Slightball's Mix

Come on Mark Few...Recruit me!!!

2010-09-16T09:58:00.000-07:00

New Pictures

2007-01-26T16:42:00.000-08:00

Christine and I tested out the camera at Palos Verdes. I love California in the winter!!!

The light house facing Catalina Island

My Grandma's Garden

SNOW!!!

2007-01-17T11:49:00.000-08:00

Yes it is true, here in Santa Clarita California, it was snowing this morning. Not the type of snow that you would see in the Midwest or mountains, but it was still snow. It made the ground white and got me out of work for about 10 minutes. Just a reminder that God can do anything He wants no matter where you live. Global warming...hahahahahaha.

24 Premier

2007-01-16T14:08:00.000-08:00

WARNING-If you are a 24 fan and haven't seen the first four episodes then don't read this!!!

I just thought it was interesting that of all the places they could have picked to nuke, they picked good old Valencia. It got me thinking about all the things that would be missed here in Santa Clarita if we really were nuked. Here is my top 20 list of things I would miss.

20. Changi's
19. Magic Mountain
18. Great Sushi restaurants
17. All 18 Starbucks (seriously)
16. Dario's
15. Walnut Street
14. Central Park
13. Hamburger Hamlet (oh wait that is already gone)
12. TPC and Robinson Ranch (golf)
11. Saugus Cafe
10. Town Center
9. Jersey Mike's Deli
8. Chili's
7. Wood Ranch
6. Seeing places with fun memories
5. Yamamoto's
4. The "Hot Box"
3. The Master's College
2. Copperhill Community College
1. My very comfortable BED!!!

What are some things that you would miss?

0 for 5

2007-01-12T09:31:00.000-08:00

So my buddy Jordan and I decided that it would be fun to quail hunt this year. I haven't been hunting since before college and that was duck hunting not quail, so this was a new experience for me. We both got our hunting licence and went out into the national forest to shoot away.

Well two months later and 4 boxes of shotgun shells wasted I have nothing to show for it. I could blame it on the rough terrain or the fact that once you get 1 or 2 shots off they fly over a hill that takes another 30 minutes to climb. I could even blame my gun which is a full choke (which means the pellets don't spread as much) and that my gun is more for duck then quail. However I think the only person to blame is myself. I decided that I am a horrible shot and I had plenty of chance to bring home supper. In fact one time a quail jumped up and flew so close to me that I think it might have reached out and touched my gun with its wing just to taunt me. (true story)

The season is coming to an end and I could go tomorrow morning one last time, but I am more incline to sleep in then get up at 6:30 again. Call me lazy or a quitter, but I really don't want to go 0 for 6 in one season. Oh and in case you are wondering, Jordan has shot 9 over our five times going out. Maybe I should take up horseback riding :(

P.S. I'll keep you updated if I decide to go one more time.

Nieces and Nephews!!!

2007-01-10T14:43:00.000-08:00

Look at this picture and tell me I am not the luckiest uncle. I just wanted to share how proud I am of them. Now if I could only get them to move down to California.

New Digital Camera

2007-01-09T15:51:00.000-08:00

Christine got a new Canon Rebel XT for Christmas and we have been testing it out since. I think she is going to take a class at a community college to learn more about it, but for now here are the first few pictures of family, nature and ummm...strange ones.

Games

2007-01-05T11:30:00.000-08:00

I was realizing the other day that I really like games. It is not just video games (which I don't have a system anymore) but I like sports games and board games. I think I just enjoy the challenge and competition with other people. I would honestly rather play almost any type of game then sit down and watch a movie or TV. Here is the problem...you almost always have to have more then yourself to play a game. Yes I know there are some games that you can play solo, but most of the fun ones are enjoyed with other people. I am finding that there are not a lot of people that still enjoy a good classic board game anymore. This is why I find myself watching re-runs of Friends and Seinfeld...boring. If you like good games here are some that always seem fun to play.

Phase 10
Settlers of Catan
Skip-Bo
Mexican Train
Speed Scrabble

I was introduced to this new game over Christmas and it is a lot of fun too.

That is all I have to say...just wanted to share my thoughts on games.

2007 Begins

2007-01-03T14:37:00.000-08:00

Well the Holiday Season is over and Christine and I enjoyed some great moments and good laughs. Some of the things we are looking forward to doing in the year 2007.

