On politics

It has been interesting to watch what is happening in Connecticut lately. It seems like there is a real chance that Sen. Joe Lieberman could well win reelection (as an Independent) after LOSING his party's Democratic primary. Here's today's CNN story on it.

I've blogged before on my take on the political realm, and if you know my take, you won't be surprised to know that I like what's happening. I think Lieberman makes sense in lots of ways. But of course as a moderate (and pro-war) Democrat, the idealogues on the left don't like him. And yet I hope that Lieberman's independent candicacy is going to prove to be a prophetic moment in the political world. Indeed, I wonder if in the future the ballots will be full of independent candidates, men and women who pick and choose from the traditional territories of each of the two major parties according to their world view and inner moral (and otherwise) compasses, as opposed to subjugating themselves to the framework of an established (or entrenched) political party...

Until then, I continue to say "Greenie in '08." Or "Lucey for Senate." Or "Kniteline for Gov."

Why I love missions trips

We sent some 20 students on short-term missions trips this summer, to Guatemala and to the Dominican Republic. I am sold on these trips as amazing discipleship tools! Here is an exerpt from Claudia's myspace blog about her time in the DR:

"The best thing that happened was that we all went with the purpose of loving and serving the people of the Dominican Republic and teach them about God, which we did do, but the best thing was that they taught me about God and loved on me and served me. It's amazing the ways God chooses to show up in your life to teach you and show you something. While there, God showed me some things about myself and what He wanted me to change about myself and about my relationship with Him. Good thing He had planned for me to learn this in the DR...j/k. And now, God is definately still working, showing me and working with me in those things and it's taking time but it's happening."

Also, here's a picture of the Guatemala team from Fresno:

Umm...

Forget the millions who waste time playing these things. What about the folks who create them?!?

Overheard in the car

A couple weeks back, on our way back to Grandma's after a morning at Vacation Bible School, the following conversation took place:

Amy: Josh, how was the day today?

Josh: Good.

Amy: What did you learn about?

Josh: Jesus.

Amy: Oh, great! What about Jesus?

Josh: Jesus drowned.

Learn Something New...

At first the title for this post was going to read "Spellchecking" or something like that.

But then I learned something new.

According to dictionary.com, you can spell it gauntlet (how I learned to spell it--remember the video game?!?) or gantlet. Here's the page.

Guess I'll need to study a bit before I take another shot at the GRE...

Speaking Minnesotan

Evidently in Minnesotan, you pronounce taco like this:

T A A A A A C K O U G H

Unique Blogging Locales

I am willing to wager that this here is the first time you have ever read a blog written up in Breezy Point, Minnesota. We've had a great time so far relaxing and hanging out. I'm currently sitting in the rental van outside a closed coffee shop that has wifi. I'm surrounded by forest and moths are dive-bombing my laptop. But I digress...

I could talk a lot about the highlights so far, the slew of crazy family in their color-coded reunion shirts, the time this morning when a deer connected with my front fender (no joke--very scary), the menu consisting seemingly exclusively of sausage and beer, or the fact that everyone you meet here talks like Frances McDormand in Fargo.

But what I really want to talk about is what seems to be the theme of this reunion...COMPETITION. These people compete in everything. This morning it was volleyball (my team made lost in the finals). This afternoon I played some disc golf. Tomorrow it's the 9 hole golf scramble. Tuesday is 3 on 3 hoops. Before we came down here it was billiards. I gotta get home in a bit for Texas Hold'em. Anything and everything has turned into competition. It's very fun, never boring and I'm freakin' sore all over.

We fly out Wednesday evening, but not before a stopover here and here.

The burning question of the night is...

...how will the kids handle the red eye to Minnesota tonight leaving at 12:40...

...and the next burning question is how will I handle a week with 150 of my in-laws' family at the reunion...

Somehow I think what's happening in the Middle East is more important...

Oh, the horror! The humanity! Thanks, CNN.com for this...

Warfare?

Josh has been having night terrors lately. They're horrible. We're in the process of learning more about them (calling the Ped., reading online, etc.), but I'm wondering if there's a spiritual dimension here.

So last night I got home from my meeting and decided to annoint his room with oil and spend some time praying over him. It just seemed like the thing to do. No sooner had I finished and was back in the kitchen washing my hands then the next night terror began. Somebody say "WARFARE!" Feel free to join us in praying...

Fidel's real issue?

They are talking about some sort of exhaustion causing his health woes, but I think maybe it was this.

Things you'd think would be self-evident part 2

You don't manufacture power tool toys for little kids...


...on the off chance they turn out like this.

Things you'd think would be self-evident part 1

You don't eat your own feet.

Links report

Played golf today at Sherwood Forest in Sanger. Here it is by the numbers:

89...my score, from the whites
1...chip-in from off the green
113...the high temp on the course
5...bucks, the added cost to ride in a cart (happily paid)
8...water bottles consumed, along with 2 Dr. Peppers, 1 Gatorade and 1 Capri Sun
0...visits to the restroom

Mr. Roboto

Tiger Woods is always so robotic. He robotically wins golf tournaments, systematically mowing over his opponents as well as the golf course. And he gives robotic interviews after a round ("I played well." "The course was tough." "There's a long way to go." Repeat.).

And so it was great to see Tiger show some real emotion after winning the British this weekend, his first major win since his father passed away. More of that Tiger!!!

And, for the record, no, that's not my Staff buddy Rob Knight consoling Tiger after the win...

Racialization?!?

Josh spent the week at a Vacation Bible School type of camp at a big church here in Sacramento. Loved it. I was impressed (and pleased) to hear him come home talking about Jesus walking on water, Jonah and the big whale, and how much fun he was having. We went to the big closing party last night and that was cool, even if, in my opinion, the youth pastor gave a really soft showing when the time came to "walk the plank into a sea of slime." Dude, you gotta really go for the slime when you have a couple hundred kids cheering and yelling...

Anyway...among the many things that Josh brought home during the week was a cross that described the Gospel using 7 different colored squares. And a part of the Gospel story is inscribed on each square. Purple, for instance, stands for "the crown of life." Yellow is "God's perfect light," and green is "the new life we have in Jesus." And so it tells, in a visual way, the story of the cross.

Telling the story of the cross in a visual way is fantastic, but this exercise has, in my view, a serious problem, a problem revolving around what black and white stand for. On this cross, the black square reads "black represents our sins," while the white square reads "white represents the cleansing of our sins." And so, once again, black is associated with a negative (our sinfulness) while white is tied to purity (our cleansed righteousness). This is a problem.

Now I don't think anyone at this fabulous children's camp is trying to be racist. No way. I'm sure they are just copying this exercise from a curriculum. But I will submit that this is a clear example of racialization; in other words, a systemic and subtle "racializing." Without knowing it or thinking about it, we paint a picture of white being best and black (and others) being inferior or even negative. I think this happens all around the culture and, sadly, the church is not immune.

