a nuclear weapon... yeah... it's like that... anyway... what else is on my radar...

NOW WE'RE COOKING
to the tune of Dream Big -David Cook

So they picked David Cook... and by now, you should realize that i could really care less... it became clear to me that i wouldn't be interested in buying any of the finalists' albums since none of them really did anything for me... as far as David Cook goes, i suppose he'll have a decent career as far as music careers go these days, but i think in a year or so, most people with discerning tastes will be thinking to themselves and perhaps asking out loud, who in the world told this guy that he could sing and why do they hate the rest of them so very much... just my opinion...

BACK IN 3D!
to the tune of Call My Name - Third Day

So, i've been killing this new Third Day album.... i mean, it just flat out rocks... it's like everything you ever wanted Third Day to do with an album all comes together now... (get it, Come Together?)... Let me just say that Revelation is easily the best Third Day album and it's likely going to rank in the top albums of the year list for 2008... i'm just saying is all... expect a Walk TRu of this sometime later this week, but for now, you can check out their EPK online...

MOVING ON

Foolish Things have disbanded... I'm a little slow on this since their final show was 11 May, but the band has cited this as "the last season" for Foolish Things via their MySpace page... MySpace, by the way, seems to be the medium of choice for announcing a band's breakup... Anyway, more from the announcement:

"Although we are grieving, and semi-anxious about what lies ahead we are excited that a new chapter is beginning. Babies are on the way, different job opportunities are opening, and ministry opportunities are in each of our futures."

What really bothers me about this announcement is that i interviewed them a few months ago and they didn't mention this at all... (yes, that's sarcastic, no, i don't think the world revolves around me)...

ANTS!!!

yeah, i'm SICK OF ANTS!... they're all over my kitchen and the ant trap thingies that i've been setting out seem to work for a while, and then i get a resurgence of the little critters...it's driving me NUTS... i even see them out of the corner of my eye when they aren't even there... apparently i need some sleep... speaking of bugs though, isn't this the most strangely appealing and appalling site you've ever seen? maybe it's just me... some of those bugs though, literally scare the heck out of me...

PLENTY TO PEEP...

despite my crazy schedule, i've managed to drop some splendid content on the front page... this includes part three of my GMA Reflections and interviews with Salvador and Stephanie Smith... As i mentioned, i'm planning a Third Day Walk TRu, another chapter of the GMA Reflections, a few more interviews, and i'm hoping to pick up the album reviews gauntlet again... i've got some thoughts brewing about Chris Sligh, Phil Stacey, The Myriad and more...

peace... love... bdg...

So, it's another Idol night already and that means i've not updated in a week... what a jerk... anyway... i've been trying to readjust to life and a bunch of other excuses that you don't care about, i'm sure... and man, have my allergies been driving me nuts lately... my eye has been twitching for about a month and my nose has been twitching on and off as well... the littles are starting to struggle with the pollen counts, too, which really makes like fun... anyway... lots to get to, so let's get getting...

MOVIE MONDAY

i meant to go post this yesterday, but i didn't post anything so, here it is now... i finally, (read: FINALLY), saw Oceans Thirteen... and for me, it was goooood... i really like the series and i thought this one fit very nicely into the mix... you gotta love crooks who steal to make other people happy... and they're all just the epitome of cool... a couple odds and ends notes... as expected there were a number of twists and turns in the plot line... i say expected because it seems like every movie now has to have these crazy twists at the end nowadays... i think that eventually, we'll get to the point where a straightforward movie - one where what you expect to happen actually happens - is going to be the new suspense thriller... just a thought... Also, and i'm not one to force spiritual meanings into things, but at the end of the movie, all i could think about was that verse in the Bible about man making all the plans that he wants, but it's only God's plans that actually matter in the long run... yeah... i should figure out where that's from exactly... i'm guessing Proverbs...

FOUR MORE (A.K.A. THE AI COMMENTARY)
to the tune of Roll over Beethoven -Chuck Berry

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame night... i... wanna rock and roll all night.... and party every day... okay... so i'm not going to guess the songs this week, but anyone wanna bet that Brooke tries to crash the stage and sing Piano Man or something... anyone? anyone?... okay... the show's underway after Ryan specifies when the judges are allowed to speak...