A early weekend get away to Palm Springs; The annual Gonzaga vs. Pepperdine game...Go ZAGS!!! Orchestra seats to the Broadway of Wicked; One great last semester with our fifth and sixth graders at Sunday school. Two years with the same kids was loads of fun. A spring trip to Texas to visit good friends. A summer trip up to Washington to see the family and to do some camping. My brother Joseph starting his first year at Masters. That is all I can think about right now and takes us through the end of August, but of course I can't forget...

The Return of our favorite TV shows-24 and American Idol.

What will Jack pull out of his bag this year?

Drop us a comment about what you will be doing!!!

Let The Olympics Begin

2006-09-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

No it is not Muhammad Ali lighting the torch at the 1996 Atlanta games. In fact you have probably never seen anyone else like the combo of a monkey/elephant. That is just some of the things you will see at the Animal Olympics. This event has caused a lot of out cry from animal rights activist because they feel like the animals are being abused and misused. I would agree that some of the events are not appropriate (we will get to those in a minute) however I would love to see monkies competing on bicycles for a gold model. Who wouldn't be entertained by a zebra running around a track against other animals. Or my favorite event, pigs swimming laps in the pool.

There are definitely some events that should be banned and those include the horse fighting. That is just stupid and dangerous to the animals. The kangaroo boxing is entertaining but let's not put a man in there and instead put two kangaroos. I don't think they would hurt each other too bad and it would be pretty funny to see them in their costumes. Oh well I guess in China you can get away with more then here in the states. No matter what your opinion is here are some pictures below to give you a better idea.

NAIM

2006-09-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

Christine and I had a long time friend of my parents and my first employer(lawn mowing) over for dinner the other night. He is from Washington and has been raising support to be a full time missionary to North American Indians.

I have been on two mission trips to Canada to work with Natives while I was in high school. It was such a blessing to work with them and their culture. It was great to hear about what he is planning to do while he is up there and it reminded me a lot about my trips and how impacting they were on me. I am excited about Tyler's ministry opportunity and if you wanted to read more about what NAIM is doing you an go to their website. (it is under construction right now but will be up shortly)

Google Earth

2006-09-28T10:52:00.001-07:00

I have had google earth downloaded for quite some time but have never really played with it. Although I won't be using it for things like these guys did. I thought I would show off the weddings I had been to recently.

Notice how close they were? Yes that meant I had to drive down there twice in a month. However it was worth it and I don't think I could ever grow tired of San Diego.

I also thought I would throw in the location where Christine and I got married and where we went on our honeymoon. Looking at the resort again makes me want to go back.

If you don't have google earth you should get it and look up some of your favorite places.

Check Your Heart

2006-09-20T11:35:00.000-07:00

I was reading Proverbs 6:16-19 last night and it made me stop and realize how often I do one of these things. As far as I know I have never killed anyone, but this verse clearly shows that a lying tongue is just as detestable to the Lord as a murder. How often do I realize that my heart leads right to sin that I thought I had conquered. I am not even going to talk about the times I have talked about someone behind their back to change someone else's opinion about them. Are these life patterns? I pray they aren't but I can't help but feel that I have a lot of sin in my life that I don't always take serious. It is not something to scoff at, the Bible clearly says God hates theses actions. What is the point of this post? Well I hope it makes you look at your heart's actions as it has done for me. There is a lot I could work on in my life, but why not start with 7 things that our Lord hates.

"There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers."

9/11 2001

2006-09-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

Please remember to pray for all the people who lost loved ones. Even though it has been five years the pain is still very real for so many people. We should also be praying for God's love to be seen even in the midst of tragedy.

"Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin

2006-09-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

Ever since I found out that Steve have been killed I have felt that I should post something about it on my blog. However I knew many other people would too so feel free to read about it on Scott's Blog.

On a side note here is a funny story that relates to Steve. I have driven by this park many times and every time I think about Reggie and deep down inside I hope they never catch him. Even though the news article is old they still have not caught Reggie and Steve did try in April and failed. He was planning on coming back in a month.

Here is a picture of Reggie and his Blog.

2006-08-31T11:45:00.000-07:00

PJ and Amanda's Wedding was fantastic this last weekend. It was an all weekend event that I am still tired from. Nothing too crazy happened except one of the bride's maids stepped on glass and cut her foot really bad. She had to miss most of the reception which is sad because they had fantastic food and great dancing. I don't have much else to say about it but here are some more pictures. Pictured below are the bride's maids, my wife and I, and Pete and Lauren.