When I think about my life and my upbringing, I can't think of a single overtly racist teaching or model in my life. On the contrary, I would say that my parents did a great job helping me to not think or act in that manner. But that doesn't change the fact that somewhere along the way, I picked up the flawed worldview that white is best. I was racialized. And as a white person, I have needed to--I still need to--recognize my latent racism, repent of it and seek healing.

And so I long for our kids to grow up racialization-free, though something like this cross makes me wonder how feasible that is. But while Amy and I will be unable to protect him from all the influences that he comes across in their lives, I pray that we will, by example and by word, provide an alternate set of influences.

One final thought...really the cross has it fundamentally wrong anyway. Because the issue is not color, it's purity/impurity. In other words, a pure black square is just as cleansed as a pure white one (or a pure green one). To accurately represent our sinfulness, it's almost as if we need a square with a dissonant pattern, or a tear, or holes in it, or polka dots...anything other than a single, pure color, especially black.

Dispatches

Here's a rundown of some things I'm following this morning:

1. How about Floyd Landis in the Tour de France?!? What a couple of days for him this week; look for Floyd to win the time trial tomorrow and bring the yellow jersey to Paris.

2. Evidently Tiger Woods is back and ready to go. Brother just shot a 67 in the second round of the British Open to seize control of the competition. I wonder how much higher the TV ratings are when he's in contention on the weekend? I know I'll be watching...

3. Props to Pres. Bush for speaking at the NAACP yesterday. Sounds like he did well. Here's a transcript, but this is my favorite quote: "For nearly 200 years, our nation failed the test of extending the blessings of liberty to African Americans. (Applause.) Slavery was legal for nearly a hundred years, and discrimination legal in many places for nearly a hundred years more. Taken together, the record placed a stain on America's founding, a stain that we have not yet wiped clean. (Applause.)"

4. What a mess in the middle east. I'm following the Israel/Hezbollah combat fairly close because a co-worker of mine has family living in the Christian section of Beirut. As her family has already lost relatives in the war previously, the branch living in America is understandibly concerned.

5. Last but not least, some people will do anything to try to get elected.

Staff-worker's Block

So there I was floating around in the pool last night (two more days of vacation) and I thought I would try to vision for our upcoming student leader's retreat; you know, come up with a theme and text to teach out of, etc. But I got nothing. Nada. And I was at first frustrated with that, until I realized...

...I'm on vacation. Having "staff-worker's block" is a good thing. Hallelujah. Besides, I need all the focus and concentration I can muster to be ready for the poker tournament tonight after the BBQ...

Allen Lim, Phd.

One of my best buddies in high school was Allen Lim. Great guy. Turns out Allen has gone on to become a highly regarded exercise physiologist. A life long bicycle racer, he has taken his expertise to the highest level of that sport, the Tour de France.

I recently came across Allen's work on the web; he is a coach for Floyd Landis, the American who is currently leading the Tour de France (Allen and Floyd pictured above). During the race this year, Allen is writing a column for bicycling magazine online. Here is a link to his article from yesterday describing the day in, day out routine of the Tour.

Friends

We've had a great time over the last few days with friends. One took me golfing here, we played hold 'em with some more, another made us a meal fit for a king (grilled shrimp as an appetizer anyone?!?). And we've been blessed along the way by caring conversations and wonderful hospitality. Right now we're poolside at the in-laws through the rest of the week. Good times...

Zidane (part 3)

The story is trickling out about the jist of what Materazzi said to Zidane in order to provoke the head-butt, and it's pretty ugly.

So I'm feeling some empathy for ol' Zizou, which makes this all the sweeter. Thanks TR!

"Walt Disney went to a community college"

The Greater Fresno Area is littered with community colleges, in downtown Fresno, Clovis, Reedley, Visalia, Lemoore, Coalinga, etc. Here's an article entitled "Five Myths about Community Colleges."

Le Tour

The Tour de France starts in earnest tomorrow morning, with the first big mountain stage as well as a mountaintop finish. To celebrate I'm going to rock the exercise bike in the gym. Check out the Stage 11 profile here.

Poop in the Bath

I know in the Dixon household that I'm not supposed to use the word hate, but I'm going to make an exception tonight. I HATE poop in the bath. There is absolutely nothing redemptive about the experience (for the record, tonight it was Lucy). It's like sin in your soul, or conflict in your relationships, or unfiled papers sitting next to your file cabinet. Horrible. Off to do the clean up.

The Why Question

As a follow up to the previous post, we may be getting an answer to the question of why Zidane head-butted Materazzi in the WC Final. There are plenty of options flying around: Materazzi grabbed Zidane's jersey, Materazzi twisted Zidane's nipple, Materazzi insulted Zidane's mother, etc.

But the most serious allegation is that Materazzi called Zidane a "dirty terrorist." Materazzi denies this, but given that Zidane is actually Algerian by birth, it has raised the possibility that Zidane was racially slurred. If so, I wish that instead of the head butt, we were talking about a well-placed boot further south on Materazzi's anatomy.

Racism is, tragically, alive and well in global, but particularly European, soccer. The worst recent story that I am aware of is French/Arsenal striker Thierry Henry being called a "negro de mierda" by the Spanish national team coach last year (it must have been gratifying for Henry and others when France beat Spain this year at the WC...). Henry has also talked about being called a "monkey" in other European stadiums during his career. All of this has prompted Henry and others to speak out. Here's the site.

You can never advocate Zidane's actions on the pitch. You can't do stuff like that, particularly when you are arguably the best player of your generation and it's your last game (and the WC final to boot). But please oh please can we do something about racism, not just in the lofty heights of international soccer, but, as a humanity, in the lowest depths of our hearts as well?

"The blue angel turned into a devil"

Last match of your career.
World Cup final.
Chance to win deep in overtime.
Glorious career.
Captain of your team.
Revered by your country.

Why Zinedine?!? Why?

Of two minds...

The World Cup Final is today (11am on ABC). We are headed to first service here shortly so that we can get back for it.

I'm of two minds. I think Italy will win the game since their defense has been absolutely airtight (they've only given up 1 goal, and that was an own goal). However, I want France to win on Zidane's last game.

Prediction: Italy 2, France 1 in O.T.

Praying for Isa

As I've spent time in the blog-o-rama, it's been amazing to me to see news of all types spread. In this cyber-village, we have the capacity to care for each other, and sometimes even folks we've never met, as news travels from blog to blog.