David (Daughtry the 2nd) Cook: Hungry Like the Wolf by Duran Duran... i remember the video for this song more than anything else about it... i think some dude was wandering around the woods trying to catch a girl dressed up like Little Red Riding Hood and he's wearing a wolf skin... i remember that video more then i expect to remember this performance actually... Randy says it was just okay... Paula says she's hungry for some David Cook and then she rambles on about something odd... Simon says it's probably good enough, but nothing special...

Syesha (a.k.a. Cry-esha): Syesha's dress has been designed by Kristy Lee Cook... or something... oh, i like the hat... Tina... i thought she might sing some Tina or Aretha, but i don't know who's in the HOF... wow... she's trying to look like Tina... she's definitely working it... she has the clear advantage of being the only official girl left in the competition... and this song is alright... her vocal isn't that great, but the performance is very strong indeed... she knows how to use the stage... Randy says she was in the zone... (no, i didn't just copy that from last week)... Paula says she looks like a star... Simon says he has to put a slight damper on it... shrieky, bad impersonation of Tina Turner... the song was Proud Mary, by the way...

Jason (Castor Oil) Castro: i think Carley's drunk... so, go figure, Jason Castro is singing a Bob Marley tune... I Shot the Sheriff... props right off the bat to the band... they're fantastic... he's alright... well... i mean, this really... well... um... he looks the part at least... he needs to take into account the dynamics and meaning of the song... Randy plays the karaoke card... Paula says he played to the crowd... Simon says it was utterly atrocious and he has no idea what Jason was thinking...

{Little) David Archuleta: singing Stand By Me... and he actually looks like the kids walking on the train tracks during this movie... i remember singing this song in like fifth grade or something... i think i sounded about the same... well, i didn't sing it solo or anything... but come on... if anyone deserves the karoake card, it's him right here... that's just... bah... Randy says he broght the hot man vocals... or hot mad vocals... or something like that... Paula says she admires that he kept his eyes open... Simon says whistling would've been better than Jason's song, that he struggled a little bit, but it was the best performance so far...

REALLY? YOU WANT MORE?
to the tune of A Change Is Gonna Come - Sam Cooke

So far i'm not really impressed with any of them (surprise), but as of halfway through, Archy and Jason seem to be battling for the boot...

David (Daughtry the 2nd) Cook: singing something from The Who... Baba O'Riley?... i never listened much to The Who... it seemed really short, which isn't a baad thing... i've decided that he sounds like Todd Agnew... slow build and now he's screaming up the end of the tune... whatever... it's alright... Randy says it was really good, the David Cook they like... Paula says she wants a happy meal with a David Cook toy to hug and squeeze and hang from her rear view mirror... Simon says welcome back...

Syesha (a.k.a. Cry-esha): oh no she isn't... she's singing my boy Sam Cooke... Change is Gonna Come... look, if you can't mess with a Bob Marley song, i'm not sure you can mess with Sam... well, this is an entirely new arrangement... and she's belting out the words here and there... that's a strong finish, but i'm not sure that the whole thing was that great... not as much soul to it as the original... Randy says he didn't like the arrangement and you shouldn't mess with Sam... Paula says she did a great thing with her vocals... Cry-esha is still reeling from Randy's harsh comments... Simon takes pity and sides with Paula, noting that Randy got it entirely wrong...

Jason (Castor Oil) Castro: oh gosh... Jason didn't shoot the sheriff, he shot himself in the foot, head and heart... BOB DYLAN???? and we don't know the lyrics... somebody call Wayne Brady up on stage... i don't even know what to say... sort of like Jason... wah wah waaaah wah wah waaaaah.... well, needless to say, it was terrible and he's going to get trashed... he might not get voted off though... Randy just kind of giggles... Paula is smelling her feet... Simon tells him to pack his suitcase...

{Little) David Archuleta: oh... good grief... he really IS trying to beat Jason for the lamest performance... Love Me Tender by Elvis Presley... and he's, well, he's saving himself quite nicely actually... the vocal is pretty solid... why does the dude who can sing really well have to be so annoying?... Randy says he was carressing the lyrics... Paula says he's so sweet... Simon says he CRUSHED all those who oppose...

Well, i'll say that the Davids are safe and Jason will go home despite the possibility of pretending to forget the lyrics for the sake of getting sympathy... Syesha will probably be left on stage with Jason, but should be safe...

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT

So, lots of new stuff to peep over on the main page... first up, a Walk TRu of the Jars of Clay Greatest Hits project... part one of my GMA Reflections and Responses... an interview with Poems (formerly Sharlok Poems, Sharlok P, etc from LA Symphony)... and an album review of Salvador's latest, Aware... and there's plenty more to come...

peace... love... bdg...

