It's Only Love

It's been quite some time since we have posted anything, but we have been crazy busy. Amy was gone all of last week to San Diego with the Jacobs and I was left at home to fend for myself. The fact that I didn't starve and had clean clothes to wear is beyond me! ha! Actually I can hold me own, thank you very much.

Well Sat. was our 2nd annual community egg hunt. The fact that a church of our size was able to plan, execute and succeed at an egg hunt that was marketed to our entire town...is beyond comprehending to all of us that helped. Guess what my duty was...oh geez...I was the Bunny. I had to get into that white fluffy costume and made the kids either really happy or scared the pants off of them. After the big egg hunt for the smaller kids, I had a slew of families lined up in what seemed a never ending line wanting to take a picture of their kids with the bunny, me. My knees were aching of having to get down to take pictures with the little ones or the ones in the strollers. And was I happy to get out of that costume! I stood up to the challenge of being the Easter Bunny!!! and I made a lot of kids happy and families now have pictures of their beautiful kids and a random guy in a bunny costume. Glad I could serve Spring Hill!

Amy got back on Sat. night and Sunday morning for Easter she was asked to put on a drama. She has done a few monologues for church already so she was asked to add some of the arts for this special Sunday. What she came up with still blows my mind! And she wrote this on her own...she didn't get it from some script or book of Easter monologues. (Does a book of Easter monologues even exist?) I am just copying and pasting fom the rough draft off of Word...I'm not even going to pretty it up for you. It's better in it's original form...here is what she created...

(Nails being hit with hammer….start out very soft and gradually get louder but not too loud that the speaker cant be heard until the end when it should be very loud and strong)

Can you heat it? There! Did you hear it? Listen. There it is again. What it is? It’s unlike anything I’ve ever heard before. It draws you in and bids you come closer. It’s powerful yet soft bitter yet sweet. But what is it? I feel like it’s pulling me closer and closer. Listen can you still hear it. I can’t get the sound out of my head. Its persistent, its steady, its reliable and unending. But what could it be. It’s growing louder now. Its so constant like a heart beat.
Have you ever listened to something so intently that you start to feel the sound? Listen. Can you feel it? This sound is immersed in feeling. I can feel the pain and sadness. I can feel the sorrow and darkness. Listen can you feel it. I feel something else also something stronger more powerful. I can feel joy and pride. I feel accomplishment and renewal. I feel something else also it’s the strongest feeling of all but I cant quite understand it. Listen do you feel it. This feeling it gets stronger the more I listen. It’s like its alive and it’s asking me to reach forward and take hold. At the same time I feel this tug at my heart letting me know I’m not alone. And if I would just take hold it would all suddenly make sense.
Listen can you still hear it? It’s so strange that in this sound I can feel acceptance and forgiveness like I’ve never known. I feel like I’ve found something that I have been searching for my whole life and all the pieces are starting to fit together. Listen, listen closely, listen hard to the sound its like a heart beat. Do you feel it? A heart beat. Listen. That’s it listen that’s what it is the sound the feeling listen. Its love. So loud, so clear, and so strong. Listen (nail) Love (nail) Love (nail) Love.

(On the screen the word love in many different languages form a cross)

...thoughts?

New York State of Mind

I was meeting a friend for lunch on Wednesday and we were
trying to decide where to go. I had heard from some co-workers that there is this place named Joey's House of Pizza that is a really good Italian joint.
I checked out their website and we decided it would be a good place to try out. I did not mention to Burke that i had also heard that the guy taking orders is from NYC and is also kind of known as a Pizza Nazi. Of course that alias being made famous by the Seinfeld character the "Soup Nazi."

So we meet up at Joey's and as we are waiting in line and I am watching the guy take orders...I realize I forgot to tell Burke about the pizza nazi. He is straight up and focused about taking those orders and getting the plates prepared to hand out. And this plays out just like a Seinfeld epi...

It's now my turn to order...he does even look at me..."Your next, what do you want?" I pause look down at the pizzas on display behind the counter glass...point and in paranoia blurt out "I'll take a slice of pepperoni and a slice of that stuffed pizza." The whole time he didn't look at me but he grabbed a slice of the stuffed pizza and put it in the oven. "did he forget about my pepperoni slice?" I thought to myself. Then He asks burke "You, what can I get you?" Burke seeming more confused than me, pointed in my direction and spat out " I'll take what he's having."
As we stand there in confusion the pizza nazi yells from behind the counter..."Fellas, after I take your order, move down the line!" oh snap...

Get the to cashier told her I think I only got a slice of stuffed pizza and a drinking cup...she charges my card as the pizza nazi walks up with my order of 2 slices...oh double snap. I told her I wanted the 2nd slice and she could charge my card for the individual slice...and as we are clearing things up at the register the pizza nazi brings Burke his order and sees that I am holding up the line...yet again...and yells "Hey! I gave you what you ordered!"

oh SNAP!

We got things cleared up, I got my slices of pizza, and the pizza was really really good.
Was it worth being herded through line like cattle and being yelled at...?

Sure, it was really good pizza!

Via Chicago

On Sunday night we went to see this little band that we love...they come via chicago...and put on a heck of a show! I speak of none other than WILCO! (they actually opened their set with the song Via Chicago and it was pretty amazing)

We last saw them at the Ryman was well and we were so excited about seeing them again when we heard they were coming back to the Ryman for their Sky Blue Sky tour of 2008. And apparently a lot of other Nashvillians (is that right?) were pumped being that the concert sold out in a matter of hours, maybe even minutes. I just got on the phone at 9:55am, 5 minutes before they went on sale, to get tickets back in December and I got our 2 tickets on the 4th row on the balcony. BONUS!

I took this picture with my phone...so it is kind of bad. But still gives a taste of that night.

The Ryman is a great place to see a concert. Mainly because there has never been any smoking in the building, even before the smoking law was passed here in TN and because there are pews and assigned seats. The pews make it nice to be able to sit for the performance and the assigned seats help in case you get there late or have to leave for a restroom break. It was also the original location of the Grand 'Ole Opry before they built the Opry house out in East Nashville. So it has lots of history and the acoustics in it are known to be some of the best...other than the more modern locations of course.

Wilco says that it is one of their favorite places to perform. However for all we know they may be saying that at every location they play to gain respect of their fans...? But I think Jeff Tweedy is a man of his word.


OK...here's the thing I hated about the concert. As most of you readers know...Amy and I are not very tall. So going to a concert that is not in a traditional auditorium with elevated rows is always non-enjoyable for either of us. Well the good thing about the Ryman is that it is kind of like theatre seating, especially the balcony, where each pew is elevated more then the one in front of it. you get my flow...

Well unless we get the first row...it is safe to assume that the tallest couple in the place will be sitting right in front of us. I can bet that any time and my chances of winning that bet will always be really high for me. Well we got sort of lucky on that bet, the couple in front of us had a short girl with a tall guy. Needless to say, Amy was able to watch the concert with out a visual hindrance. I, on the other hand, had to deal with this tall guy who was very obviously NOT a Wilco fan during the concert.
Why pay money on tickets for you and a love interest to go see a show and then not watch it!?! Who in their right mind!?! This genius spends the whole time leaning over and talking to this girl, trying to impress her, I'm sure. BUT it was at my expense of enjoying the concert. I had to keep shifting in my seat to view over his left shoulder, then he'd lean over to talk to her, so I had to move to view over his right shoulder. It got old FAST.

However, I still did enjoy the concert, and I know that everyone will always have to deal with people who have no sense of all the people around them.

OK, I have to end this on a good note. Wilco still rocked my socks off!
It's now March! Helloooooo March!
ha!