Scott McLane, a.k.a. Spanglish Gringo, is a Staff buddy of ours, he went to my High School and he lives and serves in inner city L.A. A few months ago he and his wife Vero adopted a little girl named Isabel. Recently they found out the hard news that Isabel has some amount of brain damage, either from the late stages of pregnancy or during birth. The great news is that there is no threat to Isabel's life or for future brain damage, and that it is possible that her brain can be "retrained" to compensate for the missing and damaged portions. Still, Scott and Vero need encouragement, strength and hope as they process this news and look to the future.

Scott's letter about his beautiful daughter is here. Please join us in praying for the McLanes!

Fixing leaky plumbing

Home improvement madness around here today. Hence, the words of the day:

Angle Stop
Teflon Tape
Faucet Supply Line
1/2" F.I.P.
Pipe Wrench

Ah, the joys of home ownership...

Book Plug

One of InterVarsity's values is "ethnic reconciliation and justice." As I have been with IV, as a student and staff, multiculturalism, racial reconciliation and the like have been an ever-growing part of my discipleship, and I am grateful for it!

But on occasion someone asks me: "why is multiculturalism important? Isn't it just a PC thing?!?" My answer usually goes something like this: "God created the varied cultures we have, and each one sees him uniquely. No one culture corners the market on God, so we need other cultures in order to see God in his fullness."

That's a true statement, but honestly at times I have struggled, if pressed, to give a solid example about how that exactly works. God's Global Mosaic, by Paul-Gordon Chandler, has helped me think through multiculturalism in some concrete ways, and I recommend it, especially for those interested in the multicultural discussion.

The subtitle of the book is: "what we can learn from Christians from around the world." The "we" there are Western Christians, since the book takes you on a tour of 6 non-Western cultural groups from around the world. At each stop Chandler, who seemingly has lived everywhere, describes how a particular cultural distinctive demonstrates an aspect of who God is and how he works, as well as what our response as followers of Jesus should be. Here's the synopsis:

Eastern Europe: deep reverance for God resulting in a response of worship
Middle East: perseverance in their faith and resulting discipline
Latin America: celebration and rejoicing
India: Jesus as a teacher and corresponding respect for his instruction
Africa: freedom in Christ, together with passion for seeing others freed
East Asia: value in the surprises of God and a resulting enlarged view of him

To quote a former Staff named Alison Siewart in The Worship Team Handbook: "from a biblical perspective cultures are relative. That is, no one culture possesses all knowledge of God, and no one culture reflects God perfectly. Every culture contains partial understanding of God, and every culture contains sin...no one culture, then, adequately celebrates God's glory. Our worship awaits the perfecting force of Jesus' kingdom coming in fullness."

I'm glad that IV is compelled by the multicultural value and hope that our little group in Fresno experiences, at least in part, Jesus' kingdom coming in fullness...

53.75 hot dogs (and buns) in 12 minutes

This man, Kobayashi, did the deed. 6 years straight! Here's the story. Too bad, I was pulling for Eric "Badlands" Booker.

Go figure

I heard on the radio yesterday that a penny costs 1.2 cents per penny to make. That's perplexing.

So is this.

Garage Sales

We had a garage sale this morning. It was a 7am start, and we were effectively done by 9. The big ticket items included a desk, old lawnmower, miscellaneous furniture and a nut tree (don't ask). These Clovis garage salers are rabid.

I was watching this morning and it seems there are a few, well, "moves" in the poetic dance that is garage saling. Here you go:

1. The swoop. This is the move where you swing in close with the car looking for either something specific, or to judge the overall quality of the sale. What follows is either a stop or a polite head nod and then a smoothe acceleration away. For us today I would guess that 90% of the swoops today resulted in the person taking off. Maybe the nut tree wasn't enough to keep them...

2. Haggling. It seems like any good garage saler is able to talk you down. This one older woman today had our sister Jill in fits with her haggling. Jill was quoted as saying: "Um, that's 20 bucks, or 25, whatever you want." God bless Jill, but she was overmatched. These hagglers are relentless, cunning and hard-nosed.

3. Early rising. Garage salers on on the prowl early. We were putting up signs for our 7am start at 6:30, and there were folks in our driveway before we were even finished with the signs, and we live in a double cul-de-sac! I'm pretty convinced that these folks have a "Spider sense" for the sales. As in a garage door goes up on a Saturday before 8am and they get a twitch on the right side of their face...

4. Trucks. Evidently to be a serious garage saler, you need some storage. I mean we saw people driving by with what looked like the local goodwill store in their truckbeds. In fact, let's make it official: if you want to compete with the big boys, nothing less than an F450 willl do...

5. The twofer. I like this move. I suppose it's a subset of haggling. In the twofer, instead of talking down one item, you lump it in with another one and get a double discount. It goes like this: "how about $5 for the lamp AND the nut tree?" Before you know it, as a seller you've effectively given away the nut tree and lost 5 bucks on the lamp...

What a morning. It almost made up for England losing in PKs. By the way, for those of you scoring at home, the nut tree was about the last thing to be sold, I think for a dollar. Another satisfied customer.

Doping Sucks

OK, quick question...when did this blog turn into a sports report?!?

I'm a cycling guy, and every summer there is this thing called the Tour de France. Love it. How sad this year to have drugs be the story as the Tour gets set to roll this weekend. Here's the latest from ESPN, but I think it's just the tip of the iceberg. As in baseball and other sports, it seems like some athletes will do whatever it takes to gain a competitive advantage.

Hmm, maybe this could apply in other arenas as well? For instance, what if I withdrew then froze my own blood, and then received a transfusion just before a large group talk? Imagine the power, the stamina, the amazing illustrations!

Clearly, I need more sleep...

A universal T R U T H

A clean office makes for a happy Staff worker.

Diablo Grande

Golf "season" for me officially starts tomorrow morning when I drag myself out of bed at 5am for a 2 hour drive to Diablo Grande Golf Course up in Patterson. Thus begins the long march to the season ending Golf Odyssey championship in December.

Tomorrow's Schedule:
5am Departure
6am Starbucks in Los Banos
7am On the tee at the Driving Range
7:30am Tee time #1
12pm Lunch
1pm Tee time #2
5:30pm Where's that air conditioned clubhouse?!?

And, for the record, tomorrow is supposed to reach 104 in Patterson with a high pollen count.

Can't wait...

People just need to STOP dancing...

Who am I to lecture anyone about dancing, right?

For the sake of the kids, a big, fat, PLEASE stop dancing goes out to:

Pat Riley
Connie Chung

Another Lucy moment

Lucy likes to come into Daddy's office to, well, to cause total havoc. It's not uncommon for me to unable to find the stapler, or the return address stamp, or the pack of thank you notes, only to find them under her bed, or in the toychest, or in Mommy's closet...you get the picture.

