Dog food. Dog Chow. IAMS. Kibble. Natural Choice. You can buy a 50lb bag of dog food for Spot. You can even buy organic dog mush for your refined friend. Shelly, Patrick, and I were getting ready to lead worship at a camp, and of course, the topic of dog food came up. Does your dog really know the difference between doggy mush and the rest of your pork chops?

Then, we really started thinking. Back in the day (like the day, like when they roamed in packs), what did dogs eat? They were no Lowes Foods. OR PETCO. There was this:

That’s right. White fang. Now, I know White Fang was a wolf and not a dog, but I think (deep down) he wanted to be a dog. MAN’S BEST FRIEND. Why is a dog man’s best friend? Friends are loyal. They protect you. They look out for your best interests. Like, say for example, when you’re about to spend $50 on a 50lb bag of dog food. Scruffy is there for you, telling you that dog food is just a marketing scam.

AND we’ve all bought it. Organic dog food? Seriously?

So, here’s to giving man’s best friend what is really good for him…

Confession: I would like to “have written” a 2009 Year in Review.  The “writing” is the hard part.  You know, when people say, “I want to get into shape”, or “I want to learn to play the guitar” what they really mean is they want to “have gotten in shape” or “have learned to play guitar”.  Something about the Devil is inside of details, or the details are the devil, or the devil wears prada.  Looking at a recap of twelve months, I’m worried that I’ll burn out in the middle of April.

In general, 2009 was a great year. God allowed me to be a part of some pretty incredible things (conferences, concerts, CD projects), plus I had twitter before everyone else, allowing me to speak condescendingly to everyone who wasn’t on the bandwagonship.  And I updated my blog at least once a month, which is more than Daniel Renstrom, James Childs, Patrick Downing, Ben Salmon, and Shelly Eve can say.  It also means that syndication should come soon.  So, getting on with it…

January…

began as every January did. Resolutions and gym attendance. Fusion09 conference planning (a conference that joins worship & technology).

February…

Aside from waking up on Groundhog Day for years and years (allowing me to become a doctor and hone my piano skills), I was able to join Daniel, James, Patrick, and Shelly (who all fail to update their blogs regularly) and lead some music at the SEBTS 20/20 Conference. Shelly and I also began producing Jess Lyndon Ray & the Rag Tag Army which would release in August of 09.  This took me into…

March…

where I got to do a lot of what I love.  I lead worship at Fort Caswell, played drums at the Cove in Asheville, and managed a visit to 12 Bones and Sugar Mommas.  SMB played shows at UNC-P as well as our first event at Liberty University where the retired jersey of Jerry Falwell smiled down on us.  I also played in my 3098th wedding.

April…

took me to Charlotte to play in my 3099th wedding, and to run my first 10k.  This just in: a 10k is easier than a 1/2 marathon, but more on that later.  April also brought the Convoy of Hope which helped thousands of Raleigh families by providing some of their most basic needs such as food, shots, and help with a resume. SMB was one of the final bands to rock the joint…in the heat…I still can’t remember where the sunscreen was.  A few other events for the NC Convention took SMB into…

May…

where SMB played another FCA weekend event.  Patrick and I tasted the worlds hottest hot sauce, got stomach transplants, and were still on stage in time for the first set.  In other news, windpants are still popular amongst FCA leaders.  I spent the rest of May tracking/editing the JLR project, finalizing plans for the Fusion09 Conference, and starting work on  Providence Baptist’s Christmas concert production.  Little did I know, Christmas in May was really just point me to Christmas in…

June…

Daniel, James, Patrick, Ben, and myself all drove to Springfield, MO to get our record on with Jeremy Larson.  We also got our coffee drink on, finishing about 70 cups of coffee in 10 days.  We began a process that would later become “On the Incarnation“.  After we got back from recording, we finished writing the songs.  Don’t worry, we think it worked out…

July…

SMB played several shows and conferences.  At a particular church’s 100 year anniversary we found all things baptist: a large bible (open to Isaiah), stained glass, sound board up in the balcony, and pictures of people from the 1800s.  More editing of the JLR project took me into…

August…

I played my 3099th wedding, attending the WorshipGod09 Conference, picked up several friends from the airport, and began training for another 1/2 marathon.  My jeep still didn’t have Air Conditioning and summers in Raleigh were  a constant 100% humidity.

