We've Got Jokes Today.....

One of my clients came in today with a sheet full of jokes for me. I thought I'd post them here for everyone to enjoy!

Q) Why did the skeleton go to the movies by himself?
A) He had no body to go with him.

Q) What does a bee sit on?
A) His bee-hind.

Q) Where do cows go to have fun?
A) To the moo-vies.

Q) Why don't lobsters share?
A) Because they are shellfish.

Q) Why was the policeman in bed?
A) Because he was an undercover cop.

Q) Which runs faster, hot or cold?
A) Hot. Everyone can catch a cold.

Q) What does Christmas have to do with a cat in a desert?
A) They both have sandy claws.

Q) What do you call a pony with a cough?
A) A little hoarse.

Current weather: 98 degrees and a little breezy. What a great day. Last night was a parent forum at Hope's Middle School. A good number of parents all wanting to make the school better. Looks like it's going to be a great year!

Only 3 more days until JoshFest 06. Tomorrow August 30 is Hope's 12th birthday!! I'm a proud daddy of the two best girls in the world.

-Norm

New Computer and DSL

Well our computer at home has gone to Desk Top Heaven. It kept crashing and we didn't know why. We took it in to Best Buy to have it looked at and they told us the sad new. The circuits in the motherboard had got hot, expanded and had fluid leaking from them. This is not a good thing. The computer was toast. The next step was to purchase a new one. Tina and I decided a lap top was the way we wanted to go this time. We ended up purchasing a Toshiba Satellite M105-S3041. It has all the bells and whistles we were looking for and then some. The CD/DVD player and burner is my personal favorite. I was able to take the old documents and pictures from the old computer (in between frequent shutdowns). It was time consuming and very frustrating, but it is done. We also went from dial-up to DSL. What an amazing thing and so fast!!! I am sure glad to have been able to save our old information and take this computer thing to the next level.

Today Hope and Grace`were in a children's musical at church. They both did and excellent job. Following church we went to lunch with the Greers and Fergusons. What a great time. We are blessed to have such great friends. They encourage me and are genuine. Lunch was at Round Table Pizza. Good friends, good conversation and good food.

Only 4 more days until Joshua Fest!!

Weather today 92 degrees and a slight breeze. A good day overall.

-Norm

The Power of Story

I picked up a book the other day-Stories of Emergence, Moving from Absolute to Authentic. It is a collection of articles written by various authors regarding the Emerging Church. The first article is written by Mike Yaconelli. Mike was the founder of Youth Specialities and also a pastor in Yreka, California. He was killed in an automobile accident a couple years ago. I think we could have been friends.

I have been thinking alot about what he has written regarding the Power of Story. He states that "stories descibe our interaction with God, the tale of God's presence or lack of it in our lives. Stories are the playground of out faith, the place where the logic of our beliefs gets tested by the illogical experiences of our lives, the workplace where our ideas about God run head on into the real God. Our stories are the testing ground where our peceived ideas about how God works come face to face with how God really works. Our stories are the daily journal of faith's complicatedness, the progress report of our journey with God, the roadmap of our attempts to follow Jesus in the twisted and complex jungle of reality. Our stories are our testimonies to how the historical God works in the present. Stories are the witness of our sightings of God, our periodic glimpses of him, and our daily frustration of trying to keep him in our sights, losing him in the busyness of our lives and thenfinding him again-or trying to find him."

In John we read about the Word becoming Flesh and dwelling among us manifested in Jesus Christ. Today, I think we put fleshness to the Gospel-otherwise it is just stories. As we share our stories of struggle, defeat, and victories, we are sharing reasons to believe. Putting flesh to Faith. I grew up in a church where during each service there was a time to share a testimony. Some people would always share the same thing. Some people sat silently. Others would tell how God was moving in their lives giving reason to go on-they were the Word becoming flesh. A glimpse at God moving among us. Stories are powerful tools. I love to listen to a good story. I also love to tell a good story. When they strengthen my faith or the faith of others, that makes it even better.

