Thursday, June 28, 2007

Just for kicks

WHAT'S SHE DOING?

A couple lived near the ocean and used to walk the beach a lot. One Summer they noticed a girl who was at the beach pretty much every day.She wasn't unusual, nor was the travel bag she carried, except for one thing; she would approach people who were sitting on the beach, glance around furtively, then speak to them. Generally the people would respond negatively and she would wander off, but occasionally someone would nod and there would be a quick exchange of money and something shecarried in her bag.

The couple assumed she was selling drugs, and debated calling the Cops, but since they didn't know for sure they just continued to watch her.

After a couple of weeks the wife said, "Honey, have you ever noticed that she only goes up to people with boom boxes and other electronic devices?" He hadn't, and said so. Then she said, "Tomorrow I want you to get a towel and our big radio and go lie out on the beach. Then we can find out what she's really doing."

Well, the plan went off without a hitch and the wife was almost hopping up and down with anticipation when she saw the girl talk to her husband and then leave. The man walked up the beach and met his wife at theroad. Well, is she selling drugs?" she asked excitedly. "No, she's not," he said, enjoying this probably more than he should have. "Well, what isit, then? What does she do?" his wife fairly shrieked. The man grinned and said, "Her name is Sally, and she's a battery salesperson.""Batteries?" cried the wife. "Yes," he replied.

Click on the comments for the punch line. (you're gonna hate me for this!)

A little out of sync this morning

This morning I helped get Judy and MacKenzie off to Cleveland to visit friends and pick up Morgan who has been there since June 9, so I am a little out of my routine this morning - maybe a good thing.

I wound up at my office at 8 AM (that NEVER happens) and instead of getting into the word, I wound up answering emails and then checking out some tunes on http://www.jazzimprov.tv/. Don't ask me how, but I wound up watching STan Getz on YouTube perform "Lush Life."

I never was much of a Stan Getz person. I prefered the tenor sound of Trane and Stitt. (if you have to ask....) That said, I loved this clip and thought you would too. Enjoy!

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Staff meeting at Mr. Beans

First of all, let me say how much I love serving at New Covenant Bible Church! It is an awesome place to serve!

Yesterday we had our offsite half-day equipping staff meeting today at Mr. Beans in Marion. Mr. Beans has a conference room and free wi-fi. Is that utopia or what!

During this four hour meeting we eat, pray, and discuss strategic topics.

I love serving with servant leaders who "check their agendas at the door." We work together as a team for a common goal.

I especially like the fact that there are no "superstar, free agent types" on the team. There is no positioning and posturing - just a will and attitude to work together for the advancement of the kingdom of God.

Does your church staff sound like this? If so, you have a "one in a million" and we should thank God for what he has done! Tye out.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

A date with daughters, a bike ride and a day off

Yesterday I had a lunch date with my daughter Allyson at Applebee's. It was a wonderful time of connecting and spending time together. I am so proud of her!!!

I went back to the office and led devotions for Theatrical Camp at the church and then I checked out for the afternoon. I had planned to go home and relax but we wound up cell phone shopping.

Wednesday evening Judy and I had a chance to grab some Culver's Custard.

I decided to take today off and try to catch my breath. I slept in this morning and I managed to get in a 35 mile bike ride this morning. It was incredible!

Mackenzie and I had lunch together at Panera and then I headed out to Menard's to order the drywall for our basement project. The drywall will be delivered on Saturday and I can't wait to get started!

Sometimes you have to slow down and do what is really important. Tye out.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

I got a cell phone!!!

Welp, I have moved back into the real world and got a cell phone today. It has been two years since I had one and haven't really needed one. However, as a pastor there are many times when a cell phone is absolutely necessary so our church has recognized this and they have given us a small reimbursement if we have one. So today I got a cell phone - the LG VX8300 flip phone with bluetooth technology.

Allyson and I were able to get on a family plan with Verizon and because of some discounts was able to get our phones for free and no connection charges.

The way things worked out, Andrew, Allyson and myself are sharing a family plan with 1400 minutes and unlimited texting - young people love this aspect!!! I love using instant message with folks so I think I'm going to like this texting thing.