Recently her thing has been to pull books off the shelf and pretend to read them. Very sweet. But I've noticed that one book has her attention and has seemingly become the favorite. So now I proudly share with the world the first book in Lucy Dixon's 2 Year Old Book Club...drumroll please...

The Gospel in Black and White: Theological Resources for Racial Reconciliation

I know, I know, sounds heady for a 2 year old. But believe me she's ready to move past Goodnight Moon, Barney and the Berenstain Bears.

In related news, and keeping with IVP theme, Josh's bedside table is home to this book. And, we are now just days away from starting Grace with this one.

Why we hate soccer...

Bummer for the U.S. to lose today to Ghana. Even worse bummer to hear radio hosts and others absolutely tee off on the "stupid" sport of soccer.

Soccer is called the "world's game." It's truly the most popular sport on the planet. So why not here in the U.S.? Why the vitriol from Jim Rome this morning? Three thoughts on why America hates soccer:

1. We have a fascination with scoring that soccer doesn't provide. We love NBA teams scoring over 100 points, hockey elimates the red line to increase scoring and God bless Payton Manning because he and his Colts can run up the score. We are a "J" sports culture (for your Myers-Briggs fans) and the bottom line is what counts. Soccer is a game of subtlety, and the end result isn't always the main attraction. Often tightly played 1-1 draws are the most compelling games in soccer; to a Raiders fan, that's the equivalent of a horrendous 7-3 loss at home.

2. We're not patient enough for soccer. NBA games are 48 minutes in four 12 minute quarters; soccer halves are 45 minutes plus stoppage time. In the NBA you score multiple times a minute; in soccer your'e fortunate if you score multiple times an hour. In America, we have short attention spans and we like a quick fix (given this, I can't figure why baseball is so popular in our sports culture). Soccer doesnt' fit us because it is an intricate game that takes time.

3. We are addicted to a brand of superstar that soccer does not provide. We like our stars absolutely dominant and head and shoulders above the rest. England's David Beckham is a global superstar, no doubt, but he is not a superstar by our definition. He doesn't lead his team in scoring. He's one of 11 (Lebron is one of 5). He touches the ball far less per minute than, say, Kobe, Jaromir Jagr or Reggie Bush. And he can't single-handedly impose his will upon a game (though of course he can strongly influence both his team AND the game). We like the transcendant and matchless star, and soccer doesn't allow that.

So here's the thing...soccer is the most important and popular sport in the vast majority of countries in the world. If we are one of the few who fail to see it that way, the question might not be what's wrong with soccer, but what's wrong with us...

Something else to do in meetings...

Don't tell my Staff about this one...

Thanks BG!

We'll try to enjoy tomorrow then...

When I see a forecast like this, I'm reminded of my friend Rob's words when he and I pulled up in the UHaul that fateful moving day back in Summer 2004 (and as you read this don't forget the think British accent):

"My God, Dixon, you've moved into an oven."

Father's Day = Sports on TV

Let me be your tour guide to a Sunday full of amazing sports on TV. Clear off the couch, here I come!

6am Croatia vs. Japan (ABC)
8:30am Brazil vs. Australia (ABC)
9:30am U.S. Open golf (NBC)--on until 4pm
10am NASCAR from Michigan (FOX)
11:30am France vs. Korea (ABC)
5pm Red Sox vs. Braves (ESPN)
6pm NBA Finals: Game 5 of Miami vs. Dallas (ABC)

My only problem is figuring out what to do between, oh 8 and 8:30 and then 4 and 5...

They say a tie is like kissing your sister...

...but props to the U.S. Soccer team for a well-earned tie today vs. powerhouse Italy. Down from 11 to 9 players, and down one man to Italy, they scrapped and clawed and outlasted their way to a draw.

And with U.S. yet to score a goal themselves in this World Cup, look for a blowout win vs. Ghana on Thursday morning. I'm calling 4-1.

Yet Another "Lucy Moment"

The scene: it's after baths in the Dixon house, and the water is draining out the tub. Amy is with Josh in the kids room getting him into his PJs. Rob is in the office. Already dressed in her PJs for the night, Lucy roams the halls.

Small splash
Amy: Rob, what was that?
Rob: Nothin. Probably just Lucy throwing something in the bath.
Rob (yelling): Lucy, come here!
More splashing
Amy: Rob, I think Lucy is in the bath
Rob: No way
Splashing and giggling
Rob: Umm...
Amy gets up and goes into the bathroom
Amy: LUCY!!!

Here's the result:

Sports and Politics

I suppose in an ideal world sports would function independent of politics. In such a place, major world sporting events would happen irregardless of and unaffected by the current or historic geopolitical reality. Sort of a sports version of the United Nations, where countries of the world put aside whatever would divide in the name of good and wholesome competition.

Unfortuately, the above really is just a dream, an overly simplistic dream. The world is too complex and the realities of colonialism, war and historic oppression--current and former--are too strong to avoid, even by and in the arena of sport.

We have some family history with this. In 1980, Jimmy Carter opted to pull the U.S. out of the Moscow Olympics in the name of protest for the 1979 Soviet invastion of Afghanistan. 45 to 50 other countries followed our lead and that resulted in some 80 countries missing the Moscow games that year. One casualty from Carter's decision was my Dad's cousin Fred Dixon, a top-ranked decathlete. Fred had competed in Montreal in 1976 but because of the boycott was denied a shot at redemption in 1980 (he had finished 23rd in the '76 decathlon after tripping over a hurdle at the beginning of day 2). And then of course boycotts begat boycotts, as the Soviets subsequently chose out of the 1984 games in Los Angeles.

Flash forward to this summer's World Cup. Angola vs. Portugal was an interesting match because Angola was under Portuguese rule until 1975 (and because a previous match had to be abandoned due to too many Angolan red cards after their players took runs at the Portuguese players). Germany vs. Poland was interesting because these neighboring countries still struggle with echoes of WW2 atrocities. And then there's the unfortunate reality for the United States team: SWAT teams around 24/7, traveling in unmarked buses, heightened security when they arrive in town, curfews and other protective measures (same is true for Iran, England and maybe another country or two affected by the War in Iraq).

So let us hope that if sports and politics are going to be inextricably intertwined, that sports serves to bring healing to the other. Will the simple and traditional act of respect of Angolan and Portuguese players exchanging sweaty jerseys at the end of the match override years of colonial oppression? Probably not, but perhaps it's a start.

Ronald-he didn't just do that!

Brazil v. Croatia today was the best match of the tournament thusfar. A friend sent me a link for some sweet video of Brazilian playmaker Ronaldinho. Check it out here.

World Cup Fever

I totally have World Cup on the brain. Always the trooper, Josh has been gracious about letting me watch even though it means less MarioKart time for him.

