How the Raccoon Got His Mask pt 2

No, its not a sequel to the first story I wrote in first grade, its more of a follow-up. I went out with a school teacher last night and she teaches a creative writing class, so I shared with her my amazing piece of creative writing. I thought about it a little more today and thought it actually would make a pretty darn good children's book. So that's what I'm doing. I'm writing a children's book about Ronnie, the Raccoon who lost his mask.

I've got two directions I could go and I want your advice. One is the original; a raccoon who didn't have a mask/lost it and sets out to find it. It would have no value other than entertainment. The other would be more educational; a raccoon who was born without a mask and is scared of going to school because he's different (in this version he may possibly meet up with a tortoise without a shell who teaches him its ok to be different).

What really grinds my gears

I'm generally a pretty calm person and don't get upset over much. People ask what my pet peeves are and they are generally pretty minor and even the things that do get on my nerves don't really leave me that upset. But every year, I'm reminded what gets me upset like nothing else... the commercialization of Christmas!

I've got a wedding this weekend for a friend from college, so I'll be making the journey back to Sioux City this weekend and staying in a hotel. I just called the hotel to confirm my reservations and she precedes to put me on hold. Here it is, September 29th... yes SEPTEMBER!!!... and I hear "just hear those sleigh bells jingling, ring-ting tingling too..."!

Don't get me wrong, I love love LOVE the holiday season, including the music, but I hate how it starts earlier and earlier every year. My opinion is that its not to put people in the spirit of Christmas, but to put people in the spirit of buying. I could go on a million tangents with this including my hatred of our desensitization and concern for being P.C. that "Christmas" has become offensive. In fact, once its actually Christmas season, I'll post a transcript of someone else's tangent because they said it much better than I could. I think it was Andy Rooney or maybe Ben Stein.

Anyways, thanks for letting me vent. Merry Christmas.

Jon Foreman - Switchfootless

So when I was home my buddy Nicholas Petersen, who is a great musician I know and always has great musical recommendations, was raving about Jon Foreman's new solo album. I recognized the name but it took a bit to get over my pride of "I should know this" to ask who it was. Well, he's the lead singer for Switchfoot and back in the day, before all you mainstream folks heard of Switchfoot, he was putting out great music with deep, meaningful lyrics. Being in radio I understand songs have to be "radio-friendly" with a catchy hook or simple melody and it seems Switchfoot has been able to keep in the limelight, but they have definitely left us to wonder, does Jon Foreman still have those meaningful lyrics in him?

About a year ago Jon Foreman began a series of four releases titled Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. In it, he showcases he still has that deep musical talent that made him famous. Its nothing like any of his Switchfoot stuff and would probably best be compared to Sufjan Stevens or Bright Eyes (circa Four Winds or I'm Wide Awake It's Morning.

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Fall - This was his first release and it starts off with the song "The Cure for Pain", perhaps the most recognized of his solo releases. The song is about his struggles with being a part of the band and the reflection on the passing of time. The album rounds out with 5 equally as melancholly tracks that make you just want to lie back and enjoy. This blog has taken me 30 minutes so far because I keep finding myself pausing to just listen. Its the kind of music you just can't help trying to sing along to, even if you don't know the lyrics.

Tracks:
1. The Cure for Pain
2. Southbound Train
3. Lord, Save Me From Myself
4. Equally Skilled
5. The Moon is a Magnet
6. My Love Goes Free

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Winter - I find this album is a stretch for Jon musically. Not in a bad way like a girl in club says "They tell me I look like Jessica Alba" and you think "That's a stretch". I mean he stretches beyond what he's used to. The third track, "Somebody's Baby", seems normal enough but in the lyrics you find the telling of God's love for even the lowliest of people you pass on the streets. Its about a homeless girl with a drug problem who is found dead and has to be identified by dental records. It tells us "the birth and the death were both over with no one to grieve" but the chorus sings out "She's somebody's baby, still". White as Snow is a cry out to God for forgiveness. Jon once said "For us, these songs are for everyone... ...Music has always opened my mind and that's what we want." in response to calling him a Christian artist. So although his faith is strong, you don't always see it in his music. I'm not one that thinks every song a Christian artist puts out needs to be a proclamation of faith, but its refreshing to see they don't shy away from it. The song has a very Oriental feel to it along with the final track, "In Love".

