I only have a moment . . .

I just finished this great book. It is called Confessions of a Pastor: Adventures in Dropping the Pose and Getting Real with God by Craig Groeschel. It was amazing. Actually, Just what I needed. So if you want go to amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Confessions-Pastor-Adventures-Dropping-Getting/dp/1590527208 and search inside. I was moved so much that I decided to read another book by the same author called Chazown: khaw-ZONE - A Different Way to See Your Life. I am just beginning this book so I will tell you more about it in the future. I want to say thank you to my friend for pointing out my misuse of Soar for Sore. You are so nice. Keep up the writing, you can finish if you dedicate yourself to the task. I have to run. The evening is set on FLY BY mode. See ya now.

A Day of Running . . .

Today my daughter and I ran many errands. We had to go to Detroit Children's Hospital for an appointment that was to happen at 11:00 am, but we were not seen until 12:45 pm. Now that is quite a bummer. We had plans to do some things together and hang out, but we had to do other running as well. By the time we were done with our first appointment, we were off and running trying to get to all the places we needed to go. We were unable to get all of our stuff done, so that was a bummer.
So here I am at the end of my day typing a blog. Ha ha now that is really funny.
I am at the Library. I am working on a paper for Ordination. I need to have this done in the next week to turned in. Yes, I want to be a REV. Can you believe it, me a Reverend. I can, and at the same time I can not. I am not some sort of super human. No - I am just a regular Guy. I try to do my best at all I put my hand too, but I mess up a lot. I am not perfect, and I am glad that is not the standard I am required to keep. I have been a Pastor in some regard for the past several years. I just left my last Church at the end of August. I was there for 8 1/2 years as their Youth Pastor. I really miss the kids. I miss the people. I also miss the opportunity to speak and share the Word of God with regular people on a regular basis. I am not the kind of pastor that wants to force you to believe what I believe. At times, I even struggle with what I believe. I decide each day to walk by faith, and trust that god with my life. I do want to challenge you to consider Jesus. He is a gentleman and invites you to come and follow Him. I am a follower. I am trusting His claims and following Him. Well I am running out of time so I will hit the road. Have a good day.

A fast weekend . . .

I know, I have been quiet. Sorry. I do not like to be quiet, it is like being mentally and emotionally constipated. Sorry if that is too graphic, but it is how it is. You know, you have to lets some of this stuff out, so you do not get sick. OK, enough of that . . .

My weekend started out on Wednesday. My children were at my parents house for the night. My wife had surgery planned for 1:30 that day. We were sleeping in late and the phone rang, they could take us early, so we got up, got ready and headed off to Huron Valley Hospital. My wife and I decided that we love our three children, but that we are not having any more children. So my wife decided to close down the baby factory. Yes, you are right, I did not want to have the male surgery, so my wife opted to have her tubes tied, or something like that. When the doc was finished he came out and told me all went well and showed me the photos. I am going to ask for a copy, they were interesting. My wife is still sore, but she is doing better.

Turkey day was awesome. Spent the day in Brighton with my family. I did get my butt kicked by my 4 year old nephew in Wii Boxing. It was crazy. It was the best workout of the weekend. We had Prime Rib, some of the best I have had all year long. Pumpkin Pie, it is the best. What did you do at your meal? We ate, drank and played Wii.

Friday, started at 4 am. I know. I did not think I could do it ether. But I did it for my son. He wanted the new Golden DS lite, and Sam's club had it on sale with the new Zelda game, so we were there to buy it at 5 am. We walked in when the doors opened, and bought it and then drove home, laughing at all the folks in line at Target. It was fun. I am proud of him, he held his birthday money from July, in order to buy a new ds lite. His other one died. We met my brother at Chuckie Cheese's. We played games for over an hour. Then we meet my fam at the Olive garden for a great family meal. My youngest son and I hung out while my wife and daughter went to babysit for my brother and his wife. The rest of the day was a cash. I was dead to the world.

Well - I am here today, Sunday. I have been heavy hearted because I may have offended a friend in my Tuesday 4th block class. She is the youngest of 2 children, and there are 13 years between her and her brother. Actually they are driving home from his house today. I can not wait to apologise to her tomorrow at school. I was just teasing about her being so far away from her brother, and that her parents must be "old". And that her parents must have been surprised. OK, in my mind it seemed funny. But I do not know their story. She is a wonderful young lady. I hope she will forgive me for being insensitive.