But it was miserable to watch the U.S. get drubbed by the Czech Republic yesterday. Even so, it's been fun to see the headlines generated: "Reality Czech," "Czech Mate," and "Czech Threat."

But here's one I haven't seen...How about "Cup Czech"?!?

Notable upcoming games I'll be watching:
Brazil/Croatia today at noon
Spain/Ukraine tomorrow at 6am
Germany/Poland tomorrow at noon
England/T and T Thursday at 9am

Good for the ego anyway...

We're on the road somewhere this weekend and the sun is situated such that it's shining directly in Josh's eyes, prompting the following question:

"Daddy, can you move the sun, please?"

Sometimes it's tough to live up to the hype...

Road Warrior

I've been traveling like a regular Mad Max lately (minus the bizarre apocalyptic future, Tina Turner, the Thunderdome and '75 Impalas outfitted with gun turrets). Here's the recap:

Spent a weekend in Sacramento with Amy's family. Bonus side trip up to Redding for Daniel and Amy's wedding.

Spent 4 daze in Hilmar, CA at a meeting. If you've been under some rock and are unaware of where Hilmar is...well, you're not alone. So let me enlighten.

Spent this past weekend with the fam out on the Central Coast celebrating Adam and Tina's wedding. We stayed in San Simeon, ate in Cambria and played raquetball in SLO.

We're home now for a good stretch, which is nice since my homemade go-cart helicopter needs some serious rest...

Something I'm still trying to digest...

My friend Tina sent me this link about a huge issue of injustice surrounding the upcoming World Cup. I'm going to pray for protection and salvation for these women every time the game I'm watching kicks off.

Christian (yeah) Right

Good news! 76 year old Pat Robertson bench-pressed 2000 pounds. Here's the story on MSNBC.com.

Props to Pat! Only another 500 lbs and you've caught me!

3 Random Questions

1. I was watching a commercial for tourism to Germany today during the U.S. Soccer telecast. One quote went something like "come see our beautiful stadiums." Question: wouldn't it be stadia?

2. We went to church this morning and they did a Memorial Day shindig. And honestly, it is always difficult for me to go to church on Memorial Day. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate my long list of relatives who have served sacrificially (including my grandmother) and I recognize we must both honor our servicefolk and pray for the state. But, question: is it hard for anyone else to worship the Lord with the backdrop of a maybe 50 foot tall U.S. flag and with "God Bless the U.S.A." in the worship set?

3. With a 4 year old who asks questions like mad, a 1.5 year old whose whole goal is to cause as much havoc as possible and with a 6 week old who yesterday blew out her diaper so hard that we had to throw away the outfit, question: how does one go about buying more patience?

Everest

I've long been fascinated by stories of the folks hardy enough (and foolish enough) to climb Mt. Everest. The best story of course is the first proved one, Sir Edmund Hillary's climb in 1953 (that's Hillary pictured along with Tenzing Norgay). Honorable mention: Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer.

But it must be climbing season right now on the mountain and Everest is in the news. First, there's the story of climbers pursuing the summit even though it took them past a dying man. Next, there's the tale of Lincoln Hall, left for dead on the mountain but then discovered alive, barely. And finally, there's this.

Camp and the Single Dad

Josh and I got back last night from a great half week at Campus by the Sea on Catalina Island. Here are the top 10 highlights from the time:

10. Watching the sailboats go by on the water.
9. Throwing rocks. Lots of throwing rocks. Hundreds of rocks. All thrown. A lot.
8. The Camp playground complete with a boat for Captain Josh.
7. Diet: cheesy Ritz crackers, cranberry juice...and that's about it.
6. Didn't know it was possible for a 4 year old to go 4 days without a poop...
5. Josh to my Staff Terron as we took the Camp boat over to Avalon: "It's OK Terron, you don't have to be scared."
4. Picture this: during worship, following a slow, meditative song and right before a prayer of confession and dedication, Josh yelling "Daddy, are there more songs?" Now picture 150 heads swiveling in our direction...
3. Ping pong. Sort of.
2. His new Leapster with the Nemo game.
1. Josh asking a lot about Jesus and why everybody was studying the Bible.

NBA Report

I love this picture. Here's why:

The guy dunking the junk out of the ball is Michael Finley. This dunk was a key moment in the game last night as the Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks in game 6 of their best of 7 series. Game 7 back in San Antonio tomorrow (Sunday)

Finley plays for the Spurs right now, but he used to play for the Mavs. And look over Finley's left shoulder; the guy in blue is Dallas owner Mark Cuban. Finley: "you're gonna release me? Take that." Look at his face!

Look for San Antonio to take game 7, then to knock off the Suns in 6 in the Western Conference Finals, then to beat the Heat in 5 to win back to back NBA titles. Then look out for the Lakers (with KG) in '07...

4 things I'm concerned about

1. Lucy in a room, alone, with breakables.
2. The Dodger bullpen
3. This immigration controversy
4. The weather Sunday as Josh and I float across to Catalina.

The Beautiful Game

What a great Champions League final today with Spanish side Barcelona knocking off the Brits of Arsenal 2-1 in Paris.

And the best thing? As great a game as this one was, we've got 64 World Cup games coming up in, ah, as I write, 22 days, 11 hours, 17 minutes and 9 seconds.

For a sweet World Cup 06 wall chart, click here.

Open letter to Britney Spears

You got the same State of California sponsored carseat literature and lecture that the rest of us did.

You have more money than the rest of us put together and you can afford the best cars, seats, nannies, high chairs, Drs, au pairs, not to mention a signed first edition of "What to Expect the First Year."

Your baby is the best thing you have going for you right now (outside of KFed's blossoming rap career) and he deserves/needs your full attention and care.

You've just said that you've replaced Kabbalah as your religion du jour with the provocative statement: "my baby is my religion."

And, sorry, but I really think you could use some positive PR right now.

So please, for the love of God, stop doing this.

It's working...

This is the scene: I'm cleaning up lunch in the kitchen. Our 20 month old Lucy is in her high chair and the TV is on in the background. All of a sudden, Lucy starts screaming, "it's guy-go, it's guy-go."

I look on the screen and see that dumb, what, frog? Lizard? Gecko? Salamander? Gila Monster?!? However much Geico is shelling out in advertising, it seems to be worth it.

Ledolatry?

I was watching the NBA playoffs the other day and was really struck by the new Nike Lebron James commercial and ad campain: We are all witnesses.

The language sounds familiar, yes?!? We are all witnesses. It's positively biblical. But it of course makes sense. Lebron James (and Kobe, Shaq, AI and the rest) are in some senses our new cultural deities. In fact, in Lebron's case, he's been called "the chosen one" since high school. If you're interested, head over the the Nike site and watch the we are all witnesses video. Early on you get a shot of a church building, as if the divine connection needs more cementing.