Stories always remind us that the work of God is always ongoing and always changing and always revealing something new." -Mike Yaconelli

Current weather: Sunny and beautiful. Today's high was about 92 degrees. We saw the movie "Barnyard" today. It was a great story.

-Norm

Preparing For JoshuaFest 2006

Well it's only a couple weeks until JoshuaFest in Quincy, California. This will be our third trip up the hill to attend this event. It is a great event in a beautiful setting. Quincy is located in the Sierra Mountains on Hwy. 70 between Oroville and Reno. It has a population of about 4,000 and is the seat of Plumas County. They have a wonderful fairground there. JoshuaFest is held there. Over 100 bands will be playing at JF, September 1,2, and 3! Also, Camp Jerico Kid's Program. Two years ago we stayed in a borrowed a tent trailer. Last year we stayed in a motorhome. This year we will be going the budget way and staying in a couple tents. Some of the bands playing there includeSkillet, Dizmas, Hawk Nelson, Pillar, Falling Up, TFK, Ever Stays Red

I totally love the whole festival atmosphere. It is very relaxing to sit among the pine trees and listen to some great music. I am also looking forward to the Praise & Worship and Church Service on Sunday morning. JF always seems to come around when it has been a stressful time at work and I am in need of some relaxation. Having just returned from a nice adventure in Tennessee that doesn't appear to be the case yet. We do still have a couple weeks to go........

Current weather: 100 degrees and beautiful.

-Norm

A Week In Tennessee

Yesterday we returned from our fact finding trip to the Volunteer state! We flew out of San Fransisco on Tuesday, August 8 headed for Memphis. Once settled into the Holiday Inn we went searching for dinner. Right down the street was a Chic-Fil-A. The staff there was very nice and friendly. Very good chicken wraps. We had set aside Wednesday for touring with a Real Estate agent. Her name is Debby. She took us to various parts and suburbs of Memphis to show us homes within our price range. It was nearing lunchtime and she suggested Back Yard Burger. I must say this place served incredible burgers. We settled on the Blue Cheese Bacon Burger meal. It was soooooo tasty. I now have a burger favorite in the south! We saw a number of very nice homes in Memphis on Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning.

On Thursday afternoon we headed for Nashville but decided to wait to see it until our return trip to Memphis. We ended up driving through a massive rain storm while heading to Knoxville. We took a driving tour looking at what houses were available there. We really liked this area. We decided to drive up to Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. While on our way we stopped by a "Tourist Information" building. It turned out to be a front for a timeshare outfit. They promised us a reduced hotel rate, two free Dollywood tickets and breakfast in exchange for sitting through a 90 minute presentation. We stayed Thursday night and Friday night in Pigeon Forge. Pigeon Forge is a tourist trap!!! Getting the free amusement park tickets was the best part.

We spent a day at Dollywood! Hope and I went on the Tennessee Tornado. It loops and spins in all directions. I didn't think I liked roller coasters. We also went on their wooden coaster. It was fast and the g-forces were incredible! I would recommend this park if you are in Eastern Tennessee, but watch out for the rest of Pigeon Forge. It's a Smokey Mountain timeshare tourist trap. Tourists beware!!!

To be continued........

Life Outside The Fence

Jhn 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

As I was on my way to work yesterday this verse popped into my brain. At a time when we are fighting for freedom and trying to maintain stability in other parts of the world freedom has a price.
Personal freedom also has a price. Here in John, Jesus is speaking of spritual freedom. It will cost us our guilt, shame, self condemnation and past hurts. It will also take bowing at the foot of the Cross admitting we have sinned and need a Savior. Humanity is fenced in on all sides. Fences of shame, guilt, hurt, and condemnation. On the gate is the lock of sin which has us trapped with no way to escape. Jesus stands at the gate with the keys having overcome death, hell and the grave. He is waiting for us the make the choice to follow Him and leave the pen of sin. Jesus offers freedom and if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. The freedom far outweighs what we have to give up or give away for it.

