"..."

There are no ordinary people.  

You have never talked to a mere mortal.  

Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations -- these are mortal, 

and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.  

But is is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit 

-- immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.

C.S. Lewis

Birdhouse in Your Soul

I never knew this They Might Be Giants song was about a nightlight. I saw them Thursday night, and it was a really fun show. Check it out:

I'm your only friend
I'm not your only friend
But I'm a little glowing friend
But really I'm not actually your friend
But I am

CHORUS
Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch
Who watches over you
Make a little birdhouse in your soul
Not to put too fine a point on it
Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet
Make a little birdhouse in your soul

I have a secret to tell
From my electrical well
It's a simple message and I'm leaving out the whistles and bells
So the room must listen to me
Filibuster vigilantly
My name is blue canary one note* spelled l-i-t-e
My story's infinite
Like the Longines Symphonette it doesn't rest

CHORUS

I'm your only friend
I'm not your only friend
But I'm a little glowing friend
But really I'm not actually your friend
But I am

There's a picture opposite me
Of my primitive ancestry
Which stood on rocky shores and kept the beaches shipwreck free
Though I respect that a lot
I'd be fired if that were my job
After killing Jason off and countless screaming Argonauts
Bluebird of friendliness
Like guardian angels its always near

CHORUS

(and while you're at it
Keep the nightlight on inside the
Birdhouse in your soul)

Not to put too fine a point on it
Say I'm the only bee in your bonnet
Make a little birdhouse in your soul
CHORUS
CHORUS

A Good Day

Like normal I had a hard time getting myself out of bed this morning. Therefore, I was worried that I wouldn't make it the chapel service I wanted to attend this morning, on time. And I didn't.

I heard that Rick Warren was speaking at the Naval Academy's Protestant service, so I decided I wanted to go. My roommate and I made it to Annapolis and found the academy. We even found parking without too much trouble. A midshipmen (I guess he was a student anyway) greeted us at the back of the chapel (15 minutes late, they were singing, so I was glad). He said he would take us to our seats, and led us down a side aisle. The chapel is huge, and we just kept on going, way down to almost the VERY FRONT of this *packed* chapel. There were seats in a little side wing. As we were walking down this huge aisle the song ended, and Pastor Rick went to the podium. It felt a little weird to be walking down the aisle after everyone else sat down. But anyway, were sitting very close to the front, so that was cool! And, we didnt' miss his sermon, so I was glad of that as well.

He spoke about Moses' life, as documented in Hebrews 11, the faith chapter. I'll put more about the sermon itself in another post, I guess. I think it was a special day at the academy, some kind of centennial celebration of something - there were a lot of people there; it appeared that many parents were visiting their sons or daughters. The chapel was very beautiful, with a big dome in the ceiling.

Pastor Rick's microphone messed up during the service. (I wonder if some midshipman has to do push-ups because of that? Hopefully not. :)

It was neat to see all the students in their Class A's (I guess that's what they are, the snazzy white uniforms).

After the service my roommate and I walked around campus a litte, drove around Annapolis until we found the pier with all the shops and restaurants, and we had lunch there. It's a nice place... It was a beautiful day. I like the pier at night, it's really peaceful.

After that I came home, played some guitar, read a little bit of Desiring God, took a power nap (sorry Mr. Piper, nothing personal), and then went to church, and then went to the largest Chipotle in the US! At least, that's what I heard.

At church we said farewell to one of the guys that moved up from Texas two years ago to help plant our church. It was great to see people reflect back on good memories, share stories about Jonathan, and also to see how Jonathan helped grow the church, and to know that when he's gone there are people here that will fill in the gap (hopefully) and continue living the life together.

Now I'm home and actually tired before 1 a.m. Looking forward to seeing 2 of my siblings next weekend. Hoping to work some extra hours this week so I can spend Friday with them.