Tracks:
1. Learning How to Die
2. Behind Your Eyes
3. Somebody's Baby
4. White As Snow
5. I Am Still Running
6. In Love

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Spring - As you might expect, this album is more upbeat than the previous two albums with themes revolving around life and rebirthing. It aptly starts with the song "March" that had me thinking Belle and Sebastian right away and goes on to feature other tracks speaking of love and hope like "Love isn't Made" which he is joined in vocals by his wife, Emily, along with Chirstian artist Sarah Masen, who is his sister-in-law. The track "Your Love is Strong" ends with a great rendition of the Lord's Prayer. Fall and Spring are my two favorite seasons. Fall and Spring are also my two favorite EPs.

Tracks:
1. March (A Prelude to Spring)
2. Love Isn't Made
3. In My Arms
4. Baptize My Mind
5. Your Love Is Strong
6. Revenge

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Summer - Like Spring, this album keeps the songs a little more upbeat and a stays away from the somberness of Fall and Winter. The second track, "Resurrect Me" is almost a completely different feel than any of the other songs on any of the EPs with upbeat drum beats, electric guitars, and a fuller vocal sound. This is also the most reverant EP with tracks that make no doubt where Foreman's faith lies. "House of God, Forever" is basically a reprisal of the 23rd Psalm and the last track "Again" tells of God remaining as true today as he did yesterday and asks us to turn our hearts to Him.

Tracks:
1. A Mirror is Harder to Hold
2. Resurrect Me
3. Deep in Your Eyes (There is a River)
4. Instead of a Show
5. House of God, Forever
6. Again

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I'd definitely recommend downloading these 4 EPs (legally!) and have given all 4 the "David Wage Stamp of Approval"! If you're short on the cash, and just want to get the "best of" these CDs, Limbs and Branches is expected to release October 28th and will consist of a selection of fan-picked songs from the EPs, along with two new tracks. I took a look at the track listing and it pretty much catches all the best songs. But they're all great!

Tracks:
1. Your Love is Strong (Spring)
2. Behind Your Eyes (Winter)
3. The Cure for Pain (Fall)
4. Resurrect Me (Summer)
5. Southbound Train (Fall)
6. Broken From the Start (new song)
7. The House of God, Forever (Summer)
8. Instead of a Show (Summer)
9. A Mirror is Harder to Hold (Summer)
10. In My Arms (Spring)
11. Learning How to Die (Winter)
12. Over the River (new song)

ChaCha

I don't know if you've heard of this service or not, but its the latest and is becoming the biggest mobile search engine out there.

If you've ever got a question that you need the answer to, you send a text message to ChaCha (242242) and ask whatever you need to know. On the other end of that text is a human being who will answer your question, so even if you ask a subjective question, like "Where can I find the best Mexican food in Tulsa, OK?" you can still get an answer back usually within 5-10 minutes that would say "Try Abuelo's Mexican Food Embassy at 10909 E 71st St. There phonenumber is (918) 307-1373. Adios!"

I heard about this service through a friend of mine and the first opportunity I had to use it was last night. Me and some guys were sitting around talking about cars while eating grilled meat and lighting things on fire... you know, usual guy stuff... and for some reason, the question of what tiny car was used on Family Matters came up. We wondered what it was so I sent the text "What type of car did Steve Urkel drive on the show "Family Matters". About 7 minutes later I recieved, "It is said that the lovely "clown car" that Steve Urkel drove was a BMW Isetta."

Omaha wrap-up!

I'm exhausted today, but I had a great time back in Omaha. Sorry I won't end up having another vid-cast out of this. I really had planned on it but honestly just did something very uncharacteristic of me and took it easy this weekend. Lots of pictures at the bottom!

I got in Thursday night and instead of going out with the several people I had talked over plans with I just went to a small coffee shop by myself and watched a friend of mine perform. It worked out perfectly that he went on later because of a delayed flight and I walked in the door for the last song of the guy right before Nicholas. I sipped my delicious free coffee and enjoyed it.