Here's to hoping that your weekend went well... mine wasn't too bad... little boy got the first trophy of what i'm sure will be a long and storied atheletic career... this one was for participating in the Upward Basketball League... the ceremony was accompanied by puppets and a magissionary... yes... anyway, he's extremely proud of his trophy, that's for sure...

a few things before we dig in... first, i was stuck in traffic this morning and i read through Psalm 91... i'd like to dig into it a bit further, but not today... today, i'm just working on digesting the though of "dwelling" in God's presence...

Next, i joined up with Technorati and unless i misunderstood, i think they're supposed to make me famous, but it all starts with you adding me to your favorites... i think... also... well... i forget... so let's just get going...

MARCH MADNESS
to the tune of We're So Far Away - Mae

The big news of the weekend is that the fields have been narrowed down to just four... Davidson, the last hope for a Cinderella story, put on a spectacular show up until the last 6 seconds of their game against Kansas... which leaves us with a Final Four consisting of all the #1 seeds... this is the first time that the selection committee has gotten all four correct... this will either make it a fantastic final three games or a very uninteresting one if you like underdogs... i'm undecided, but i'm not sure i'll even be around to watch anyway...

MOVIE TIME (brought to you by Netflix)
to the tune of Teacher's Pet - Doris Day

two more movies this week... hopefully quickly as my time is short... first up... SPIDERMAN 3... i finally got around to watching this, even though i've had it for a while... as expected, the special effects and the fight scenes were spectacular and the storyline was pretty well done as well... i enjoyed seeing the cocky Peter Parker strutting around the streets... very nice touch... the notion of forgiveness was nicely done and relayed to the audience in a powerful and entertaining way... bottom line... i give Spiderman 3 an A...

next up, i dig deep into the archives of Netflix (actually, my wife picked it)... and we come up with TEACHER'S PET starring Doris Day and Clark Gable... obviously, this is a romantic comedy, but Gable is a grizzled newspaper man and he stumbles upon a night school class teaching journalism... the story revolves around the romantic attraction between the two of them as well as a discussion about what journalism is and what it should be as well as whether or not it can be taught... it plays out very interestingly and i'm not ashamed to say that i enjoyed it... i'd give it a B+

THE WORLD AROUND ME
to the tune of Work - Jars of Clay

Well, with just under three weeks left, my GMA Week is shaping up to be pretty busy... i've booked somewhere between 20 and 26 interviews over the course of 2 days (waiting to hear back on a few, still) and i've been staring at the showcase schedules for a while, trying to decide which ones will be the most appealing... one thing's for sure, Robert Randolph is scheduled to play and i'm going to do anything i can to make sure i don't miss that one... it's already what i'm looking forward too most...

Other than that and my day job, i'm working on a number of writing projects including a concert review of the Tobymac, Jeremy Camp, and Matthew West show i went to a couple weeks ago, a few, yes few issues of Left to Write, a number of album reviews, a handful of interviews, and even more... all this and my "o" key is sticking... actually, it's been working pretty well tonight... maybe i fixed it... anyway... that's all for now, kiddos... remember to favorite me so i can get really famous or something...

peace... love... bdg...

I'm a finger down... playing hurt... fighting through it... yeah... here's the deal... i was rationing off a chocolate bunny on Saturday... by the way, i didn't get a chocolate bunny this year - very disappointing - i'm going to have to raid the clearance aisle or something... anyway, i'm rationing off this bunny, which is a nicer way of saying that i'm lopping off the ears to help manage the resultant sugar high... and i also managed to lop off a chunk of my left index finger... since then, i've been bandaged and i feel rather gimpy... you wouldn't think that the left index finger is all that important to a right-hander, but yeah... you do notice...

Anyway... i'm trying some new things starting today... we'll see how they work... let me know what you think...

EASTER
to the tune of Mighty to Save - Hillsong

So our Easter went pretty well... i mentioned earlier that we went over the Easter story a few times with the littles and they seemed pretty taken by it... so that went well and we did the church thing... the littles and i all wore full-out suits and they totally showed me up as they were supremely handsome... Before church, though we did a treasure hunt which involved eight treasure maps that led one to another until the big payoffs which were the Easter baskets... they LOVED it, but apparently, i could've drawn the maps a little better... shows what happens when you scrawl things out at 1 in the morning...