September…

brought a photo shoot with Rebecca Mill.  We managed to find a mostly empty shipping dock, and cutouts of llamas. SMB played a few shows and I made my annual pilgrimage to Windy Gap (where Daniel and I went running…and he complained the entire time).  Also in September, we reunited the family band to play at my parents PCA church.  We rocked the house with THIS song, which concluded with a thunderous applause!

No seriously, that’s the song. It took months for me to grow my hair and beard out like that.  I gave September the prize of “my favorite month, but realized that I spoke too soon.  I retracted that statement and called…

October…

my favorite month.  The fair, the weather change, the leaves changing colors.  I get to wear jackets and drink coffee because it’s cold, not because it’s “cool”.  SMB got to play one of our favorite shows with one of our favorite bands.  Good times were had by all.  Also, “On the Incarnation” released on iTunes and rocketed all the way to #7 on the Christian Best Sellers.

November…

November brought more weddings, more SMB shows, and more gigs with Daniel.  We hit several places in Charlotte and Raleigh and got to meet some pretty amazing people.  November was a crazy busy month for Christmas Production planning.  I also ran my second 1/2 marathon which still happens to be 13.1 miles.  My 4000th wedding, a Turkey, and a nap, took me into…

December…

when I turned 29. (I’ve started writing my memoirs) The Christmas Production that I worked for months on finally happened.  SMB played several more shows (which involved even more awesome people).  Most importantly, December included a trip to Charlotte for the annual Renstrom Ping-Ping Tournament, which I won in decisive fashion (beating Daniel 21-5…with my left hand).

2009 was an excellent year! I can’t wait to see what takes place in 2010.  Hopefully more 1/2 marathons, more smb shows, more drb shows, more blogging (at least more than daniel, shelly, patrick, and james), having memoirs to write about, and definitely another ping-pong victory. Hope everyone is off to a great 2010!

Seriously. I can’t be the only one…

What else fits in this category?

day 1:

day 2:

day 3:

The headache ended yesterday, so I think I’m in the clear.  Plus, now I have amazing basketball skills.

I’ve been thinking about this “question of the day” for some time now.  In my parent’s house, we had a clock in every room.  Sometimes we had (I think they still do have) several clocks in each room.  Wall clocks. Alarm clocks. Bathroom clocks. Grandfather clocks. Oven clocks. Microwave clocks. Kitchen radio clocks. Watches. Cell phones.  These things are everywhere.  The thing is…all the clocks were set to different times.  If you were late in one room, problem solved, just walk into the next room where the clock is 10 minutes slow.

So, what I don’t understand is why people set their clocks fast on purpose.  I took a small survey of people last week and most of them set their clocks fast by 5-10 minutes.  Why?!  I never can understand why people create an alternate reality to live in.  If you know your clock is set fast, how does that help you get ready and be on time?  (Not to mention how confusing it is for you when your digital clock or phone shows one time and your programmed clock shows another!)  Why not just set your clock to the real time and learn to live in reality?

Ok, so here’s the question of the day:  Do you set your clock fast? If so, how much?  Ready, Go.

Thunderheart dvd

Short post today, but it comes with a question.  I’m compiling a mental list of all the things that we seem to buy for “other” people.  These are things that you buy at the grocery store, gas station, target, or walmart if you have all day to wait in line…

I think I have the top 2 so far, but I could use your help.  I think, in no particular order, we buy:

• gum
• advil

for the “others” in our lives.  Would you agree? What else do we buy at the store, give to everyone else, or ask everyone else for because we never seem to have it with us?

Go.