truth wears pants.

I have neglected my blog posts. This is partly because I don't think anyone ever reads them. But there is something quite therapeutic about writing, especially when it has nothing to do with my studies. Not too much has happened since last. I am an uncle now, and am going to have a new niece soon. It is very strange to see, and talk, about my brothers being dads. It all is very surreal. But life goes on.


Philadelphia

I always yearn to move back to Philly this time of year. As opposed to the month plus of consistent cold and snowy weather, and the traditional April snowstorm of Northeast Ohio, Philly will inevitably be starting its long, slow and glorious march towards summertime. The weather will begin with long stretches of mild 50 degree weeks, with a few colder days. The cherry blossoms will begin to bloom. Kelly Drive will be bombarded by pedestrians eager to shed the winter and begin the good times of spring and summer. The green will get more vibrant and will last for an unnaturally long time as spring will bring the warm days, cool damp breezes and even cooler and magical nights. For now, I am stuck here in Ohio. It's cold, snowy, damp and cloudy every day. The chances that the few warm sunny days will land on my days are a few, and therefore I will get increasingly frustrated at my lack of ability to golf. The best I can do is to put up cheery springtime pictures on my desktop and lament the glorious weather that those in Philly will be enjoying.

Movie Critics

I have been putting stock in movie critics lately and I have found that they are increasing snobby and ridiculous. Since when does every movie that has ever been made need to be high art? What ever happened to the good ole' days when a movie could just be entertaining? It seems like every critic feels as though they are more important than they are. I read Rottentomatoes.com and I can't decide weather or not to laugh at the stupidity of reviewers or cry at the state of the world. Since when was Rambo anything more than a guy killing everyone who gets in his way? Why review a movie like that through the criteria that many view the 'artsy' movies? Please excuse me, but I love me a good Van Damme crappy acting action flick with no plat and worse special effects. It seems as though the imagination of the entire movie going world has died at the hand of modern day special effects so that when special effects and acting are not superb, than the movie become unbelievable. Its all quite amusing and sad. Newsflash: most of the movie plotlines and dialogs are surreal. Some people like to just see cool crap happen. Its good to be in a mind numbing state of suspended belief for a few hours.

Your Mom Jokes

I have gotten in the oft embarrassing habit of replying any sentence with an action verb in it by repeating it with 'Your mom' as the subject. Sometimes it a good time, other times it is quite crude. Maybe I should think more...or stop.

LeBron vs. Kobe

I have heard a lot about this argument in the past few weeks. I have heard a lot of people's feeling on the subject. Here are mine.

The discussion really heated up after Sunday's games in which LeBron had 37 points and Kobe had 52. The discussion about the being the best must have a lot of factors included.

1. Kobe has had a better supporting cast, and his team can win without him. LeBron's team has lost all 7 games in which LeBron has been out.

2. LeBron is leading in EVERY stat category. LoBron is avaraging two more points, rebounds, and assists than Kobe. He has more block and more steals. The only stat in which Kobe is leading is in free throw shooting percentage.

3. Kobe is the better defender, but not by much. LeBron has more blocks and steals than Kobe.

4. Kobe might have a slight edge on raw skills, LeBron is catching up.

5. LeBron is superior in size and strength.

6. After last years playoff performance and LeBron's performance in almost every fourth quarter this season, clutch performances are even between him and Kobe.

7. LeBron makes his team better. Kobe might be getting better at sharing, but LeBron has always done that.

Kobe is a sick player. LeBron is a sick player. Right now, Kobe may have more basketball talent, but that is negligible especially beside the superior physical attributes of LeBron. A microcosm of the two could be their latest 50+ games. Kobe had 52 points and 4 assists. LeBron 50 points and 10 assists. Slight edge for LeBron. I think he is the best in the NBA right now.

The Importance of Traditions (and breaking them).

We have now been having a contemporary service at my church for six months. It took a lot of people time to adjust. The results have been astonishing. These results are not in number, but in quality of church. For the first time in the 4 years that I have been here, people stay after and fellowship with each other. The atmosphere is free and the church is becoming vibrant. In order to accomplish this there was a severe break with tradition. I love traditions. I love the mystery and reverence wrapped up in the history of traditions. I love to hear about Royal St. Andrews golf club and the traditions that have come from that place. But there is always a need to step back from tradition and prune what has been included in them that hinder. In Church this is especially true because traditions can be filled with man made ideas that lead to the stifling of the Holy Spirit and the effectiveness of the church's ministry. This is as true of 'contemporary' churches as it is of liturgical ones. There are contemporary traditions that have already sprung up that hinder. Traditions are wonderful and they allow us to connect with our heritage, but they must be periodically broken to ensure that they do not replace Christ as the head of the church and to ensure the bodies willingness to follow Christ out of tradition and into dynamic movement.

Bye.

Bye. I will hopefully post more frequently. Maybe I'll have more interesting things to blog about then.