I am still a work in progress, and so are you . . . How was your weekend. comment me. I would love to know.

Thanksgiving Lifestyle . . .

Yesterday, I was challenged to not only celebrate Thanksgiving as a holiday, but to entertain the thanksgiving lifestyle. A daily attitude of gratitude. I have so much to be thankful for. I was also given the challenge to list 1000 things to be thankful for. I have never made that list. I may try between today and Thursday. How about you? What are you thankful for? I wish I could report to you that I was the most thankful man that ever lived yesterday, but for some reason I was grouchy. It just doesn't make sense to be so blessed and so angry at the same time. I could not fully put my finger on my frustration. It may have been too many goals for such a short day. My family jumped in and helped out with all the work. I am thankful for their help, I could not have done it without them. They are great in spite of my grouchiness.

I did get a Motorcycle ride in at the end of the day. It was COLD out. I do enjoy riding. I am riding my brothers Honda CBR1100. You talk about a fast bike. It is so much fun and sends me down the road at a pace I would never be able go achieve on my own two legs. I tell folks that riding is the best therapy I have ever had in my life. Well, there is so much I would like to write, but I will not at this time. Have a beautiful day. Peace

Wow, People really do read what I write. . .

I love to blog. It is a move of my soul - to my heart - to my head - to my keyboard. I also love to journal, to take a pen and a leather lined book and allow my soul to flow through my pen. It is amazing to be able to be real on a space like this. I know that there is risk here. I am not foolish. I know when you lay your soul bare you are exposed. I only hope that you will be encouraged. I know I am encouraged by the process and the prospect. Many people, especially men, find this avenue of exposure to risky. Often times I have wondered if I am too in touch with my feminine side. Ha Ha. I am a real man. I love being a man. I love my wife she is so incredible. I love my children. I love my friends deeply. I also love to emote. I love to pour out my soul and my heart.

I want to say to those that read my blogs. I pray for you each day. I am a follower of Jesus. I am not a type of "church goer". I have been there, on that type of thing, it does not fit. I am a follower and a seeker of Jesus. It is my prayer that you may find and follow him as well some day. I will not push him on anyone. He never did that while he was here on earth. He invited folks to "Come and follow me". I want to be honest in regard to my love for Jesus. So I pray for you each that your day will go well, that you will enjoy your life, that you will love those you are close to, and that you will grow. I am no super man when it comes to spirit things. I am merely a follower, a learner among learners. I stumble and fall all the time, but I get up and keep going. I have a deep love for people that bubbles deep from my soul.

Well, Class is calling. I hope to continue this thought in the future. If not, I hope you will have a great day. Till next time.

Only one more . . . then I will be satisfied?

Why do I eat more than I need to eat? I like to eat, but I hate being stuffed. You ever been there? Food is good, but too much of a good thing is a bummer. How bout you, have you ever had an Oreo Cookie?? Who has not had one, but I mean, have you had several. The first one tastes the best, then the rest are just stuffing. I know it sounds crazy, but I long to be in control of the amount I eat. I am convinced that if I ate smaller portions I would enjoy my meals and life more, not to mention my waist line would begin to shrink. My wife made Mexican tonight. It was tasty.

My daughter had her first real practice with Winter Guard tonight. I am excited for her. She is growing up so fast. I am not sure if I am ready to be parent to a teenage daughter. I do not have the choice to be ready, it is happening as we speak. I am blessed to be a parent. I am blessed to have a girl and two boys. It is an amazing thing. I love my kids - they are great. My oldest son is in a city drama team. He has practice tonight. I decided to come to the Library again. Two nights in a row. It is nice to be here alone tonight. My wife and youngest son are at home relaxing, I hope. I have to pick my kids up at nine pm. It will be all good. If you come here to read this, know that I am thankful, and that I am praying for you today. Well, I am going to hit the road. Have a great day. I may post again, but I am not sure.

I have Arrived . . .