On another note. Buck and Rachael left yesterday for New York. It was a sad setting in our home last night. They will really be missed. Thankfully the cousins got to spend the last evening together. I look forward to hearing about their adventures to and living in New York.

Here's a just for fun Make TJ Drink

Current weather: 94 degrees is the expected high today. The haze is nearly gone. I could get use to these pleasant summer days.

-Norm

Tennessee and Virginia

We are going on a fact finding mission. Next week we will all be going to check out Tennessee and Virginia. The plan is to fly into Memphis and meet up with a real estate agent and view the Memphis area. Later in the week we will drive up to Nashville and then on to Virginia. We have been researching these areas and think they are places we might like to live. Tina and I have been discussing places we might like to move to. I have lived in our town because my parents raised us there. I would like to live somewhere because we want to live there. These areas interest us. One thing is for sure the real estate prices are lower.

More to follow.....


Current weather: 93 degrees and a little hazy. The fire on the mountain is still burning, but it is not as hot in the valley. I actually needed to wear a sweatshirt on my ride to work this morning.

-Norm

Bike Ride, Lassen Park and The Creek

This weekend was packed with wild and fun stuff to do. Friday evening was dinner with the Greers and the Hollers, a going away dinner for Buck, Rachael and the girls. They are moving to New York City this week. We all met at Round Table Pizza to enjoy great pizza with friends. On Saturday, Bill, Dean and I met at the church at 7:00 AM. We rode motorcycles to Mineral for coffee and on to Chester for breakfast. It was beautiful (but little chilly in spots). We had breakfast and great conversation at the Kopper Kettle. I had a huge plate of biscuits and gravy. Following breakfast it was back down the mountain for a ride through Lassen Park.
We were told there were suppose to be 100+ bikes coming into the park. We waved alot! We stopped at both visitors centers and then caught Hwy. 44 to Shingletown. From there we to the cutoff to Manton, to try to catch Gary at home. We were not successful so we headed for home. We rode nearly 200 beautiful miles!
On Sunday after church, we all went to Francisco's. This would be the last lunch with the Hollers. It was great! When we got home we filled the raft and headed to the creek. We had been wanting to do this for quite some time. The water was warm and the rope swing kept calling the girl's names. It was a blast! I spent most of my time paddling the raft and getting use to how to manuver it. We went home tired, but it was a good tired.
We are seriously looking at moving to another state. Tina and the girls will be going to Tennessee in a couple weeks to take a look. We are currently in research mode.

Current weather: suppose to be 95 degrees today. There is fire on the mountain so alot of smokey haze. There were cinders on the bike when I went out to start it this morning. The smell of smoke is in the air.

-Norm

I Passed!

Yesterday I took my motorcycle license drivers test. It was at 4:00 PM, in the heat of the day. Yesterday's high was 110 degrees. The DMV instructor was pleasant and had a great sense of humor! I did well on the actual driving part. I can now drive at night, carry passengers and ride on the freeway. With this new license also came the purchase of a new helmet for the passenger. We purchased a Bell Bandito. When we got it home and went to take off the packaging, I noticed the following sticker "Caution:use care when removing packaging from the helmet to avoid injury or damage to the helmet". I am sure it is made to withstand a great amount of pressure and abuse so to think that by simply removing the plastic case from around the helmet I could damage it. Weird!
My first ride on the freeway was a great one. I thought big trucks doing 60-70 mpgs would be more of a problem but nothing out of the ordinary just keep both hands on the handlebars!

Current weather: Expected high of 95 degrees today and beautiful. This is alot better than the three digit temperatures we have been having. It's gonna be a great weekend!

-Norm

A Difficult Week and Hot!