We had hoped to bring our neighbors to church as well, but that didn't work out for a variety of reasons that i'm not completely aware of and some that i am... so, after church, we had a laid-back lunch, sent the littles to their rooms for some down time and i watched a movie which i'll talk about later... and then, when they came back down, we did the egg hunt thing and shared a splendid lamb dinner... all in all, a very nice Easter Sunday and i think we covered all the traditional bases...

THE OTHER MARCH MADNESS
to the tune of CrushCrushCrush - Paramore

So there's also this little business of the NCAA Tournament going on in the background... and i performed my duties as a guy and filled out a bracket and joined a challenge group... and on Thursday, i watched a couple games via the online video players... and caught some games on Friday and Saturday as well... and it didn't take too long into the process to remember why i never put money on these things... outside of the NFL, i'm so disconnected from the sports world these days... i enjoy occassional games from pretty much every sport, but i don't follow it nearly like i used to... so, despite a strong early showing on Thursday, my picks all died away rather quickly and i'll be lucky to finish in the top 7 of the 7-person pick 'em group i joined...

It is sad for me to see Georgetown, UCONN, Duke and George Mason get booted so early, despite my bracket, but that's life... from what i've seen of the tourney so far, it seems to me that UNC is going to run over everyone the rest of the way through and probably win in the championship game by 15 or 20 points... then again, what do i know...

MOVIE MONDAY
to the tune of Ratatouille (score) - Michael Giacchino

So one of the first things i want to do to change things up is to get on a better schedule... so, depending on the day of the week, there will be some regular "features" to look forward to... the first that i'm unveiling is Movie Monday... since i happily subscribe to Netflix, it seems that i always have a movie to talk about, and this week, i'll talk about two...

first up is Horton Hears a Who, which we took the littles to see on Friday... yes, it's in theaters and no, it's probably not worth seeing before it's available on DVD through, say, Netflix, perhaps?... anyway... most everyone is familiar with the gist of this story, an elephant discovers a speck of dust that contains an entire civilization and he vows to keep it safe... Horton faces a number of challenges, in this case Carol Burnett's mean-spirited kangaroo... on the flipside, the mayor of Whoville has to convince a world of people that are so caught up in their own comforts that they need to take action or see their world destroyed...

There's a number of themes that can take you in a myriad of directions... on Horton's side you see the importance of imagination, loyalty, and faith as well as facing persecution and defeating "the man"... and in Whoville, you see the question of God's existence as well as the intentional disregard of the world around you... common themes betweeen the two worlds seem to be faith, character, ridicule, and being brave...

And all these themes can relate to something in everyone's life, however, the movie doesn't completely develop any of them which is somewhat annoying, though the humor and entertainment level for children is pretty great... my main problem with the movie is the name-calling... there's lot's of "idiots," "morons," and "boobs" thrown around - in fact, i think they said "boob" about 10 times in a minute... and it's not that these are terrible words, but i really don't want the littles running around calling people boobs and idiots because they heard it in a movie and don't understand that it's not nice or appropriate... Overall, i give Horton a B/B-...

The second movie, i want to talk about is called The Final Inquiry which was apparently first released in Spain, but tells of a Roman soldier commissined to investigate the rumors of about the resurrection of a man named Jesus... there's mystery, intrigue, some fight scenes, romance, Dolph Lundgren, cover-ups and a lot to like about the film...

It's actually a pretty compelling movie - even with Dolph - and it's an interesting perspective as you see the current Caesar conducting a secret investigation and you get to follow all the evidence as it comes to light... There are some conflicts of timing and such, but nothing terribly distracting from the main thrust of the film and certainly not fom the conclusion... it was particularly interesting to watch around Easter time and i enjoyed it in lieu of reading The Murder of Jesus by John MacArthur which i appear to have misplaced... Bottom line, i give The Final Inquiry a solid B+

WORD OF THE DAY

Joshua 6: 22-27

Promises Fulfilled and then...

God fulfilled His promise and delivered Jericho to the Israelites in an odd fashioin so Joshua, in turn fulfills some of his promises... He spares Rahab and her family and allows them to live with them as a reward for her faithfulness... and then they burned the entire city to the ground, keepinng all the silver, gold, bronze and iron into the treasury of The LORD - which i think, constitutes one of the earliest "Building Funds" in church history...