Dr. Pepper and Prophecy

So, my office ran out of Pepsi, and I purchased a Dr. Pepper instead. And enjoyed it. I never liked Dr. Pepper growing up, and now I do. In fact, I've had 3-4 now. It's good stuff. This lends more credibility to the theory that one's tastes change every 7-10 years.

Also, did anyone get the memo about Rick Warren being the AntiChrist? I really missed the boat on that one. I mean I can understand not liking... umm... something because it's really popular... or speaking against specific portions of his books that you don't like... but the AntiChrist? Someone at work today told me he was. Now I'm not just all about the guy, but really the AntiChrist? They then told me that Warren had presented a peace plan to Israel or something.

I did some googling and found out that there are some people making such claims. And he does have a peace plan: P.E.A.C.E.: Plant churches, Equip leaders, Assist the poor, Care for the Sick, and Educate the next generation.

Warren is speaking this Sunday near me, and I may go to hear him preach. If I come back brain-washed, you'll know the rumors were true. Or if I don't come back at all, you'll know the rumors were true, And if I came back and seem like a jerk who doesn't know what he's doing after graduation, well... I guess things will be normal then.

Walk with God, friends. :-)

"..."

If ... I find taught in one part of the Bible that everything is foreordained, that is true; and if I find, in another Scripture, that man is responsible for all his actions, that is true; and it is only my folly that leads me to imagine that these two truths can ever contradict each other. I do not believe they can ever be welded into one upon any earthly anvil, but they certainly shall be one in eternity. They are two lines that are so nearly parallel, that the human mind which pursues them farthest will never discover that they converge, but they do converge, and they will meet somewhere in eternity, close to the throne of God, whence all truth doth spring.
-Charles Spurgeon

This just in...

The F chord has recently been heard coming from Nick's guitar. With this new barre chord break-through in muscle memory technology, Nick's debut album should be out in all stores that sell fine music soon!

In other news, I will be reading The Life You've Always Wanted, by John Ortberg, with some of my coworkers this semester. I sent out an email Monday, and today I announced it at a meeting, and now I have about 7 people who want to do it! That's pretty exciting.

I wish there was another girl (to improve my odds of course!) - no - what I mean is there is only one and I don't want her to feel all weird. The last time I did this, there was only one girl, and she stopped coming! I don't think it was just because she was the only girl, but that could have been a factor.

Anyway, the response has been very encouraging... I thought it would be good, and then it wasn't great for a couple of days, and then today like 4 people told me that they wanted to do it! So I'm pumped... and soon I guess I'll be placing an order on Amazon to get the text for all of us! Wahoo.

Recipes

I just finished fixing dinner for tomorrow - beef stew, in my crock pot. I just knocked on my mom for her 'domestic untruths', so I'll complement that by saying that she can cook. For real.

For Christmas, she put together cookbooks for my sister and I, personalized by putting baby pictures on the cover and in some places inside. (Yeah, the desserts section - it's me on my first birthday. Covered in chocolate cake. If only I could go back and tell myself "it's all down-hill from here, little Nick." Nah, that's not true.)

Anyhow, what are your easy recipes for the novice cook? (Is that redundant?) Either things passed down from your family or that you picked up along your way to being self-sufficient...

Bono on O'Reilly

FOXNews.com - The O'Reilly Factor - Interview - Bono: Not Facing AIDS Crisis 'Foolhardy'

Conundrum

So, my wall isn't especailly covered with posters or pictures or anything. It's bare really. I'm not prone to do that anyway, *and* I just got here. And today, with my t-shirt and 2 Bebo cd's (see post below), I received an 8x10 picture of Bebo. It's kind of bent up because it came in the mail in plastic wrap with the t-shirt and cds.

So I reach a crossroads. Should I really prominently this worn 8x10 picture of this good-looking guy, alone, without any other such printed material, or should I, place it in a book to straighten it out, and, subsequently, forget about it?

My manhood may be on the line here.