But it's got me wondering...doesn't the Bible have something to say about this kind of thing?!?

Clean streets

Good news! The rubbish piles are gone. Josh and Lucy were out to watch this morning at 7ish as the tractors and trucks came by to scoop it up. Goodbye for now "scrap scavengers!"

In related news...vehicle traffic in our neighborhood has decreased 70% through the morning commute.

You want gender brokenness?

Here you go.

Update

I gotta confess that watching the goings-on out on the curb right now is more exciting than watching the Lakers get annihilated, so indulge me this one final update on the "leftover looting" going on in my neighborhood.

I was guessing today that someone would take my screen door. I don't know much about screen door repair, but it sure seemed like it was somehow fixable. Evidently not. I went out to my pile earlier and the door was all bent in two and ripped wide open. Why? My dad ventured the "car hypothesis;" namely, someone backed up into the door and torqued it. Myself, I'm opting to believe that someone did the deed with intentionality, and the only question is motivation. I have two possiblities:

1. Rage. Someone took the time to stop to investigate the door, and finding it worse than it looked at first pass, the old sin nature kicked in and they went mental on my door. Enraged, this person got in touch with their inner Hulk and went ballistic right in front of my house!

2. Altruism. More of a kinder, gentler option. The person saw the door, stopped, got out to investigate, saw that it was unrepairable and then jacked the door...as a favor to other would-be door takers. The thinking: "it's obviously not usable; if I really mess it up I'll save others of my 'basura brethren' the time and energy of getting out to investigate." It's like a community of "dump detectors." I wonder if they have a website?!?

Altruism or rage, with the Lakers down 24 and under 4 to go, I'm off to the bench to watch someone take apart my subtlely dysfunctional hose winder...

Redistributed

The "garbage grabbers" were more aggressive than I thought, and the mirror was gone this morning when I checked at 9am. So now we'll start the clock on that ripped screen door, or maybe the plastic shelves for the Rubbermaid tool shed...

A Bizarre Redistribution

Two times a year in our city there is this "community clean-up day." For the two weeks leading up to the day, you can unload basically any and all household rubbish you want at your curb, and then these city dudes come by with a tractor or three and pick it all up. What I love about it is no trips to the dump. What bugs me about it are the piles of garbage that accumulate and leave you longing for the magic day to arrive every time you drive into your 'hood.

But you want to know the weirdest, most surreal part of the process? There are these scavengers who drive the city and troll for goodies. We'll call them "crap collectors." And it is a continual thing. Today, for instance, I saw this husband and wife team in a huge truck, a F9000 or something, pulling a freakin' trailer and collecting...stuff. TVs, high chairs, mattresses, bikes, microwaves...it's this wild redistribution system. Cast off your crap and it becomes another's treasure. And then they probably put it out next time for someone else to find.

Today I made my pile (above). In there is an old bathroom mirror. I put it out at 4:40pm this afternoon. I bet it's gone in 24 hours...I'll keep you posted.

Overheard at Large Group tonight

We had Encounter (our weekly large group Fellowship meeting) tonight outdoors in a place called "the Pit." The Pit is a stage outside the student union, and so therefore it's open to the public. Because of that, we had a number of passersby stop and take in the show. One of them sat down on the stairs, took out a cigarette and lit it, at which point Joshua said:

"Daddy, Daddy, why does she have a candle in her mouth?"

Indeed.

The Value of Naivete

Josh and I were at Home Depot today with one of our Staff buddies, Matthew. Walking past the doorbells, Matthew pushed one, considered the noise it made, then said, "I hate that sound."

No big deal, right? Not to my 4 year old. No way. After a brief pause, Josh mumbled, "We don't say that word...'hate.'" In that moment, two people were indicted by Josh's remark.

Gracious Matthew chuckled once, then apologized to Josh: "Josh, you're right. I shouldn't say that word. I'm sorry." (for the record, Josh had moved on and was looking at the light switches...)

For me, I watched that interaction and then was suddenly mortified. Here's why: I realized that my 4 year old son is a better truth teller than I am. So it got me thinking...why is it that saying hard things to others, even if it is clear that they need to hear them, is so difficult? In Josh's case, he doesn't know any better, and so maybe that's it. When we get old enough to "know better" we start to worry about how they'll feel, or how we'll feel, or what if we're wrong, or what damage might this conversation do long term. In fact, maybe being simple, or naive, is not always a bad thing! Even further, perhaps that is way Jesus talks so about having a faith "like a child."

Morals of the story? Listen to your kids. Keep it simple. Try to speak into the lives of others. And never, ever, say "hate" around our house!

(Not the right) Women in the News

What a bummer today to know that this story was getting way more airtime, facetime and printspace than this one.

What a game 4...

Brilliant.

Ah, you must be one of the "Mediterranean Dixons..."

The things you read when you have a newborn...

Our pediatrics group puts out this pamphlet entitled "Characteristics of Newborns." It's a riveting read. You get the skinny on anything from the molding of the head to ear pits to a sucking callus to ephithelial pearls. But my favorite was the long second toe. And I quote:

"The second toe is longer than the great toe as a result of heredity in some ethnic groups, especially those that orginated around the Mediterranean Sea."

So how random is that? How do you explain such a thing?!? Is it God just having a jolly old time? Above is Gracie's first footprint, and, you tell me, does that look like a Scottish second toe to you?!? Vive el Mediterraneo!

Turning 34...

Tomorrow is my birthday. I plan to celebrate by taking a nap! Here's an April 24 birthday quiz. Thanks to our friends at wikipedia for the knowledge.

1. Which of the following celebrities does NOT have April 24 as a birthday?
a. Barbra Streisand
b. Cedric the Entertainer
c. Brad Pitt
d. Kelly Clarkson

2. True/False: April 24th is Republic Day in The Gambia

3. Which of the following did not happen on an April 24th in history?
a. The end of World War 2 in the Pacific
b. The Greeks entered Troy using the Trojan Horse
c. The first IBM PC is introduced
d. Pope Benedict XVI is inaugurated in Rome

4. True/False: April 24th is Memorial Day on the Isle of Man.

5. Which of the following random events doesn't belong on April 24?
a. The world's largest lollipop is made in Denmark in 1994
b. In 1990, Gruinard Island, in Scotland, is declared anthrax free after 48 years of
quarantine
c. The first Chinese satellite is launched, in 1970.
d. Doyle Brunson wins his first World Series of Poker, in 1976.

Answers: 1. c, 2. true, 3. a, 4. false, 5. d

R. Dixon, Tree Hugger?

Happy Earth Day everyone! To celebrate, I dropped 58 bones on gas for the minivan at Vons. When it comes to the environment, or environmentalism, or environmentalists, I've never been the first one in line. Here's been my take: I care about the environment, but don't know what to do to help (other than recycle like crazy), and the enviromental voice in the public square kinda freaks me out and leaves me skeptical.

