I've never claimed to be a writer, but it's nice to have a place to put my thoughts down once in a while.

8.21.2007

Where'd You Get Those Names?

For those who don't know, I teach an interpretive signing group. What's interpretive signing, you ask? We use American Sign Language as a basis and interpret praise & worship and other Christian based songs into a pantomime, so to speak. It's kind of a mix of Sign Language and dance/interp movement.
Our group is comprised of ladies in a wide range of ages. Our youngest is 12, the oldest...I'm not sure, somewhere in the 50's, maybe early 60's. We meet once a week for a Bible study and practice. The name of the group, you might have guessed, is Signs of Grace. We went for about an year and a half praying and seeking a name. I think it was well worth the wait.
Signs of Grace is a part of the Creative Ministry Team at church, Aurora Baptist. There is another group called Clowning for Christ. You can guess what they do. We also have children and youth groups who work with puppets, interpretive signing, drama, and sticks. Their group is called Salt Shaker Productions. Jesus calls us to be salt to our world. In others words, we need to season and flavor our world with the news of Christ. Sometimes that means going "outside the box" to reach people (or shaking them up). Hence, Salt Shaker Productions.

8.14.2007

Donkey Kong's Got It Goin' On!

Here's another one from my Myspace blog.

I was asked the question "what song do you like to make the most fun of?" Or something to that effect.

My answer: "Honky Tonk Bedonkey Donk"

Most people I talk to about it, think I'm joking when I ask "What does this song mean?" I'm not.

Ok, I get that "Honky Tonk Bedonkey Donk" refers to the girl's behind. My problem is with the line, "She's got it going on like Donkey Kong". Do me a favor. Stop and really think about this statement. Who is Donkey Kong? He's a giant gorilla that smashes barrels and beats his chest. Why is the singer comparing this girl's butt to a monkey? Is he saying she has a monkey butt? Furthermore, if he is, WHY oh WHY is this so attractive to him? This indicates to me that he has a thing for monkeys! This is the most ridiculous lyric I think I've ever heard! (Aside from "Achey Breaky Heart")

Did the songwriter think that his audience would not think about the words? I say, yes! And do we really stop and think about the words and meanings of popular songs [yes, I mean from all eras]? But this is taking me on a whole other tangent and I'm just too tired to go there tonight.

I think I'll go make up a song about camel humps. Wait. Hasn't that been done.....

Movie Going

This is a post from my Myspace blog. I thought I'd add it to this one.

Disclaimer: I'm not an English major, so please don't critique my writing. I'm just trying to tell a story here.

I went to see Live Free or Die Hard a few weeks ago with my sister and a couple of friends. I'm pretty sure it was a good movie. I missed some of it because of the two nice considerate young men and the lovely family with young children in the row behind us. Of course, you know I'm being sarcastic.

Here's what happened...

The theater was pretty full by the time we got there and the only place that had enough seats for the four of us was way at the top, next to last row. Actually, I think these seats would be pretty good. It's far enough away to make the sound volume at a decent level. And I didn't have to crane my neck to see the screen. However, I was in for a rude awakening. And I mean rude. Okay, everyone talks before the show starts. Fine. Not a problem. And some people comment every now and then during the show. I do sometimes, if the scene calls for it. But these two in the seats behind me and Jenni never stopped talking. One of them took no less than six phone calls. During one conversation he told the other person that he was trying to figure out what was going on in the movie, he didn't understand the plot. My advise: watch the movie instead of talking on the phone! I wanted to ask their names so I could look for them in the credits. I heard more of their dialogue than the movie's. At one point my friend Kim "Shhhh"ed them. All that got us was attitude in the form of gas. That's right. We got farted on.

Then we have the nice family with the young children. Either the theater has started selling large bags of chips or they brought in some contraband. And apparently, no one could open it. It was passed down the row as each family member attempted to get to the goodies. When the bag was finally opened, it was passed back down the row for each person to grab a noisy handful. After the rattling finally died down, Dad thought it was a good idea to add commentary to the movie dialogue in order to make his son laugh. Ahh, the delightful sound of children's laughter as Bruce Willis is shot at, blows things up and threatens the bad guy. Who needed to hear why Bruce was blowing things up? I guess I should have stuck to the middle of the theater where the sound is so loud my hair blows in it's breeze and I leave with my head tilted at an odd angle from trying to see the screen.