While on my motorcycle ride to work on Monday morning I remember thinking what great ride it is. I am taking back roads that are lined with oak trees. When I arrived at work I was told the news about coworker. There had been a shooting at their family home and she was dead. It is still unclear what happened. The investigation is still going and the autoposy will be done on Friday. We also had a visit from OSHA. I have been working deligently to get needed documents and training records. Next, an employees mother called about reports of the air conditioner in our building not working. This was untrue, but they called the local new t.v. station anyway. A reporter came out to access the situation. They did a very favorable report on us.
Thankfully these happened at the first part of the week. Thing are a little slower now.
After all my projects were finished last night. I soaked in our small pool. It felt so good!

No word yet about funeral services.

I still think it was a nice ride in on Monday. It is all that has followed that has been difficult.

Current weather a staggering 110 degrees! Rumor has it, it could get up to 117 be the end of the week.

-Norm

Wood Go-Carts and The Neighborhood Hill.....

I remember spending childhood summer days pounding nails building wooden go-carts. These involved finding a piece of plywood big enough to sit on. It seemed there was always scrap 2x4s available and we would use them to support the back axel and wheels. Next we would take another 2x4 and attached it front and center to the plywood with a bolt. This was our steering. The front axel and wheels were attached to this 2x4 piece. The final touch was attaching a rope to the 2x4 or the front axel. Now we are ready to go.
Our section of the neighborhood was perched high on a hill. Our home was at the top of a paved street. Around the corner from our home was another paved hill with a dip at the bottom. We had a great time going down and up, down and up.... This is how we spent a number of days. These same hills were also great for skateboarding and testing our the latest two wheel creations. This was back before helmets and safety gear. I think I left a good deal of skin on these sections of street and still lived to tell about it!

Weather today: 94 degrees and a beautiful day. The ride today on the Reflex was great and enjoyable.

-Norm

God; Strong and Loving

I am re-reading Wild At Heart by John Eldredge. I just finished Chapter 2. At the end of this chapter he has posted this verse: "One thing God has spoken, two things have I heard: that you, O God, are strong, and that you O God are loving. Psalms 62:11-12.

In reference to Wild At Heart, the point is being made that we as men need to be strong. There is definately a place for this. I love camping and the outdoors. I have a newfound love for motorcycle riding. While I do not consider myself a manly-man, there are times when I need to be strong at home and at work.

The other side of God is His love. I desire to be a loving husband and father. Also a caring and compassionate boss and case manager. When I speak I hope there are two things that are heard, I am strong. As with God a defender of the weak. That I am loving and tender in all areas of my life.

I look forward to an upcoming motorcycle ride with my friend Bill to Lassen Volcanic National Park. I am looking forward to an upcoming family trip to southern California to watch my daughters in their showcases. Strong and loving.

Current weather: 104 degrees and a slight breeze.

-Norm

A New/Old BBQ

I had to put our old gas barbeque to rest earlier this summer. It was an old Kenmore with a wooden frame. We got it when we were apartment managers. A tenant left it behind so we adopted it.
I have been on the lookout for another one. The other day I stopped by our local Salvation Army store. They had several and one was in very good condition. They wanted $24.00 for the best one. I left empty handed. A few days later, the banner went up 50% off everything in the store on Friday! I got a nice BBQ for $12.50! I have a tank and need to fill it up then I will be in business. I love BBQ hot dogs.

I will hopefully be filling the tank tonight and then let the Qing begin!

Current weather: 100+ degrees. It was a great ride in this morning.

-Norm

Honda Reflex

Well, I continue to ride the Flex to work. It is great! I really like the 70 mpg. I recently installed headphone speakers in my helmet so I can have tunes or listen to the radio. Next week I will take my motorcycle drivers test. I have a goal to ride Hwy. 36 to Fortuna. In a car this road is abit of a bear but I really think it would be a great ride on a bike. There are small little towns along the way: Platina, Mad River, Wildwood and Bridgeville just to name a few. It's about a 3 1/2 hour ride to the coast. We could grab some seafood or burgers and ride back home. That sounds like a great day!