And then there's a curse... Joshua pronounces a curse on anyone who tries to rebuild the city of Jericho... he says that whoever does so will lose his firstborn son and his youngest son... they destory the place and hope to wipe it off of the face of the earth forever... now, i think this will lead to some interesting things... in fact, someone named Heil DID rebuild Jericho, during the reign of King Ahab and guess what? his first born son died as did his youngest son... should've seen that coming... i'm going to rethink signing that petitiion to save Jericho (the TV show)...

IN OTHER WORDS
to the tune of The Motions - Matthew West

When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box by John Ortberg... Prevent Regret... This is a chapter that closes out the "Setup" section of the book... it deals with the general notion that if you don't figure out what's important in life and act on it, then you're going to experience a lot of regret... the opening story is touching and sad and reminds us that relationships have a lot to do with our priorities... the chapter talks about four common regrets that people face at the end of life and reminds us that life doesn't slow down until it stops and then it's too late to change anything... we have this point in time right now to make the most of and that's it... Next section: HOW TO PLAY...

MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE -dAT CAVE
to the tune of The Batman Theme - Danny Elfman

a few nice pieces up at theTRu... posted my 2oo7 Year in Re:TRu piece last week as well as a long, lost interview with Shawn McDonald... plenty more to come your way... as long as i can stay awake...

MOVING ON

hope you enjoyed this slightly new format and will check back to see the rest of the new "schedule"...

peace... love... bdg...

Well, it doesn't look too good for a national Mike Huckabee campaign... i think i'll sort that out in the morning, but from what i can tell, he's pulled the plug... i didn't really watch the results coming in tonight, but what i did watch is American Idol, and i decided to blog the show...

EIGHT MEN OUT...

(JOHN)-LUKE MENARD: i don't like this guy's voice at all... it just doesn't even sound real... and not in a good way... it just sounds so plastic and fake and like a little girl is up there singing it... and i think he's in danger of a-go-go-ing home... Randy says his timing was off and it was a little corny, but a-ight... Paula was so surprised that she can't put her words together... she actually sounds like that political commentary guy on SNL last week... Simon didn't like it either and thought it was "girlie"...

DAVID ARCHELETTA: thirsty AND he has to go potty... i hate when that happens... aw, now he has a new most embarrassing moment... it should disappear quickly, 'cause this kid's the BOMB, right?... i know this song... i like that he's playing the piano... Phil Collins?... yeah... that's it... much slower arrangement... it works pretty nicely... now he's standing and finishing up nicely... his voice is a little girlie, too, but he's so young it's alright... Randy thinks it was like a concert... Paula wants to shrink his head again?... perfectly imperfectly perfect for this competition?... Simon says it wasn't as good as last week and it was a little gloomy...

DAN-UEL NOREAGA: TMTH? please... i can't stand it when people actually talk like that... Tainted Love?... UGH... tainted love... well, the judges may like it because it's up beat, but his vocal is very shaky... i'm not quite impressed... more showmanship than substance for me, dawg... Randy says, there's good and bad - pitchy and shy? Rhianna did this song?... Paula says the he's a bright light, sensitive and spicy... and he looks fabulous... SImon says what the heck?... it was horrible and "absolutely useless"... HATED IT... yeah, dawg...

DAVID (no comment) HERNANDEZ: i'm going to try to ignore the news stories that were flooding the web today... he sang really well last week... and his voice has a nice tone to it today... so these are 80s songs... isn't this a girl song?... yeah... Celine, right?... what the... i mean, he did alright, but, jeesh, sing something manly, dawg... Randy says he overshot some of the notes... Paula says he has the best vocal of the group... Simon says that he should've had more soul, but he's safe...

MICHAEL JOHNS (JACOBJINGLEHIMERSCHMIT):everyone knows that the kangaroo is supposed to win the fight... i feel like running down a school hallway... could you describe the ruckus?... okay... so he's singing Don't You Forget About Me, the theme song to The Breakfast Club... and HEY HEY HEY HEY... oooooooh... he's alright... he's not as good as he's been... and now he's pretty much just yelling... at least it's pretty close to singing, but it's still yelling... he should be self, but i don't know that it was my favorite... Randy said he loved it dude, Paula said that she's glad he's defining who he is... Simon liked it, didn't love it, thought it needed more soul...