The good news is that I now have another means to stay connected to the people I serve. Tye out.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Meniscus Band 30 year Reunion














Meniscus performs live in Bethel, Ohio
(NEW!!! click on the pic for a slideshow)

As many of you know, I travelled to Cincy a couple weeks ago to perform in a reunion concert in memory of our keyboard player Wayne Lancaster who passed away back in 1992. The lead singer Debbie Jordan put the whole thing together - she is pictured in front. I am on the far left side over the shoulder of the bass player. I will eventually have pics when I get them from Dorii.

I received this email from Debbie Sunday night. It is a long email, but it is important to me that I include it in its entirety. Also, this is the reason I went back to play with the band, although at the time I said "yes" I didn't realize it. Here goes:

I was having lunch with Daisy (My Granddaughter) and the group of people, sitting at a table behind me started talking about the show. They were all saying how great it was and what an awesome time they had. Mind you they didn't know I was sitting there. There was a young girl at the table (17 to 21 years old I am guessing) and she was saying that she couldn't get the music we played out of her head. (Sound Familiar!) She said all week she's been singing songs we did. They all then proceeded to tell about which part of the show they liked best.

Gary was mentioned and praised for the job he did on Jumping Jack Flash. The guy said I couldn't keep still! It brought me up out of my seat! They all thought Tye must have been a famous Sax player they had heard on records before. The girls in the Blue Dresses sang like Angels and the drummer was the best damn drummer they had ever seen play. The young girl also said the guitar player was so good she wanted to ask for his autograph but was too embarrassed. The keyboard player with the glittery hat and voice like Elton John blew them all away when he turned around and did Live and Let Die and Wayward Son which they all agreed was phenomenal. One of them must have known Jesse on a personal level and said they always thought he was a good musician but had no idea he could play and sing like that. Daisy leaned over the table and said wow you guys are all stars now! I just looked at her and smiled.

Since the show I have had little opportunity to tell you all how terrific you really are. Everyone of you have called or emailed me with great words of appreciation for what I accomplished. I want you all to know that while I am flattered by your compliments and words of encouragement I am also humbled. To think that this group of the most talented people I have ever known would work this hard to do a small show in Bethel Ohio speaks volumes about your character. The reason I wanted you guys to know about this conversation I overheard was so you could know in your hearts and believe that this show was just as much about you and your talents as it was mine. What started as an idea only came to be because of your willingness to participate in something bigger than us all.

Dan Henning made great sacrifices to do this show. Hours and hours of rehearsal and thought went into it. He came to my rescue when Greg Sandlin pulled out. I thought it was over before it had begun but he assured me that he and his Son could handle it and did they ever! He endured all the show changes and my inability to make lasting decisions with patience and respect. Thank you Dan for your patience!

Lets not ever forget his last 2 weeks of dedication, his love for music and for us all as individuals. He made it happen for us all! Dan is a super talent and without Dan there would not have been a show!Lets not ever forget that Jesse Jordan put his heart and soul into this project and did it with a grace and musical maturity unmatched! He put together raffles for me, sold tickets and got people there to support us too. When the chips were down Jesse was always there to pick them up and get me on the right track and he did this all with great personal sacrifice to himself. Thank you Jesse! He got us a good sound guy and the things we needed to pull it off. He worked with Tye and had it not been for Jesse there would not have been a show!

Let us never forget that Gary Bates came into this not real sure if he still had his "rock n roll wings" or even if he wanted too. Most of you guys were not there for our first rehearsal and heard Gary say he was nervous about doing this, I just smiled at him! For him it was a personal decision of faith and a desire to reconnect with people he had long ago said goodbye too. Gary called me when the stage funding fell through and reminded me that this was not about a stage it was about seeing something through to the end no matter what stood in the way. It was about honoring the memory of what we had started 30 years ago. He traveled from Mainville Ohio without complaint for every rehearsal. He was never late and always always came with a smile and a good word. His prayers before practice and at Wayne's Memorial were an encouragement to us all. His talent and his faith in God gave me the strength to go on when I most wanted to give up, I love you Gary! Had it not been for Gary there would not have been a show! Thank you Gary!

