1. He's dependable. As sad as it is, just showing up and sticking around puts you ahead of WAY too many parents. Dad's always been there.

2. We can disagree without being disagreeable.

3. He has "outsider" politics. One of the things that we agree on is that the system we have (politically speaking) is messed up. The Buchanan-Nader coalition is a weird one, but it's real.

4. He loves sports. A half-time call is a usual and good thing in my family. I learned loyalty from my Dad--we stick with our teams through thick and thin. In the case of the Pirates, there has been a whole lot of thin.

5. He treats people right. Dad makes sure that his employees get health care. He doesn't need the government to force him to pay a decent wage. He doesn't discriminate.

6. He loves my Mom, and cares for her.

7. He's a man of faith, and a respecter of people.

8. He's a good listener.

9. He is patient.

10. He's my Dad!

Happy fathers' Day!

Wow. I have been the king of short and infrequent posts recently. I think it is time for another list of ten.

1. Everybody looks better. (Call me shallow if you want, but its' true)

2. They are emotional events, even for cavemen like me that rarely express strong emotions.

3. They remind me of my own wedding (which was great) and many of my friends.

4. An open bar is always nice.

5. Ditto a nice dinner.

6. Dancing with my bride.

7. Sometimes a wedding means a little bonus for ministers :)

8. Marriage is one of the Bible's most used metaphors for God's relationship to us.

9. Special musical choices, like when Julie walked down the Aisle to "God only knows," by the Beach Boys, or when Rich and Dawn left to "Beautiful day."

10. The way everybody works together to make an awesome day for two people.


Congrats to Rich and Dawn, married yesterday.

I am at a conference in Princeton, and will be blogging from it at elmwoodjesus.org

(e:Janelle) and I have been trying to drive less, make more of our own food, shop locally, and all that good stuff. (e:Janelle) has even taken it to the next level, and discovered that vinegar and baking soda makes a great cleaning solution.

So last night, she asked me to go buy paper towels, and I looked at her and asked, completely straight faced, "Don't we make our own paper towels now?"

I thought I was so funny.

12:47pm. 3rd OT. The cup finals go back to Pittsburgh.

This is funny.

Tomorrow morning I meet with Darling Paint. They painted our house last year, and even though they were a little more expensive, we went with them because they had a good reputation and seemed to use higher quality paint.

Needless to say, we were surprised at the number of cracks in the paint in our house. We also have been finding splashes and little errors over the past year. We paid significantly over the lowest bid, because we believed we were paying for quality. Tomorrow we will see if we got it.

Everybody makes mistakes. If Darling Paint makes it right, then this post will be amended to become a positive review. If they don't, than my guess is that an account of how they did not will be on the first page of google when somebody searches "Darling Paint."

The awesome power of (e:strip)!


UPDATE!

Some developments.

Bill Darling came to our else and personally explained that the cracking is expected in a wood house as old as ours. His explanation made sense, and I appreciated the service of a personal visit to inspect the cracks. He has also been helpful in looking up the color of the paint to do touch ups (originally, he had planned on leaving the leftover paint, but that is nowhere to be found. Neither the painters nor (e:janelle) and I were thinking about it as they left)

Mr Darling found this post. He didn't like it--so I am leaving the original post (above) as it is to keep a public record. I thought it was fair, he thought it was a slam--hopefully my update provides the rest of the story (He also mentioned that he is going to write a response, which is fair. He mentioned all of his charity work, including Brush-up Buffalo, which I think is great). He has taken care of us, despite some other, more pressing concerns, and he continues to do so.

Here's a link to their website:

So there's the rest of the story. Yes, the paint is cracking, but it would happen with any painter--it is one of the joys of owning an old house. If a painter tells you that it won't crack, they are likely lying to you. Darling paint has done everything I have asked to take care of my concerns, and I am grateful.

The next time somebody asks me why people don't go to church anymore, I will show them this link.



I can think of more offensive things. I can think of more offensive things at Starbucks. Anybody who finds that cup of coffee to be erotic has bigger problems than it being on a coffee cup.

My church is experimenting with gathering in each other's homes. Every Thursday night, during April and May, a few of us (about 10) are getting together, to eat and drink together, have a discussion about a piece of scripture, talk about what's going on in our lives, and (for those that are comfortable with it) pray for each other.

You don't have to believe anything in particular to be there. Everybody promises, at the outset, to respect each other.

It starts at 7, and we make sure we finish before 8:30.

My street address is in the chatter, or if that goes away, you can email me.

I know not everybody likes them, but every day I am concluding more and more that they are a force for good.

Next week they are having their fund raising party. They still need some volunteers to do easy things like pass out nametags and watch the auction items (I will be showing people where to park/cleaning up, if you want to join me).

Even if you don't like what they do, they are a small organization, and one volunteer's opinion will be heard. You can help the EVA become what it should be.

And I know. I am still not posting for real. I better stop this or nobody will read my blog anymore.