Letters from a Skeptic

We are discussing the book "Letters from a Skeptic" in our Sunday School class (I can't remember if I'd mentioned that before or not) and it makes for lively discussion. Granted, I don't always agree with the defenses that the author makes (or the way he chooses to employ a defense that I do agree with) but that keeps it more interesting for me. The discussion has been really good and Lily has been posting some of her notes here.

A couple things about this class have given me pause to think: 1) The specific "attendees" and 2) The reaction to the book.

The people who have been coming into class for the discussion have been, for the most part, people (like myself) who were raised in church - traditional evangelical church, too boot. The Sunday School teacher, the pastor and myself were all thinking that this would be a good "entry class" for people new to the faith with some still unanswered questions, but we haven't been overwhelmed with "newbies". At first I was dismayed by this. But not any more.

You see, we have been running a "blurb" about the class for a few weeks in the bulletin and I've made sure that a slide promoting the book and class has been in our announcement "slideshow" that runs before the worship service starts. This would generally include cover photo of the book, class location and the next couple specific questions coming up for discussion.

I was so pleased when Lily told me this morning that nearly all the books are gone! My wife and I are sharing a copy and I know that other couples in the class are also sharing a copy and I only knew of one person outside the class that said she and her husband wanted a copy to read. But lo and behold, other people are picking them up!

Okay, so I'm rambling. The point is that people are not afraid to confront this material! One of the guys in class put it really well this morning - he said "as I've grown older, I've been thinking more about things that I used to just accept". (he's younger than me) Some of us sometimes like to "discuss" things too much (that would be me) - I am so charged that people want to "read the hard questions" and I will be perfectly happy if we need to order more books!

Family Fun Fest

Family Fun Fest was great. Like Manda commented on the last post (my bad for not publishing this entry sooner - more on that later) there weren't any people drinking in the park. In fact it was really calm for being a city park in south Texas on Cinco de Mayo. I have no idea if the city has an ordinance about alcohol consumption in the parks but, if they do, that could explain the lack of "rowdies".

We had a great group turn out (unofficial count - 111) from all age groups. One thing I really like about our church is the diversity. We have families from all over the globe and quite a few "intercultural" couples (my wife and i included :-). The games were great, the food was great (i didn't cook any of it) and the fellowship was great!

I saw Lily walking around taking photos so I know there are some great shots of the picnic.

I can't remember if this is our third or fourth year doing this, but its a bigger success every year.

Did I Mention that my Wife is Famous?

At a recent bridal shower at church (Sunday afternoon) my friend Lily was making her baby (Isabella) laugh and another friend (moonjib of many names) had a video camera and posted it on YouTube! My wife is in the video, too.

When you pop over to YouTube check out this video, too. The user that posted the video titled it "Ultimate Lego Rubberband Gun" - it might not be the "Ultimate" but its pretty close. i'm just jealous b/c i wish i had done this. (hm, the dollhouse is almost finished and the kiddo and i will need a summer project... i wonder....)

Now i have to go back outside and do more yard work - what fun.

Getting To Know Your Friends and Family

i've seen this email before but had never thought of "blogging" it until i saw it on my friend Lily's blog http://adayinthelifeoflily.blogspot.com/ (Thanks for the idea, lily)
Feel free to "comment" your answers.

Welcome to the new edition of getting to know your friends and family. Copy and paste this entry into the comments and change all the answers so that they apply to you.

1. What is your occupation? cancer registrar
2. What color are your socks right now? black
3. What are you listening to right now? the dog barking at a cat and the gentle hum of the computer
4. What was the last thing you ate? Luca's pizza
5. Can you drive a stick shift? yes
6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? green
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? my spouse
8. Do you like the person who sent this to you? (if you phrase it "Do you like the person that you shamelessly stole this from?" then the answer would be "Yes"
9. How old are you today? 30-something :-)
10. Favorite drink? Joya de manzana (Apple flavored pop from Mexico)
11. What is your favorite sport to watch? soccer
12. Have you ever dyed your hair? yes, and i've bleached it, too
13. Pets? current or past? currently one dog
14. Favorite food? chocolate
15. What was the last movie you watched? Ice Age 2 - The Meltdown
16. Favorite day of the year: Just one day?!? February 15th - all the unsold Valentine's Day chocolate goes on sale :-)
17. What do you do to vent anger? now i take a walk but i have a scar on my knuckles from the way that i *used* to vent...
18. What was your favorite toy as a child? Lincoln Logs
19. What is your favorite fall or spring? Definitely fall. Spring cleaning makes spousey want to throw away my "stuff".
20. Hugs or kisses? Hugs
21. Cherries or blueberries? cherries
22. Do you want your friends to email you back? Yes, though this isn't being sent in the form of an e-mail, technically, I'd love to see how people respond. [ditto]
23. Who is most likely to respond? Don't know.
24. Who is least likely to respond? Not sure.
25. Living arrangements? With spouse, child and dog
26. When was the last time you cried? this question is proof that this was originally written by a woman - guys just don't (normally) ask each other this question.
27. What is on the floor of your closet? my shoes
28. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending this to? n/a.
29. What did you do last night? Watched Ice Age 2 - The Meltdown
30. Favorite smells? spouse's hair
31. What inspires you? Friendship
32. What are you afraid of? not fulfilling my purpose in life
33. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? Cheeseburgers
34. Favorite dog breed? Not really picky - any dog beats any cat any day of the week.
35. Number of keys on your key ring? It used to be 26 keys on one keyring but now its 5 on one keyring and 21 keys on the "extra" keyring
36. Number of years at your current job? 4+
37. Favorite day of the week? Friday
38. How many states have you lived in? 4 states and an American common wealth
39. Favorite holidays? Thanksgiving
40. Ever driven a motorcycle or heavy machinery? Motorcycle - yes (owned one for a while). Heavy machinery - does 'fork lift' count? If so, then "yes".