Current weather: 100 degrees and a slight breeze.

Happy Anniversary To Us!

Today Tina and I celebrate our 19th wedding anniversary! It seems like only yesterday we were honeymooning in Monterey and San Francisco. God has blessed us with two beautiful girls and a nice home. To celebrate we went as a family to Disneyland. It was the world premier of the new Pirates of the Caribbean-Dead Man's Chest. We saw all the stars walk the red carpet down Main Street USA. What a great event! Rides and stars were the order of the day. We returned home at 2:00 AM on Monday morning. I was so tired at work yesterday and slept very well last night.

We recently got a dog. His name is Mitchell. We is a "pound puppy". Call us the rescuers! The two cats we already had kinda freaked out with this new addition. Mitchell stays in our fenced back yard. The cats main entrance into our home was through the back sliding glass door. Needless to say they now enter through the front door only.

Current weather 109 and very humid. The air conditioner at work is on the fritz so it has been very uncomfortable. Weather people say "cooler temps are on there way" I say........they just can't get here soon enough.

-Norm

Parents, Christians and Public Schools

I have been thinking about a question for quite some time now. But first I must tell you what forces me to ask it. We have two daughters. Hope will be in 7th grade next year and Grace is going into 4th grade. Since the time Hope was in Kindergarten we have been involved in PTA and other activities at their school. It has become our family's school and we take ownership of it. We do this first as parents and secondly as Christians. Sadly, too few parents get involved in the education of their children or even know the name of their child's teacher. It appears to be a respite time for parents while their children are in school or at at school activities.
As I said earlier, my daughter is going into 7th grade (middle school). This school will be attending has not had a good reputation in the past. Recently, I sat on the interview panel for a new Principal and Vice Principal for this school. I am very pleased with the people who were chosen for these positions. I feel it is going to be a great year! My brother has a daughter (my niece) who is the same age as Hope. They applied for an inter-district transfer to try to tranfer to another school/district. By brother has substituted at this middle school in the past.
So, here my question. If all the Christians leave public schools who will be left to run and advocate for the students in them? Numerous times I've heard it said that "They are taking God out of the public schools". Sadly, Christians are taking God out of the public school each time they pull their children out (salt and light). I remember the fear we had when Hope started in elementary school. Now through alot of participation and prayer we have help to make a school a better place for everyone. It has not been easy and required alot of time and meetings, but all students, staff and families of the school have benefited.
I challenge you to get a staff list of your child's school and pray for each person on it, or just start with your child's teacher. Walk the campus inviting Jesus there. It is your school and in your neighborhood. If we don't, who will?

Weather today: 106 degrees and windy.

A Need For Heroes

This weekend I attended a reunion for students of Sierra Christian Academy. I attended this school from first through ninth grades. It changed administration in my tenth grade year and eventually closed. Every two years a reunion is organized for all former students of the school. It was held this past weekend.
Our family was extremely involved with this school and spent many summer days helping to clean, build, paint or doing whatever was needed. We were also close to the administration and teaching staff. Several were in attendance at this reunion and all set at the same table. I watched as they laughed and recalled memories. The thought struck me these are some of my heroes. I can remember days when the school did not having enough money to pay a bill and they would call the student body together for prayer. Someone then went to the mailbox and there was a check for the exact amount that was needed. This happened on several occasions during the 9 years we attended. The hours spent in prayer for students. God used them to impact my life and countless others. In Hebrews 11 we read about great heroes of the faith, this weekend I saw a few more that could be added to the list. These heroes have encouraged me in my faith. I thank God for them.

Weather today: 105 degrees with a warm wind blowin'. This is why I live here!