2006-08-30T09:48:00.000-07:00

I read this story on Drudgereport today. I can't think of too many things that would be more embarrassing then this. When you watch the video listen for the zipper that is the best part. The poor lady, I hope they gave her some paid vacation for a couple days. If you couldn't pick up what they were saying here it is in writing. Oh and one more thing, I think friends are off between her and her sister-in-law.

2006-08-29T09:34:00.000-07:00

DMB Hollywood Bowl

It is 9:30 and I am still trying to recover from last nights show. What an amazing venue the Hollywood Bowl is. When you put someone like Dave Matthews up on stage it becomes the most incredible combo. Here is a quick run down from last night.

1. We ate at Mexicali which is usually star filled although none were there last night. My friend Jenny saw Jessica Simpson just last week and there are usually more milling about too.

2. Parking sucked so we walked a mile to the concert.

3. The line to get in reminded me of a herd of cattle except no one was moving. We stood in the same spot for 15 minutes before a worker came up and said they opened a side gate. We quickly ran to this entrance and were admitted in five minutes. It is nice to be at the right place at the right time.

4. Our seats were further back but centered.

5. Amazing concert!!!

Let me just take a break and talk about how amazing it is that marijuana becomes legal for the two hour span of the concert. It still amazing me how many people are smoking it right in front of police officers. There was definitely a haze of smoke hanging over the crowd as there always is at a DMB concert.

The night ended with a long walk back to the car and a quick drive home. As tired as I am I feel a lot worse for my wife who had to get up at 5 this morning to go to work. I don't think she was too happy when her alarm went off. If you have never got a chance to see Dave in concert it is worth the money and a late night anytime.

2006-08-28T09:29:00.001-07:00

Scott Zeller challenged me to complete this book questionnaire so here goes.

1. One book that changed your life: Trusting God by Jerry Bridges
2. One book that you have read more than once: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
3. One book you would want on a desert island: A Quest for Godliness by J.I. Packer
4. One book that made you laugh: Uncle John's AHH-INSPIRING Bathroom Reader by Uncle John
5. One book that made you cry: Straight Jacket by Marcus Skinner
6. One book you wish had been written: The 10 Reasons I Love Rick Warren by Adam Cummings, The Day I Came to Work by Yaphet Peterson
7. One book you wish had never been written: Safe in the Arms of God by John MacArthur-see below
8. One book you are currently reading: A Basic Guide to Interpreting the Bible by Robert Stein
9. One book you have been meaning to read: Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper (I have tried to read this book three different times)

Book number seven is not my favorite book, I do not think the Bible gives enough clear evidence about where babies go when they die. There are obviously a lot worse books I could have picked on but this was the first one that I thought of. On that note there are apparently lots of people that do love this book.

2006-08-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

It's Friday morning and I am about to leave for PJ and Amanda's wedding. I am so excited for them but I am also sad they are moving to Texas afterwards. Christine is a bridesmaid and I am an usher so it is nice to be in the wedding together. I'll post some pictures and give the details of the wedding on Monday. Send them a congratulations on their facebook if you know them!!!

2006-08-24T09:14:00.000-07:00

Summer Review

My 2006 summer in Santa Clarita has been one with lots of changes. I have to be honest and say they are not all good. Besides being over 100 degrees about 24 days this summer there have been many other things that I have had to deal with. It amazes me to see that God provides the right thing or the right people in my life to help me through trials. My wife Christine has been incredible and I am so thankful that I have a healthy marriage and a best friend to rely on. Speaking of best friends I lost one of mine to Texas this summer. Scott Zeller has been a great influence and extremely important person in my life over the last five years. He has helped me through many tough times and has always been someone I can rely on. He decided it would be better for him to go to DTS and live with his family. Although I am happy for him I'm going to miss that guy. My brother also sold his house down here so he and his wife and my little niece Ashlyn will be moving to Washington. This also saddens me because Josh and I are really close and even though we don't get to hang out that much, when the opportunity is there we have a lot of fun. Other friends such as Jonny and the Clegans moved away so a lot of changes have happened.
I also took a couple classes this summer and really enjoyed what we learned. I think my favorite class was hermeneutics. It was extremely difficult but I can't expect much less from a graduate class. Hmmm only 26 more units to go. I still played soccer weekly and enjoy getting in a little exercise. I had to take some time off soccer because I could not do contact sports for a month. The reason for this setback is because I came down with Mono and Strept Throat. I know it sounds like an awful combination and that's because it was. I was basically in bed or on the couch for a week straight and then as I slowly gained strength I was able to go back to work and start life back up again. The positive side of this sickness was that it occurred during the World Cup and so I go to watch almost every match. Christine was amazing during this time and took care of me better then I could have asked for.
Even though August is not even over I feel like summer is over. The new students have arrived on campus and I am already planning my trips for the fall. It should be a busy time but I am looking forward to the change from summer. I am going to try and blog a little bit more then the past and they will probably be very random. Until next time.