Which is why I surprised myself the other day by picking up the Vanity Fair environmental issue. So part of it I'm sure was the interesting cover (above), but part of it is I am feeling the need to interact more with the plight of the environment. Why? Let me quote Julia Roberts from the V.F. article: "People think, Well, I won't be here when the planet implodes, but maybe your grandchildren will, or your great-grandchildren, or your great-great-grandchildren. And if you could give them one more day on earth, wouldn't you do that for them?"

Yeah, I think I would. So I'm gonna pay attention. One post from my Staff colleague James caught my eye this week linking, through the grid of injustice, the corrupt multinational business machine with the degredation of the environment.

I was at this baseball game when a rousing round of redneck horseshoes broke out...

...and I wasn't quite sure how to feel. What a terrific night tonight! I managed to pry Joshua away from the Mario Kart for long enough to take him out to a real, live baseball game. Fresno has a Triple A team called the Fresno Grizzlies. The sad thing is that the Griz are the primary farm team for the hated S.F. Giants, but the great thing is that they regularly play the Las Vegas 51s, the primary farm team for the beloved Los Angeles Dodgers. To sweeten the proverbial pot tonight, rehabbing Dodger first baseman Nomar Garciaparra was in town and batting leadoff. A baseball game, my kid with me, some overpriced popcorn and a soda...could it get any better?!?

Yes it could. Because for some reason, the Griz front office decided that tonight was, drumroll please, Agriculture Night at Grizzly Stadium. Now I know that minor league clubs need to do the crazy promotion thing (for instance the picture above is the L.V. 51s mascot); it's a key way to get the community involved and therefore rears in the seats. But I'm convinced tonight featured three of the worst promotions in recorded baseball history:

1. The iced t-shirt contest sponsored by Hooters. No kidding. Three grown men race for a barrel of frozen t-shirts, pick one out and then try to open it up. I was shocked that Hooters would stoop so low...

2. The lasso the mascot contest. Josh liked this one actually. These would-be cowpokes chase the Grizzly mascot (named Parker) onto the field trying to lasso him down and then hog-tie him. Give the dude some props, they failed to get him down.

3. My personal favorite, however, was the redneck horseshoe competition. Put a stake in the ground near the thirdbase line, get some women ready to compete, hand them some toilet seats...and then watch them play horseshoes. Now this is Fresno; do we really need to perpetuate the stereotypes?

For those of you scoring at home, the 51s ended up beating the Griz in 10 innings, 9-8. Unfortunately, by the time the game ended, we'd already been home for an hour (Josh hit the wall in the top of the 6th, but like a champ he made it through a whole box of popcorn and a KitKat first).

Nicknames

I love nicknames. So did Jesus.

I'm working on one for Baby Grace. Here are my top 10 rejected nicknames:

10. Graceland
9. Gracie Bracie (shout out to Uncle Ha)
8. The Amazing Grace (2 other rejected TV themed names: Cold Grace, Grace Anatomy)
7. Gorgeous Grace (props to Jenny Smells)
6. Graceoff (hockey playoffs coming soon)
5. Getting Biblical, you've got Grace Upon Grace (or GUG as an acronym)
4. Gracecraft, Graceport, Gracestation, Graceflight...
3. Grace Picante Sauce?
2. Grace Ventura: Pet Detective (other rejected movie themed names: Grace Camp, Rat Grace)
1. The Great Grace Coaster!

Ah, perhaps we'll just stick with Gracie...

Status Report

No one's crying (at the moment), the Dodgers are losing (I think this game might be terminal), the sun finally set, it's 8:11pm...and I am going to bed.

Good night now!

What a way to spend an hour!

I'm stoked to say that Gracie came home on Saturday!The blood incompatability thing ended up not having teeth. We're having so much fun as a family that we've all just decided not to sleep. Here's a timeline of Gracie's birthday last Wednesay night (the 12th):

3pm first contraction (at Trader Joes!), then only 4 in the next 2 hours
6:35 leave for hospital, get there and get registered
7:05 get set up in birthing room
7:20 first exam, 6cm dilation, call the Dr. to come over
7:40 huge contraction, water breaks, as the nurse is trying to place an IV in Amy
7:41 realize that that means baby is coming and there will be NO EPIDURAL (for either Amy or, more importantly, for ROB); we're going all natural!!!
7:50 baby is really coming now, 10cm dilation, Dr. still on her way
7:57 realize that we are about to deliver a baby without a Dr. present in the delivery room (can you do that?)
7:59 nurses do a great job delivering Gracie
8:15 Dr. arrives. Turns out she paused to wolf down dinner, thinking she had some time...

Couple of more details: Grace weighed in at 8lbs, 15oz. Big girl. We never got a height. Dark hair and lots of it. She's eating like a champ and sleeps well during the day at least. Loves the Dodgers and Lakers and thinks soccer is cool.

Lastly, some have asked about the significance of her name:

• Grace: we think grace is a good thing and we like the name
• Patricia: Amy's moms name; she's a great person
• Dixon: the child is stuck with that one!

"Girl Power"

I think Lebron James is amazing. When he gets the ball in the open court and does one of his ferocious tomahawk dunks, what a display of power and strength!

Lance Armstrong is another one. First, what emotional strength to survive cancer, and next his physical power is of course incredible. I love the image of him looking back over his shoulder at a rival and then upping the pedal strokes and pulling away...up one of the steepest roads in Europe. What emotional and physical power.

Then there are guys who are powerful in other ways. Billy Graham has been a pillar of spiritual strength for like 4 decades. All these guys are all unquestionably amazing and powerful. But with all due respect to Lebron, Lance, Billy and the rest, my wife kicks all their asses. Because if you want to talk about power, talk first about a woman giving birth to a child.

Want physical power? Push 9 pounds through your pelvis.

Want emotional strength? Get all sweaty and naked and know in advance that you are about to endure more pain than anyone was ever intended to endure (remember, increased birth pain is the result of sin; guys, we only gotta deal with more yardwork).

Want spiritual fortitude? Walk through 10 months depending on God to provide for this baby in your belly, then go into the delivery room praying through the trauma that is to come.

I have a bias, but clearly my wife is the strongest person in the world. I so admire her strength and power. And, yes, I was thinking about all of that today when I was whining my way through mowing the backyard...

Here she is!

We're happy to announce Grace(ie) Patricia Dixon! More later...

Overheard at a Baskin Robbins tonight...

A Dad and his four hungry and eager daughters come into the ice cream store. Immediately the girls run up to the cases and start screaming about their orders.