Aaron Henning, I think we all agree, was the light in the darkness for us all. He embodied everything we all were at his age. I was proud to have him on that stage and his talent will only grow from here! In 30 years I hope he looks back and remembers us all with fondness. Please Please never forget him! What a talent! We could not have done the show without him. What a great guitarist!

Let us never forget that Dorii Jordan spent hours of her time putting together practice cd's and was never put off about the show changes. She gracefully went with the flow and uplifted my heart when she willingly spent her time and money to put it together for us all. She paid her own way to be there and her Family came from Florida and Milwaukee just to see there wife and Mother live a life long dream. Behind the scenes she never wavered, As usual she was my rock! She added a grace and beauty to our show that only Dorii could pull off. Her hours and hours of vocal practice and dedication honored us all in a big way! When she landed that high note in "the Long and Winding Road" I almost lost my breath, it was that beautiful! I love you girl! The show could never have happened without her!

Karen Patterson is one of the most wonderful people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Did you guys know she gave up a well deserved vacation to do that show with us? When the catering fell through she stepped up and bought what we needed to feed everyone and spent hours downloading music for the DJ. What would have our vocals been like without her? She too traveled a great distance every night to realize this dream. How do you thank someone for that kind of friendship and dedication? I do know that when she did her solo in "I Just Wanna Thank you" I had the biggest smile on my face! I turned around and said wow! Later she said,"I don't even know where that came from!" Well I do. Straight from the heart girl, straight from the heart! The show could never have happened with out her. Let us all never forget that!

Tye Male was a 17 year old kid [actually, I was 15) with a big talent the last time I saw him and, man o man does that cat still blow! WOW! Tye was not very sure that he could fit in or even add anything worth while to our show in the beginning and it wasn't until he was actually in rehearsal with us that first night that he was quickly reminded of what he had been a big part of long long ago. I can't imagine doing this without him. Everybody agrees he was the icing on a very big cake. Tye has a very busy life and on complete faith and a willingness to be put on the spot he traveled half way across the country to do this for us! His smile and enthusiasm was contagious and at the last moment he pulled off what I would call a miracle born of pure guts and talent! His wife and daughter father and family were there to cheer him on! There would not have been a show of this caliber without him! I love ya man! So again let us never forget!

I saved Greg Emerson for last because I wanted to tell you all something about him you may not know. For all these years he has held on to the idea we could all get together and play again someday. Did you know that on a regular basis since 1977 he has ask me to contact everyone and try to get us all together again? So really this was all his idea! When I found out Wayne had passed away I waited to tell Greg in person. We both were devastated but his desire to see everyone on the same stage never wavered. Greg took his vacation time, spent his own money to travel, and poised himself to play the best set I have ever heard him play! His wife and mother family and friends traveled from all the United States to see him do this show and show there support! How proud they must all be of him! I know I am! He pulled us out of the fire at the very end with his knowledge of electricity and "for real" there would not have been a show without him! LITERALLY! I love you Greg! When he did his solo I turned around and knew he and I had come full circle. We both had realized our dream and I could never ever have done it without him. Thank you my friend, from that place in my heart reserved only for you, THANK YOU! We all love you and will never forget!

In the end Gary was right, it wasn't about a stage or food or even people coming to hear us. It wasn't about who could ever replace Wayne or even what music we played, it was about each other and the beautiful noise we make when we all get together and how that makes us feel! When we all look back on this show in years to come I hope we remember it proudly and with a smile. We all had a part play, not only in the music but also in each others lives, the people we have not forgotten through out these 30 years. I truly believe things like this are not random. God saw in his great wisdom to allow us to relive a beautiful time and now we can go on knowing we were not just thrown together by chance, we really were and still are some pretty special people. The love and respect we have shown to one another in the last few weeks is most definitely a :"GOD THING" AMEN!