-Norm

A Fun Answer To High Gas Prices

Last Friday we purchased a Honda Reflex Scooter. It is a 2002 with 400+ miles on it and in near mint condition. I have been riding it pretty much all weekend. On Thursday I went to DMV and took my written test for a motorcycle license. I passed. The permit is good for 1 year. I can't take passengers, ride at night or on the freeway. I will be taking the driver's test soon. This scooter is a 250cc and gets 80 mpg! It will be perfect for my 40 mile commute to work. Until I get my license I can take backroads to avoid the freeway. I am looking forward to this. I purchased a quality helmet from the local Yamaha dealer and need to buy gloves. On my ride home after purchasing it began to rain and got windy. I now have a deeper respect for BIG SEMI TRUCKS! I told Tina when I got home "I could see how people get addicted to riding motorcycles".
The commute just got alot more fun and cheaper too!

-Norm

Weather today: Rainy, windy, and about 60 degrees.

Tents, Fans, Flying and A Great Concert

What a wonderful weekend this past weekend was! Friday evening I purchased two dome tents from some of my clients. I was a little leary of the condition before I'd seen them but was pleasantly suprised. I scored both for $15.00. One is a six person and the second is a two person. They're in great shape and all the parts are there too!

Saturday morning our local airport hosted the Young Eagles Free Fly for kids. Tina and I took the girls. The pilot that was going to take them said they were so light that one of us was able to fly in the plane with them. Tina didn't want to go. We flew over the girl's school and the river. It was a beautiful day to be in the air. The rest of the day was spent trying to install a ceiling fan in Hope's room. The way our house is wired the light switch control the bottom plug of a wall outlet. So, the installation of a ceiling fan requires putting a box in the ceiling and wiring it to the switch. I am not an electrician so this took a good portion of the day. The overall project is to install three ceiling fans all involving the same situation. I got the first one done about 11:00 Pm.

Sunday included Morning Worship and a Men's Group trip to In-N-Out Burger, a Cinco de Mayo celebration, and the installation of the second ceiling fan. On Sunday evening we drove to Redding to see Hawk Nelson, Falling Up and Thousand Food Krutch (TFK) in concert. It was an incredible evening. I don't think there was a part of that I didn't enjoy. We got home about 11:30 Pm. Hope and Grace loved the concert and then came home to newly installed ceiling fans.

Weather today: 86 degrees, sunny, breezy and perfect weather!!!

-Norm

5 Days of Magic!

We spent all of last week in southern California with five days at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. I had not been there since the completion of California Adventure and Downtown Disney. We spent quite abit of time in these new additions. By far the best ride in the California park was "Soaring Over California". What an incredible ride. Grizzly River Run is the "wet" ride. We went as a family on this. A total of eight people are loaded in the raft. By the end of the ride some part of you WILL be wet. While in California Adventure we went into the Hollywood section. This totally played games with my mind! It looks like Hollywood. We had the opportunity to see Aladdin. This rivaled any Broadway production. We also visited the Golden Vine Winery presentation. A definate highlight was the Disney Electrical Parade. I had seen it on video but the live version was outstanding!

Most of our evenings were spent in Disneyland. The 50th Anniversary Celebration will soon be coming to a close, Mickey ears with "50" scattered throughout the park and on every ride. The 50th fireworks presentation was beautiful (we saw this twice). Sleeping Beauty's Castle changed colors with each firework display. WOW!!! Our family spent alot of time in Fantasyland. I think my favorite was the Peter Pan ride. Judging by the lines it was popular with other people as well. Other family favorites include Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Matterhorn, and the Tomorrowland Rockets. We also saw the Fantasia presentation (two times). As we were leaving the park on Friday evening, Tina made the comment "I could stay a few more days". I agreed. Our family had a wonderful time!
Southern California weather was 60-70 degrees and sunny. It rained off and on Friday. We went prepared with umbrellas.

Weather today: Sunny, not a cloud in the sky and 74 degrees. I can finally dry out and mow the lawn!!!

-Norm