2006-02-07T15:17:00.000-08:00

In case you were ever like me and wondering what happened to your childhood idols like DC Talk, Geoff Moore and the Distance, and Michael W. Smith, this might interest you. I found this on Apple Trailors and thought it was a little intriquing. I guess the thing to do these days when your singing career is over is turn to acting. I have to admit I am almost curious enough to see it. Time will tell. Visit the official movie site here.

2006-02-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

To Hell and Back...

Yes it is true, last night I came as close to hell as I hope I ever will come. There are many students from high school visiting our campus this week and my office thought it would be nice to take them out to a movie for some entertainment. Since these students are our guest we need to be considerate of them. We always run into the problem of the many different standards that they have, which boils down to "see the lowest rated movie out there." unfortunately for us that meant seeing Hoodwinked. This has got to be one of the most unique, odd, and absolutely stupidest movies I have seen. Sure cartoons are supposed to be for kids, and sure this is a fairy tale so I probably should not have had my hopes up for anything good, but after movies like Shrek and emperor's New Groove, I was hoping for another good comedy. I was mistaken. I won't bore you with the all the details, except to say that they made Little Red Riding Hood to seem like a little girl one minute and Neo out of the Matrix the next minute. The Wolf was the best character and even that is not saying much. It ends by bringing in a bunny who turns out to be the bad guy and he is bent on destroying all the other animals. Whenever a movie has to have the bad guy a bunny rabbit, it is going down hill fast. In this case I am not sure it ever got up the hill.

2006-01-24T10:52:00.000-08:00

SEQUELS AND REMAKES

As 2006 is upon us I keep reading about the 2005 stories. The ten most read news stories, the top 5 moments that you didn't want to miss in 2005. The list goes on and on. With the new year it also means that Oscar season is upon us. Although I am not a huge Oscar fan, I do like movies and I become fairly excited if I hear of a new one coming out. That being said, I hate spending 10 dollars just to see one movie (20 if my wife comes) especially with no guarantee that it will be worth it. (few are anymore) The problem is I always get sucked into the hype about certain movies or because the last one was good I assume this one will be too. I need to start doing better research about my movies, because I can't afford to keep spending money on something that I hate myself for during the rest of the weekend. A couple highlights from 2005 that I did not count as a waste would include, Cinderella Man, Chronicles of Narnia, and Batman Begins. The ones that I would never recommend to anyone would include Jarhead (walked out), History of Violence (walked out), War of the Worlds (should have walked out). It is not as if I am always picking these horrible movies, but rather on a Friday while hanging out with friends it becomes a spontaneous thing and we all regret it later.

Moving on from 2005 I am looking ahead at the 2006 movies and trying to get a head start on which ones to miss and which ones to hit up. First off I want to say that I think they are overdoing the remakes and sequels and that they need some new ideas. No wonder the box office was down 7% this last year. With no further delay, here are the awards for the sequels and remakes coming to a theater near you. (some of these are actually scheduled for 2007 but are being made now)

Top five I want to see.

X-Men III (hence the picture)
Batman Begins II (I am usually not a big comic movie junkie)
Indiana Jones 4 (I am not sure how Harrison is going to be able to do action)
Toy Story 3 (I know they should stop, but dang I really like them)
The Bourne Ultimatum (This better be the last, they are living on borrowed time)

Top five that I will not be fooled by.

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (I have no comment)
Die Hard 4.0 (Bruce is too old, see Indiana Jones comment)
Rambo IV (See above)
Cheating Death: Final Destination 3 (See comment 1)
Bean 2 (Stay in Briton)

The five that most intrigues me.

Young Hannibal: Behind the Mask (Could be big)
Boondock II: All Saints Day (First one was good, but sketch)
Shrek 3 (I think they should have stopped, 4th one in the making as well)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Not that I will see it, but still intriguing)
The Brazilian Job (hmmmm...don't know)

Top Money Makers

Spiderman III (No contest)
Superman Returns (Close second)

Number one they should not have made.

