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    Music Review Part 1 Wednesday, June 6, 2007 |

    Many of you have been unrelenting in your pursuit of my thoughts regarding the musical landscape these days (actually, no one has, but that first sentence makes me feel nice.) So I'll seek to impart some learnings I had while on vacation this past week.

    For those not familiar with my taste in music, I'd sum it up with this...I heart GOOD music. Not crappy music. Good music. Music where someone is actually singing and playing their own instrument. Music that actually communicates a thought or feeling with some level of insight and/or brevity. Good music. It's pretty simple.

    So a couple of weeks ago I asked a friend of mine whose taste in music I trust to give me a recommendation. THere's wisdom in that for those of you who complain "but I can never find new bands..." Ask cool friends. That's why they're around. Without hesitation he (Ben) said "Check out The National." That's The National, sports fans...not the nationals. Singular, not plural. His quick reply left me intrigued, so I hopped on iTunes and downloaded their latest. Boy was he right.

    The National have a sound that brings to mind all sorts of people, but none that I can really pinpoint. Leonard Cohen, Crash Test Dummies, F. Scott Fitzgerald...it's all very dizzying. One caveat...diction is not one of their fortes, but man is it worth wading through the mumbles to comprehend the depths.

    So here's the best part...they're from Cincy and are playing 30 seconds from my house on June 15th. Yes! So pull up iTunes right now, download the album, be enthralled and then let me know that you'll see me at the show. I promise you won't be disappointed.

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    This is so beautiful Tuesday, June 5, 2007 |

    but also very tragic...

    Well said... Monday, June 4, 2007 |

    My reviews are coming...but you need to read this...it's a post from a guy named Greg Boyd, whose thinking about Jesus has certainly influenced mine. Since I was at a beach on Memorial day I had some time to think, and I found my mind wandering to why we have this day off...which naturally led to some unpleasant thoughts. Typically when that happens it means those thoughts are important, and so my natural instinct is to discard them ASAP. Reading Greg's post solidified what I was thinking (MUCH more eloquently and succintly) so I include it below. Read and spend some time on it...

    Memorial Day Reflections

    I think this picture (also seen on Greg's blog) says it all...


    Why I Hate War

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    Vacation was swell |

    So I just arrived back from beautiful Hilton Head, SC...home of Republicans and bike paths and beaches and big houses and bigger yachts (I know, Republican starts with an R and my alliteration was with B's...sorry). So Rachel and I were down there with some friends of ours (Brian and Kate) and stayed at Brian's parent's condo (thanks TFey and Cathy!) We really had quite a spectacular time, pretty much doing absolutely nothing. I made a giant realization about midway through the week...I was trying to consider why it was that I was able to rest more on this trip, to take naps and enjoy the beach and pool and read. And then it hit me, that for the first time since I've left college I was on a vacation where my livelihood wasn't depending on me getting back.

    See, I've been self-employed for the past 4 years, so anytime R and I would try and get away I'd constantly be worried about what was happening back home, and what fires would be waiting for me to put out (and there were plenty). So relishing the freedom from all that was amazing...absolutely amazing! Even though I wasn't perfect (I had a few minor meltdowns concerning my lack of ability to actually get out ON the water) I found this time away to be very refreshing. Yes! And I'm coming back excited about what's happening around me and where we're headed. So vacation was swell.

    PS-Stay tuned for some excellent commentary on both some outstanding bands I discovered and some books that blew me away...you won't want to miss this.

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