Oh, how could I forget about the person about 8 rows down who can't seem to stop texting every 5 minutes. I've got news for you, people. Small bright spot in the middle of the dark is VERY distracting. Kind of like someone shining a flashlight in your eyes.

I can forget about the rattling family and Mr. Spotlight, but add them to God's gift to the world in the form of two teenage boys (or so they seemed to think), and I was about to have a nervous breakdown.

There was nothing I could think of to say to them that would make them understand that they were infringing on the rights of everyone around them. Why? Because they don't care. In fact, I think they were proud of the fact that they were disturbing everyone.

Now it's possible I'm being extra sensitive and I should let it go. And other than venting here, there's not much I can do. But here's the thing -- it costs money to go to the movies.. And I don't have a lot of it. So when I do spend it at the theater, I expect to enjoy myself.

So here is my request to you out there whoever may be reading this... please, please, take into consideration others around you. Wherever you may be, the theater, ballgame, mall, wherever, just put yourself in the other person's shoes. How would you feel if they were being rude to you?

8.13.2007

The Art of Imitation

Most people don't realize this, but I'm on a quest to be just like my friend, Kim. Or so it seems. The past nine/ten months I've become more aware that I seem to be copying some of the things Kim does. I'm not sure if it's actually because I do want to be like her or because it's that we have so many things in common. When she discovers something new, it usually turns out that it's something that I enjoy as well. So this post is an examination of what Kim and I have in common. Perhaps this will reveal to me whether I am a copycat or just a kindred spirit playing catch-up.

Interest: Scrapbooking
This is one of the first things that I've found myself involved in because of Kim. When I think about it though, I had started a scrapbook back in 1998 or 99. I went on a road trip with my sister and our good friend Chana. They were tired of me by the end of that trip. I took picture after picture of them and, for some reason, cannons and anchors (We went to St. Augustine, Florida). In that scrapbook I also have pictures from Kim's wedding, our friend Matt's wedding, our friend Tracy's wedding, some camp pictures and some from Matt and Jason's graduation.*
I guess it must have been Kim that got me into scrapbooking. Jenni (my sister) thinks she remembers Kim having some scrapbooks when the three of us lived together during our college years.

* Just roll with the names. I may or may not get to posting who they are and how I know them.

Interest: Photography
I know my interest in photography is not because of Kim. Although, Kim has been taking pictures longer than I've known her. I took a photography class in college as a requirement for my degree. Unfortunately, I haven't had the resources to pursue a more advanced degree of picture taking. I've mostly had point and shoot one time use or the "old fashioned" 35 mm cameras. Currently I have a $15 basic camera from Wal-Mart. It has no zoom but it has a wide view option. The best thing it has going for it is that it is cool looking. Maybe someday I can move into the 21st century and get a good digital camera.

Interest: Stamping
I'm not sure about this one yet. I think it's a really neat craft and I could probably get into it. But I think it would take more time than I have to give. From what I've seen it involves a lot of watercoloring. I took art classes in college including watercolor, but I never took to that medium very well. My preferred method was charcoal, chalk and conte crayon. So this is probably something I'll dabble in, but not pursue like I do with ceramics or scrapbooking.

Interest: Ceramics
I really enjoy painting ceramics. Actually, I also paint plaster casts. I've been painting them for years. I started with Christmas ornaments from Wal-Mart. I'd paint some each year for family or coworkers. It wasn't until Kim started going to classes at a ceramics shop that I really got into ceramics. Unfortunately, my hands start tingling after just a short time when I try painting. (Probably has something to do with daily prolonged computer use.) So I haven't done much of it lately.

Interest: Blogging
This is something else that I'm not sure about yet. I think though, it could be interesting. It fascinates me that I can just type pretty much whatever I want. In a way, that intimidates me. Kind of like a blank page gives me pause. Kim's usually got something to say. And I don't mean that in bad or sarcastic way. It's just a fact and one of the things I like about her. (And won't she just love that my first blog is about her.)

These are not all that Kim and I share interests in. However, this is getting long and it's getting late. It appears to me though, that our interests are along the creative/artsy line. So maybe it's not that I'm on a quest to be like Kim. Maybe it's that my friendship with Kim has opened new ways to be creative. Hmmmm.... something to think about.