DAVID COOK: hello? wow... it's so far removed from Lionel... this is such a creepy song... well, the video was creepy and it has tainted the song for live... i get that he wants to be the "real" rockstar, but i really don't get this arrangement... and i don't think that his vocal is all that good to be honest... and if he talks trash to Simon again, he should be gone... Randy thought it was brilliant, Paula thinks that he's a shining star and Simon thinks he's brave and he loved it... oh well... maybe i missed something...

JASON (FIDEL) CASTRO: okay, his voice is weird when he talks... oh no... not Hallelujah... isn't there a rule against that?... well... you know, i love this song and i've only really heard it sung well by three people... Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley and Kevin Max... but i have to say that, despite the breathiness, this is really, really good... very safe though, he didn't go for any big notes on it... maybe he would've fallen apart... Randy says that it's a high level of difficulty, but he worked it out... Paula says... i don't know what she's saying... something about being unique... Simon says that it was absolutely brilliant...

CICKA-CHICKA-CHIKEZIE: i've pretty much wanted this dude to go home since week one... since then, he's done pretty well though... and this is starting out pretty well for him... it's a pretty boring song for me though... oh dear... when he starts going off, he's like way off... right?... ouch... i didn't like it... Randy said it was a tough song choice... Paula said he switched it up and that his vocals were really good... Simon says why the heck are you singing a Whitney Houston song?... not a smart move...

tough call to see who goes home this week... i'm gonna go with Jacuzzi and Luke...

MORE IN THE MORNING

I'm about done for now... i'll be back with more tomorrow... if you want you can check out my latest interview posted over at theTRu... this time with Othello...

peace... love... bdg...

Hey MyCCM readers (if there are any)... i'm thinking of packing this blog up and just posting on my primary blog... these have been all cross posts as it is and since i don't get any responses here, i was thinking i could save myself some time... make your case now or forever hold your peace...

sorry for my absence this week.. i've had a busy week at work and then some time yesterday the cold that i've been fighting for a week or so finally pounced, caught me from behind and dragged me to the ground like a lion chasing a gazelle in the wild... i've spent most of today either shivering or sweating or both actually... i slept fairly well overnight, catnapped through the morning and lounged around most of the day and i'm still coughing and hacking pretty regularly which is, oh so much fun...

anyway... i'm watching All the King's Men and it seems to be a movie that one needs to pay more attention to... dialogue seems to be pretty key as it is a pretty brutal look at politics... i like it so far though... okay... moving on...

DOWN SEPARATE ROADS

last week, we said goodbye to a dear friend and travelling buddy... our faithful Durango, Red Rover was traded in to a dealership with a bit of money in exchange for a brand new Buick Enclave... in purty deep metallic blue... i will say this... buying a car is as annoying as ever... haggling over price, sitting around talking through like 100 different layers of "management" and the oft-asked question, "what do i need to do to put you in this car today?"... please... this is why everyone still hates sales people... anyway, we like the new ride and the hardest adjustment so far is agreeing on a new name... (i think we're leaning towards Ka-BLUE-ey, though)...

AM/FM/XM...

along with this new vehicle comes a three-month trial to XM Radio... and an opportunity to subscribe to it beyond that... i'm not much of a radio guy, but i have to say that i'm fairly impressed with the selection of music thus far... and hey, NO COMMERCIALS... where else do you get that?... really though, i was most excited, because it meant that i'd be able to listen to the weekly Sphere of Hip Hop radio show on The Fuse... oddly though, The Fuse is only available online, so it'll be a matter of logging into the website and ignoring what's going on around me... i don't like being tied to a schedule... that's for sure... i need to figure out some sort of an XM Radio Stream DVR device... hmm...

GOING HOME

American Idol is whittling down the top 24 and i'm glad... i think i'll get more interested in it once they get down to the top 12... i hope so anyway, but i have to ask... did they always do theme weeks this early? i seem to remember the theme weeks starting further down the road... anyway, my early favorites are the little Archelleta kid, Michael, Brooke, and Ramiele (though i don't think that i could possibly pronounce that name)...

REALLY GOING HOME

On Sunday, Larry Norman left this world and joined up with God in eternity... the Father of Christian Music who watched his dreams and legacy become what it is today, for better and worse, passed away peacefully early in the morning... he wasn't a perfect man, by any means, but he left a legacy of music that was revolutionary, radical and quite memorable... and his final thoughts as dictated to a nearby friend are as moving as the lyrics we've all come to admire...

"I feel like a prize in a box of cracker jacks with God's hand reaching down to pick me up"...