In closing I want you all to know you have made me proud to have known you and I am humbled to have had the pleasure of performing with you once again. You are all so very awesome! I can't possibly say all that needs to be said here and I hope I haven't left anyone out. I do however know that The answer to the age old question of "Were we really as good as we remembered we were," has finally been answered with a GREAT BIG RESOUNDING YES!The long and winding road that leads to your door will never disappear.

I love you all, Debbie Jordan

Monday, June 18, 2007

Blue Monday

Today was kinda blue day. I don't know why. I had a great day yesterday. I played in Brassline in all four services yesterday - click here to listen. I'm the crazy sax guy taking a solo into orbit. We hung out as a family and I got two really nice cards from my kids and a call from Morgan who is staying Cleveland for a few weeks. I had a chance to chat with my dad later in the evening. Happy Father's day dad!

Any way, today starting off pretty good. Off to a fairly early start - 5:45 AM out on my bike for a fast 12 miles, average speed of 18.5 mph. I felt great! Then it was time in the word - two days worth of reading. I love God's word!

I made it to my remote office (Panera) by 8 AM and enjoyed some prayer time, then connecting with my accountability partner. I then drove out to Mt. Vernon Iowa to meet with a CPA to figure out some tax stuff. I really dislike that stuff and this year was not a good year tax wise. : (

In the office I managed to spill coffee all over my desk. Then, I just went downhill. Tomorrow is a new day and thank God a fresh start. Tye out.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

a 30 year reunion concert

Wow - only 5 posts in the month of June and I thought we were supposed to slow down in June which would give more time for blogging - argh!!!

Last weekend we were in Cincinnati visiting family and so I could play with the high school rock band I played in back in 1977 - 30 reunion! Debbie Jordan managed to get all but one of the musicians back together after 30 years for an outdoor reunion concert in Bethel, Ohio. We did covers on Heart, Elton John, Billy Joel, The Rolling Stones, Kansas, and other disco and rock music from the 70's.

Greg Emmerson played drums and he was incredible. He has been playing all along and currently plays in a country band that has opened for Jason Aldean.

Gary Bates, bass/vocals, is now a pastor and continues to play music to this day at his church. He did an outstanding job and it was fun to see him playing again.

Debbie Jordan, lead singer, is more powerful than ever. She put Heart to shame with her strong and penetrating lead vocal style, yet was able to pull it back on Desperado. She did an outstanding job getting everyone back together and organized. She is now a paralegal.

Dori Jordan, back up singer, was as sweet as ever and her vocal styling equalled her sweet personality. She works with her husband in his company and they reside in Florida.

Karen Patterson completes the cast with her gritty, soulful, vocalizing that was such a treat to hear again.

For this concert we welcomed the addition of Dan Henly on multiple keyboards (this cat is a one man band). Dan, together with his wife, pastors a church in the Cincinnati area and I wish you could have heard his Elton John cover - whoah!!! Dan's son Aaron played an amazing electric guitar - what a talented family. Last but not least is Jesse Jordan on more keyboards, especially that mighty B-3 Hammond sound! Jesse also helped me do the arranging for the horn licks and kept me on track during the performance.

We did a two hour set Saturday night for around 300 people. It was awesome to be part of this group and we had a ton of fun. Thanks Debbie for letting me participate!

I will have pics later. Keep checking back.

More later. Tye out.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Top 10 wrong ways to initiate your son into manhood

Dave Kvindlog sent this one to me and I thought you might enjoy reading it. To read the entire list click here to read the last three on the list over at fathers.com.

10. Teach him the secret male ritual of leaving the toilet seat up and the toilet paper roll empty.
9. Have a ceremony where you give him his own remote control.
8. Lead him through an afternoon of rigorous physical training in the back yard while you sit in a lawn chair with a half-gallon of ice cream.
7. Eat until you're about to burst and then ride the Screamin' Hurler roller coaster.
6. Put cream on his face and let the cat shave him with its tongue.
5. Walk behind him through his school halls yelling, "You da man!"
4. Send him to the local discount store to buy mom's "personal things."
3. Give him Grandma's lime green Gremlin with personalized license plates that say, "TUFFGUY."

Click here to read the last two...

Tye out.