Can you believe it, I am blogging at the library. It is nuts. I can not believe how much I have enjoyed blogging. Thank you my fourth block friend. Well, today was the 317th day of the year. I know, "So What". Well let me fill you in. I am a hopeless romantic. I mean really, a big guy like me loving - love, what is up with that picture. Well, when I was dating my wife we developed a code number that stood for "I love You". Her favorite number is 3, go figure that is how many kids we have. My favorite number is 17. I put those two numbers together, as the gentleman that I am, Ladies first, placing her 3 before my17 making up "317". On every card, letter and other mail I would include "317". I meet my wife in College in the fall of 1986. We dated that school year. I asked her dad for her hand in marriage in the Summer of 1987. Her dad got sick and passed away that fall. She stayed home to be with her dad in his final days. I was at college in Virginia, and she was in Florida. We were engaged to be married in July 1988. It was a long year to say the least. I love to hug and kiss, and that is kinda hard even with AT&T. Well, on with the story. Last year I figured out that once a year, my planner showed the day that the 317th day of the year would be for that year. Well, I decided that this day would be our love holiday. It is nice to have your own holiday. This year I decided to fill her office at the middle school with 50 or more 16" balloons that were colored with smiley faces, and clear with X's, O's and hearts. I also sent out an all middle school email pledging my love for my wife, and requested that all the teacher wish her a great 317th day of the year. Well, I am still learning. My wife was not as excited as I would have been. She does not like to be put up in front of folks and all that sort of stuff. For those of you who know me, I have not meet a stranger, and if it is fun, I do not mind being the center of attention. Even in Graphic Arts class. Ha ha. I think the teacher needs a hug, but he may not think that. Well, enough on that subject. So, I was talking to a friend about my sad heart at my failed attempt to love my wife out loud. They were telling me to keep in mind that I may have liked that sort of thing, but I needed to learn what my wife would like to receive as a gift. I can see her point. I must learn, I am on a quest to know how to gift for my wife so she will enjoy the gift. I know that sounds odd. I thought so as well, but it makes sense. I do love my wife, we have been together for over 20 years and married over 19. I still have so much to learn. I know, this is getting long and boring. I will go. This ends my first blog from the Library.

What a wonderful Fall weekend . . .

Great Weekend!

I loved this weekend, it was enjoyable, and I achieved some of my goals. My wife and I attended a marriage conference called Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage, found at http://www.laughyourway.com/ . By far the best marriage weekend I ever attended in 19 plus years of marriage. I laughed till my sides hurt, and then I cried as deficiencies were exposed. I want to be a better man. I love my wife deeply. She is by far the most beautiful woman I know. I was challenged on many fronts this weekend, and at the same time I was encouraged to hit the reset button and begin again. Ask forgiveness, and move on to a better marriage. We also went out to eat with our friends who also attended the conference. We had a great meal at Moe's on the Ten. We saw some students, who are now married, that graduated from Student Union http://www.covenantredford.com/studentunion/second_home_page.htm .

On Saturday . . .

evening, our kids were all over. My sons had there friends over to stay the night, so we had 5 boys all afternoon and evening. Our daughter went to spend time with her friend. I took down an old shed and began to burn some of the wood from an old tree. I went to bed late.

On Sunday . . .

we woke up early and went to Orchard Grove and were encouraged in the Lord to look beyond me and look at WE. Life is so much more than Me. We also attended Covenant to drop off the boys. We went out to eat at Empire Dynasty with several of our old friend. The food was good, the fellowship was even better. When we got home, I continued to burn the wood and mowed the lawn. Wow, what a great weekend. How was your weekend?? No I mean really. What did you do? What did you learn? What did your Read? What did you watch? That is enough for now. Have a wonderful day. Peace

Food for thought. . .

Today, a friend sent me a message. It contained this link: http://www.theinterviewwithgod.com/ and told me to click view presentation. I do not know where you are on the God thing. I believe He is real, and wants to interact with the world he created. If you do not believe this, I still believe you will see some new value in life. I am not trying to push God into your life. But I will say that life is happening as we live each day. The above link made me think about what is important in life. Have a great day.

Big guy leading the little people . . .

Can you believe it, I work as a gym instructor during one of the classes at school. I love to work with the students. Today, I was giving one student direct encouragement to keep going, and not to give up during a run of leg lifts. I found it to be kind of funny, that I was standing near the student in a relaxed fashion telling him not to give up, and to keep going. Let me fill you in - I am a skinny guy stuck in a fat man's body. OK, I don't need to pay for two seats on the airplane yet, but I am bigger than I would like to be. I have a friend here at the high school that calls me "Slim" that term has been dear to my heart. I long to be slim, but I eat like I will be fatter in moments. You may not want to know, but most times I find myself eating, I am not hungry for food. Have you ever been hungry for other issues. Some folks I know when they are under stress or in a soul dilemma, they do not eat. They actually loose weight. I am the opposite, I turn to food at times for some lame sort of soul comfort. Crazy - hey. Well, they say that things like chocolate get the endorphins popping. You know that Happy hormone in the brain. I long to be thinner again. I have a dream - but I need to but feet on my dream. Well, I do have feet, I need to get my feet moving my body forward, or better yet, just moving. I will keep in mind that it is much easier for me to give encouragement to someone that is working out than it is to work out. The kids are gracious. Look up and smile, the Sky is beautiful.