AND ON THAT NOTE

i'm off to lay down and rest a bit more... i didn't get the reviews done that i wanted to this week yet, but i did post a really nice interview with Steven Delopoulos and a Walk TRu on the new Avalon record... and, before i go... a hearty HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my good man, Churck... if you need web hosting, he's your guy...

peace... love... bdg...

i can't believe it's Wednesday or that it's so late on Wednesday... i'm going to cover a bit and cover it quickly so let's get getting...

THE ICE STORM COMETH...

well, last night it took me over two hours to get home and i passed by an accident count in the double digits... these silly people driving too fast in icy rain... what are you thinking? so many cars on the side of the road... i sincerely hope they're alright and that they remember not to do that again... this morning everything seemed pretty much resolved even though it was still below freezing outside and icicles adorned pretty much everything in sight...

OVER AND OVER AND OVER

at least that was pretty... the results from last night's voting also hung like the icicles as the pundits described the life of my boy Mike's chances dripping away... in fact... McCain's camp actually send a memo over to Huckabee's camp asking them to give it up, citing mathematical impossibilities... i heard people in the media call Huckabee "a professional irritant", "an annoyance" and many other non-flattering terms, but, as silly and unprofessional as that all is, at least they're talking about him somewhat...

IT'S ALIVE!!!!!

Bill O'Reilly, someone i can handle in small doses (usually the 3 minute Talking Points podcast), was pleading the case of Hillary Clinton the other day... yes, that Hillary... addressing the Senator's complaints that the media has turned against her and has been unfairly representing her and her family... she was also concerned that the media outlets had already handed over the Democratic nomination to Obama despite it continuing to be a tight race... sounds to me like the monster Dr. Frankenstein built in years past has come to life and turned on its master... and, might i add, how hypocritical of O'Reilly, not only to chime in on Hillary's side, but also to complain about "secular" media doing to Hillary exactly what he and Fox News have done to my boy Mike for the ENTIRE CONTEST...

CHEESEHEADS, ROLL OUT

Next up for my boy Mike is Wisconsin... i think he can take the state and gain some momentum going into the big block of contests on March 4th... as far as whether or not he should give up and leave the election, i say, in the words of General Anthony McAuliffe, "Nuts!"... later this week, i'll talk more about why i like Mike...

NUTS!

speaking of which... Jericho is back on the air and i missed the premiere yesterday... i'll watch it online or on demand later this week... pretty bummed about missing it though...

CLEMENS.... SEE?

The Rocket testified in congress today and it's really not looking too good for Clemens... i said before that i lean towards the side of believing him over McNamee, but there is this nagging notion of motive... and then Pettite reportedly said that Clemens had admitted it to him... i just don't know... i did work out a scenario where McNamee has motive though... it involves years of blackmail, a bluff, and a battle of wills... regardless, now that they've both testified to opposing accounts under oath, one of them is pretty much screwed... and Clemens never had a very good screwball...

WORD OF THE DAY

Joshua 6: 6-11

Day One

I'm not sure how the conversation entirely went, or if Joshua really explained the full battle plan to his people, but he managed to convince them all to follow him... and they set out on day one of the week-long plan of attack... i'm sure that everyone was pretty antsy and i imagine that there was a lot of whispers after they got back to camp that night as they all tried to figure out what happened... and why they didn't yell at all, why they didn't attack at all, why they were sitting back at camp again...

IN OTHER WORDS

When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box by John Ortberg...

Chapter 6: Master of the Board... again

the next section of this chapter hits you like a cold wet sock across the face... or, like the reality it's asking you to face... the reality that you're not actually the master of the board... we're not in control of our lives and by pretending that we are, it's more than a lie, it's more than disillusionment, it's even more than sad... it's dangerous, it's destructive, it's really, really depressing... this chapter is something of a downer so far... ha!

AND IT JUST DON'T STOP

Okay, here's the links from last time... the Mr. J Interview and a walk TRu of How Great Thou Art... looking at the old calendar, i see that i have some more interviews coming up with Kevin Max, Poems, and more including some year in re:TRu stuff too... also tomorrow is Valentine's Day and they're announcing the Dove Nominees, so i might talk about that, too...

peace... love... bdg...

so this is supposed to be my day off from the old blog, but i didn't write yesterday and i've been so inconsistant that i figured, hey, why not?... in fact, this is going to be a SUPER entry (hopefu