Sunday, June 10, 2007

Paris Hilton

Have you had enough of Paris Hilton yet? I've been following this story of Ms. Hilton's sentence of 45 days in jail for driving on a suspended license. The heiress to the Hilton estate began her 45 day sentence almost like everyone else, with the exception that for her mug shot she was permitted to leave her hair tied up. Then, she had a private cell to protect her other inmates - this is the same treatment for police and other people who could be harmed. I have no issue with this. Click here to read the latest story. (or just Google Paris Hilton)

Three days into her imprisonment her psychologist/physician succeeded in getting her moved to house arrest after onlyh three days probably because she was suffering physically - a, duh, that's sort how it works. You do something bad, then you feel bad, then you associate pain with doing bad things and voila! you don't do bad things any more. The judge ordered out of house arrest and back to jail.

As a side note, she did not eat or drink for three days because apparently she didn't want to use the comode (there is no privacy) and feared that a guard would snap a photo with a camera/phone. Since when did Paris get all modest? (just Google for a pic of her and then close your eyes!) Rant over. : )

I have to applaud Ms. Hilton. She could have bought her way into a nicer situation but chose rather to do her time like anyone else; in a 8 foot by something cell with a concrete floor where she stays 23 hours a day except for for one hour a day for exercise.

I'm confused by all this though. If I had a gazillion dollars would I act like an idiot and do stupid things like drive on a suspended license when I could afford a 24 hour a day chauffeur? I sure hope not. Give me a gazillion bucks and I'll spend the rest of my life leveraging my wealth to multiply my influence and then strategically attempt to give nearly all of it away to make a positive impact in the world. I hope. Tye out.

When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes honor. Proverbs 11.2 The Net Bible

Posting your kids pics online

I read a news article today on Yahoo! News that caused me to think - which is always a good thing for me! I have been careful about putting full names of my children online so that searches would not bring up any blog posts about them. This also goes for pictures as well. In fact, I don't typically name photos that I post online for this reason of anyone.

You can use a script (robots.txt) to turn search engines away. If you can do this, let me know how!

The article recommends three things to protect your privacy online regarding pictures you want to share:

1. Privacy settings - in Flickr you can make photos private so that only people you have invited to see them can.

2. Private photo and video sharing - "To share videos with family members and friends, try Motionbox, which has a private setting, and One True Media, which allows you to share videos on a personal TiVo channel."

Click here to read the entire article and please let me know what you think. Tye out.

Monday, June 04, 2007

Body for Life

Seven years ago this week I started an exercise and fitness program called Body for Life. John Milner (his son was friends with our son) introduced me to this sensible program that includes diet and exercise.

I lost 26 pounds (172 down to 146) and went from bench pressing 110 to 185 lbs. It was an awesome journey that took me down a road to health that I had never experienced before.

Here is Body for Life in a nutshell (from memory):

  • Exercise 20-30 minutes a day, preferably in the morning on an empty stomach
  • 3 days/week weight training
  • 3 days/week cardio workout
  • Eat a balanced meal of carb and protein 6 times a day (every 2.5-3 hrs) about 300 calories each meal

You measure your food with your hand: closed fist (think apple, sm baked potato) or open palm (think 4-6 oz steak/chicken/tuna)

This worked seven years ago and to this day I still follow this basic schedule with the exception that I cheat. Chips, ice cream, sweets.

BFL gives you one day a week to eat whatever and how much of anything you want so I need to wait until my "free" day to eat those things and for me that day will be Sunday.

More on this later. Tye out.

Where's Tye?

Have you ever seen the Where's Waldo books? Well, I thought I would post a "Where's Tye" post. Ok, I kinda fell off the face of the earth last week. Having been in Chicago the week before I had a lot of catching up to do around the office, not the least included wrapping up the end of the fiscal year 2006-07. I am not very good at crunching numbers, accounts, and spending other people's money (i.e. the Lord's money) so this is a very stressful time for me. To make matters worse, I procrastinated until the last minute - because I'm not very good at this.

In any event, I survived yet another fiscal year end and now we start all over again. AND, all the account numbers are changing so I have to learn a new system. Oh well! Tye out.