Vote - - -

Today was the day to vote here in my little town outside a big town. Can you believe we were voting on three unopposed members for city council, and one unopposed Mayor, and yes, the ability to pay more in taxes to build a new library. I am just now beginning to use our library. My family has been young, but now my children are getting older and more independent. I am excited about their growth. I am going to journal while I am there today with my children. We are going to give my wife a time alone, to relax and rest. I hope your day is going well. Have fun.

Marching Band is over

Well, believe it or not, the marching band season is over. The music was awesome. The Students were great. Placed 8th in State band festival. I am thankful, I am a loose part of this group. It is nice to fit into the picture somewhere on this big ball of moving mass. I like to fancy myself as a amateur photographer, above is a photo I was able to capture on a Friday night before the football game. It is like one of my most favorite photos so far this year. I will share some on this blog from time to time. Have a fun day. Peace

Day Light savings what ? ? ?

So - exactly what is up with all this daylight savings time thing? I just don't get it. What kind of daylight are they saving and who are we saving it for?? I feel like I actually lost some daylight today. It got dark at 6 PM, What's up with that? Who moved my light? I love going to work in the dark. I love having a longer evening with light. Can you tell me what you think about it? Are you in favor? or Are you at a loss like myself? I do not mind the colder weather of the north, but I feel like I lost an hour of daylight. OK, I may be back to blog more later but that is all for now. Have fun, keep smiling and share a dance with a friend. Life is Good.

The Blood Blog . . .

Today . . . I did something I thought I would not be able to do again. I gave blood to the Red Cross. It was not as bad as I thought. Well, let me share my story with you. Once upon a time, long long ago - I gave blood on a regular basis to the Red Cross in Virginia. It was no big deal, about every eight weeks or so I would stop by and make a pint donation. Then one time, while I was making a deposit, I passed out and a 90 year old lady caught me and rushed me over to a cot and brought me back to life. I was a little embarrassed. A big strapping guy like myself passing out on an old lady. I have used that experience as a lame excuse to keep me from giving blood for the past 10 years. So today, I faced my fears head on. I gave a pint, and I feel good. I like to help others, even when I may never know who I help. What have you done today to help out your fellow man? Keep your eyes open for ways you can help, and remember your nearest neighbor is your Family.

My handwriting style is . . .

I took the "handwriting personality" quiz ongURL.com
		my handwriting style is... sensitive scripter Your handwriting reveals you as a thoughtful, intellectual type who avoids fake people and places where there's lots of noise and crowds.Read more... What does your handwriting say about you?

Whats with the name ? ? ?

Today . . . I am on Blogger. What do you know about that. I created a blog space, and you may want to know about the name. Well, I love soul intimacy issues. I also love Balloons. I wanted something all my own, so I put them together. Hence SoullooN. I hope this is fun. I have a friend who encouraged me to blog. I have enjoyed getting to know this person. I am blessed in many ways in life. For that I am most thankful.

Let me explain a little. I have been putting my raw thought into journals much of my life. I love to take one of my pens (i have a pen fetish) and my journal and let my soul flow onto the page. I am trying this as a new point of contact with others who engage in similar activity. The Balloon thing, well that is a long story for me. When I was little, I was scared to death of balloons, not so much the balloon, but the potential pop of the balloon. I think I was teased or something when I was young. Somewhere along the way I began to enjoy the attitude that balloons bring to life. (A point of note needs to be made - I do not care much for the Mylar things, Balloons have to be latex) Most people are not sad when they receive a balloon. So, I love to have balloons around, they encourage a happy environment. “Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon!” - Winnie the Pooh That is one of my favorite quotes. Well, how bout you?, even if the first thing you like to do it pop a balloon for those moments you have cheer. You can share a big bright helium balloon with me any time, I will not refuse it. OK, this is my first blog. I will see you here again in the near future.