Clerk to Dad: "Hello Sir, how are you doing tonight?"

Dad to Clerk: (brief pause) "I'm getting ready to spend a lot of money..."

True. By the way, still no baby. Hopefully a scoop of 'cream will help the process...

Telling the truth

In general, I like George Bush and especially his seemingly significant faith. I have regarded him as an honest leader during his tenure (even if I have had some questions about the folks around him). But this business with the leak and Scooter Libby and all that has me wondering tonight...what exactly happened Mr. President?

STILL waiting (part 2)

Top 10 things we've done while we've been waiting:

10. Cleaned out the front closet (needed to happen since we moved in)
9. Saw Failure to Launch (Amy: Matthew M. is "McDreamy," Rob: so-so movie)
8. Done every errand we could imagine...twice.
7. Enjoyed having Amy's fam in town
6. Got sick (Rob)
5. Got sick of Rob being sick (Amy)
4. Saw Spike Lee's Inside Man (Both: VERY GOOD)
3. Cleaned out garage (Rob: "all is right with the world")
2. Watched the Masters (Amy: "Is it over yet?")
1. Sat around and watched Amy's belly grow...

Still another sign that the apocalypse is upon us

On our TV screens. In our magazines. On the billboards. On our pop-up ads. Fine.

But out in the middle of the desert?!? Somebody draw a line somewhere!!!

Why we need campus ministers...

Folks called to what I'm called to sadly have some job security. I've been following this Duke Lacrosse fiasco (if you need a current report, go here), and I think it illustrates a few realities about the (post)modern campus situation. Keep your support for campus ministry coming! Here are a few of my takes:

1. The party culture is alive and well. I forget this sometimes, but this is certainly true here in Fresno as well. This year in fact we had a fraternity party go awry and a student was found dead in the morning. How truly tragic is it that students have to endure the constant temptations of drugs, binge drinking and all the other things that come along with party culture?!? Join me in mourning the heinous choices students are presented with each and every weekend!

2. On campus sport is king. Certainly this is true in ACC country where Duke is. But isn't it true here in Fresno as well? On campus athletes get the glory and the breaks/free passes. Good for the Duke administration to (finally?) take steps to make this situation right. By the way, for a close up description of the kingship of athletics on campus, wade through "I Am Charlotte Simmons" by Tom Wolfe (book review here).

3. Even among students there are class issues. You have a house full of the priveleged (Duke students pay good coin to go there, and even if they don't, someone does in the form of scholarships, grants, etc.). Then you have these strippers. A horrific detail to this story is that evidently at least one of them is also a student, from some nearby college. Now I don't have a clue what exactly motivates her to work as a stripper, but is it possible (likely?) that she's trying to make ends meet and stay in school? Look at the juxtaposition in terms of issues of class (I'm not even at the race stuff yet, and don't get me started talking about the gender issues involved!): upper class men, the elite, our future congressmen and business leaders, sitting around, getting drunk and feasting on the poor female stripper from down the hill. How we need Jesus and his liberating power on campus!

4. It's a problem when the University becomes a bubble. There's a reason we Staff work hard to help our students integrate faith and society. In Fresno, we are always taking/sending students downtown. At Cal Poly, it was all about missions trips in the summer. Why? Because it's hazardous when students stay in their on-campus bubble, particularly at a place like Duke. I've actually been on campus there before. Picture beautiful, stately buildings (picture above), trees everywhere, the reek of "proper academia." Durham, the city surrounding Duke, is not like that. For one thing, the city is 45% African American (in fact, according to its wikipedia article, Durham's African American population has a strong and vibrant history--the city hosted MLK on multiple occasions). Apparently, one of the things this scandal has done has been to expose a disconnect between the campus and the city, including and especially latent (or not so latent) racial and ethnic tensions. Bottom line: a University education should never be a 4 (or more) year vacation from "life." Instead, it should be an education presented firmly in the context of "life," ideally of course "life" interpreted through the eyes of Jesus.

Diva Behavior?

Lucy tried on like 6 pairs of shoes today before she settled on the right ones...and then after five minutes she changed her mind...and then she did it again...and again.

Heaven help us. She's only 18 months!

My first love

We watch a lot of sports in our house. I'm an addict. The other day Josh asked me which one was my favorite, which is a good question, 'cause I like a lot them. Basketball? Golf? Hockey? Football? Soccer?

The answer is baseball. That's right, baseball. Why? Because it was my "first favorite sport," my first love. What a joy to follow the Dodgers, to go the game every year on my birthday, to go asleep listening to Vin Scully under my pillow through a little speaker and to fervently collect the baseball cards of my heroes. Baseball.

Which is why today is a great day. Opening day baseball all day long (sadly my Dodgers are losing 4-0 right now in the 3rd, but they're gonna be good this year). And the thought of a long summer of Dodger baseball? Awesome. Thank the Lord we get Vin Scully in Fresno.

By the way, is there any better time of the year for sports?!? Basketball and hockey play-offs. Football and World Cup Soccer on the horizon. Baseball starting. The Masters this weekend. It's like those sports heaven commercials on ESPN. Good times...

Now what are we gonna do?

You might have heard about the recent report "finding" that prayer for the sick not only has no healing value, but that it might actually hurt a patient's chances of survival and recovery. Here's the LA Times story on the report.

Well that's a bummer; I guess I'll cut out the prayer...

Actually, it brings to mind a passage or two. You know, the ones about humans being unable to fully know, understand, or conclude from a scientific study anything about God. God has a will and mind of his own, and what he will do he will do (including respond to the heartfelt petitions of his people...or not). Here's a nice line from Paul in Romans 11, verse 33 and on:

Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable his judgments,
and his paths beyond tracing out!
"Who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been his counselor?"
"Who has ever given to God,
that God should repay him?"
For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Indeed.

As if flying wasn't scary enough...

Here's the headline from msnbc.com:

Ireland-bound airliner makes a Derry error

Ryanair jet lands at wrong airport

Evidently a pilot messed up and landed not at his intended airport, but at a military base a few miles away. Full story here, and, yes, I know that header is freakin' cheeseball.

My question is...at what point did he realize the problem?!?

STILL waiting...

It's weird how you can convince yourself of something. Since the beginning of this pregnancy, the due date has been April 6, and not even the mighty mid-pregnancy ultrasound could change it. "No," the techie said, "I see no reason to change the due date. April 6th it is." And so that's what's stayed on the chart.

But somewhere along the line, we convinced ourselves that this baby would be early and it's made the wating tough. After all, most second, third and onward babies are early. And, shoot, Lucy, our second, did indeed fit that pattern. She was a few days early. So shouldn't this third one be as well?!?

Another day goes by and so we wait. Maybe tomorrow!