The next day I was able to meet up with an old friend from high school. I basically keep in touch with 2 people from my class regularly. Stephen (Beav) and his wife. We had delicious Alvarado's burritos (one of the three Omaha restaurants I had planned on hitting up while I was there) and just chatted. It was also my high school's homecoming, and although I could care less about whats going on with my high school, my sister was bringing out her three kids to the parade and I also wanted to be sure to see my grandma so it was a great opportunity. So I went to the football game, and after Stephanie took Avery and Jackson home but left Annabelle with me and mom to take to the game.

Saturday I went back in to Omaha and took some pictures around town. I've always wanted to photograph the downtown area but have never really taken the time. I still could have used more time, but I got a few of the iconic markers for downtown Omaha (photos all below). I had to rush through at the end because of the wedding. I quickly got ready, picked up my date and then her dog got out! We had to chase her all over the neighborhood. Thankfully I had planned on getting to the wedding plenty early so that I could get the camera set up (I videoed the wedding) so we were only late to when we said we'd be there, not to the actual wedding.

It was one of the best weddings I had been to in a while. I have to honestly say I wasn't paying much attention to the actual content of the ceremony because I was concentrating on filming, but I assume it was nice, and the reception was great. There were a couple slide shows, including one that the photographer had quickly put together of the wedding photos in between the ceremony and that lag time before the wedding party showed up. There was also a "friends and family" slideshow that I was awesome enough to make with Andy and my CWS picture with "the Captain". Oh, and also there was a picture of a random friend we haven't talked to in nearly a year. The funny thing was, he was the only one in the picture. And maybe 3 people at the whole wedding even knew who he was. Randomness. We finished the night out back at the hotel hanging out and singing karaoke. Andy and I broke out our rendition of Tag Team's Whoomp There It Is. Just call us DC-the Brain Supreme and the Man, Steve Rollin. And perhaps the highlight of my night was the fact that not only did I beat Janel in darts (a rarity) but I beat her 2 games in a row! And that was after not playing darts in 3 months! I'm sorry, what was the question... Why am I so awesome?

Sunday was just a church/hang out with the family kind of day. I didn't end up leaving town until 5:30 which meant I got home around 12:30, and after only getting about 4 hours of sleep the night before, it made for quite the long day!

Here's all the pictures from the weekend! (click to enlarge; roll over for description)

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Palin/Clinton SNL Skit

I wasn't the first to make the comparison, and I'm sure I won't be the last, but the resemblance of Sarah Palin to Tina Fey is uncanny. And I guess Tina Fey can do a great impression of Palin too. If you missed SNL last weekend, here's the opener which ended up being the only part really worth watching.

Omaha is my Homaha

I commented to someone the other day that, although I'm really loving it down here, I haven't yet found that connection where I've quit calling Omaha "home". I've been down here for a little over four months now, and I'm by no means homesick, but that doesn't mean I'm not excited to head back. I'm leaving Thursday after work and should get into town late that night, but possibly early enough that I can hit up Old Chicago before it closes.

Friday I get to get my teeth fixed! I had a cavity starting to form that I had taken care of a few days before I moved but it wasn't quite fixed properly. So I've been dealing with something called "high bite" for about 4 months, where I feel intense pain if I bite down to hard. Certain foods hurt to chew and it just causes a lot of general pain. So I'm excited for that.

And I just found out that this weekend is my old high school's homecoming. Although I'll probably be able to find many of my classmates who haven't left the small farm town at this game, its not the "reunion" I'm particularly excited for. My dad is one of the coaches and my nieces and nephew will all be out at the game and will be looking darn cute!

Saturday is my good friends Andy and Jaci's wedding, and the main reason I'm heading back. I still need a date, so if anyone wants to go... haha. Should be lots of fun! I met Andy in Omaha and randomly he just happened to be dating one of my friends from college. So not only should I get to see a lot of Omaha friends, but maybe some old college friends too!

And Sunday, I'll make it out to church, so that should cover everyone else I didn't get a chance to see.

Should be a productive weekend! I'm planning on doing a series of blogs covering the trip so come Thursday, keep checking back. I'll probably do some video blogging and put up the raw footage immediately, then edit it together all pretty when I get back.

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