Rocky Balboa (Oh the things I could say)

So that is my list and I realize that there are many arguments that could be made, and I don't doubt that they would be good ones. Let me know what you think and what are some of the ones that make your list. For your enjoyment here are some others coming out and the website where I found most of these remakes or sequels.

Old School 2, Austin Powers 4, Evan Almighty, Casino Royale (James Bond), The Pink Panther, Pirates of the Caribbean, Wedding Crashers 2, The Butterfly Effect 2, Doctor Dolittle 3, 28 Weeks Later...the list goes on.

2006-01-23T10:23:00.000-08:00

What Kobe did last night was unthinkable. To score so many points against professionals in one game is an amazing feat. I know there are a lot of arguments about Kobe shooting too much, and that he is selfish and a hundred other arguments. I would have to agree with all of these statements if one thing applied to me, IF I was one of his teammates. I would hate to be on a team that a guy took 30 shots a night. Take a look at his last five games output (38,37,51,37,81) for an average of 48.8 points a game. The record during that five game span? 3-2 with one of those loses being the 51 point game. To a fan it should be exciting to never know how many points are going to be thrown in on any given night. To an opponent it has to be the scariest thing to know that at any moment Kobe could go off and not look back. Take last nights game for an example, Toronto was up 63 to 49 at half and they had pretty much dominated the entire half. What happened next no one would have guessed. Kobe scored 27 points in the 3rd quarter and 28 points in the second quarter to finish with 81 points and a win for the team. Did I say team? The other four players might as well have been cheering on the sidelines. As a team they only had 16 assist (without Kobe's 2) and they really looked like they were doing nothing out there the whole time. Kobe would bring the ball up and then the rest is said in the box score. So is Kobe a good player? Yes, without a doubt he is one of the best players in the game. Does he shoot too much? Well I don't think that is for me to decide, but if I was on his team and our record was only 22-19 I would start to wonder what Kobe was playing for. Is he doing it for the records or for the team? If I was a teammate I know what I would think.

2006-01-20T10:28:00.000-08:00

A blog on measles seems like an odd topic. Well normally I would agree except that my good friend Pete came down with them the other day. I honestly thought they didn't exist in "US cities" well I guess I knew that wasn't true but I never expected someone that I know and hang out with all the time to go and pick something up like that. The doctor told him that if he has been around homeless guys (he had one live with him for 2 months) or if he had been to a 3rd world country recently (Uganda) then his chances are high. I guess that explains it, but it still makes me itch every time I start thinking about it. I will not be happy if I get them, although I should be safe because I have had my shots for them. This one isolated incident might not be that bad, but this comes on the eve of another friend Scott finding out he has TB. When I think of TB all I think about is Doc Holiday on the movie Tombstone. I guess they caught it early enough that he will not become contagious and that he will not cough his lungs out either. However the doctor told Scott that it could be from being around homeless people, or 3rd world countries. Hmmmm the fact that Scott and Pete are roommates and have mirrored images as to where they have been and what they have done tells me all I need to know. The bottom line is, you never know what disease are floating around out there and when they will show up. Next up...Leprosy.

2006-01-19T15:59:00.000-08:00

So the show 24 has started again. http://www.fox.com/24/ It is entering its fifth season and it is already out of control. After only watching the first episode, I struggled with whether I should put myself through another year of waiting for each Monday to come around just to watch one hour of a TV show. My emotions get toyed with every episode, and I can't stand when one of the characters is being stupid. I know I am only fooling myself to think that I will stop watching it, because in my heart of hearts I LOVE all the suspense and traitorious acts that happen and I get so excited when I hear "The following takes place between..."

P.S. Check out Scott's 24 quiz to see what character you are. http://www.scottzeller.com/2005/12/19/haha-i-knew-it/

2005-09-29T14:54:00.000-07:00

Hotels

When people think about hotel rooms, they often think about the service, cleanness, location, and of course what amenities they offer. However I think if I were going to take all of those things the most important thing to me would be cleanness. Why? Because you never know who was there before you and that is disgusting. So where do most people usually check when they go into a hotel room? Of course the sheets is number one, but here in is the problem. They wash the sheets. THEY ARE CLEAN. The bed spread is what they do not wash every time and that is a serious error. We have no idea what happen on the bed spread before we were there and I do not want to even think about how many times I was so tired that I just came in and laid down on the bed without thinking of this. All that to say, please for the sake of cleanliness, take the bed spread off before going to sleep.