B's Wax- minding my own

Ummmm

2009-01-02T08:20:00.000-08:00

So I guess I should let both of you know that I have moved my blog to here.
Figured I would get the word out asap.

Happy New Year.

B

Change Management

2008-07-15T15:34:00.000-07:00

Scene - Bryan sitting in a Change Management Certification Course
Setting - Pleasant Valley Ranch, just outside Denver... Conference Room with No A/C
Senses - Like getting blasted with a firehose of information

So yeah, I am becoming aa certified Change Manager- I should have done this a long time ago... I mean think about this outside the corporate world and in the Church... All we are about is CHANGE... Life Change.

Most of you would really be proud of me... For the most part I am behaving myself and reigning it in... Although I have tampered with a couple of group activities so far.

Change Management... I think I am getting it.

Chapter 6

2008-06-27T04:15:00.000-07:00

Moving day is here... Some of you have asked me to keep track of our progress as we transition our lives from Athens, GA to Houston, TX- so I thought I would rev up the 'ole blog again... I will try to keep track of some thoughts and moments along the way, and share the journey.

I will also document with pics from my trusty cell phone... just to give some context or share some moments along the way. Right now I am sitting outside Compass Church waiting on the Jeep to get serviced before we hit the road, stealing bandwidth, checking email, and making sure that, yes, all the computers inside that are powered up and wasting electricity are entirely unprotected to anyone with a network login (Paul- add that to the list!).

Mixed emotions here... we have loved Athens and her people, but our hearts have left for Houston and we are trying to catch up... The past few days have been hard as we say goodbye to dear friends, (the "see you in heaven" line kills 'em every time), eating out almost every meal, watching the Bulldogs lose the championship game, and packing up our home (entirely un-looked at, nowhere near sold). But we are filled with anticipation to re-connect with best friends, begin the journey with new friends, eat out almost every meal, deciding between the Rice Owls or the Houston Cougars... I'll take C- none of the above?

Macy is doing well... In some ways she thinks that "moving to Houston" is like a vacation and has mentioned "when we get back to our house in Athens"... So we really dont know if she gets it completely yet... She is excited and very happy- we know that because she is singing almost constantly right now... Making up songs about Strawberry Shortcake being her little sister and such.

Kelly is as organized as ever- the packers got to the house yesterday (sadly, without Brett Farve) and laughed as Kelly showed them additional labels that go on the boxes - ROSE- in big letters on pink and yellow background... She is living in fear of my underwear ending up at someone else's place... Not me, I just hope that there is a big boy who lives there that appreciates ventilated drawers.

As for me, lets just say this... its about 70 degrees, lower humidity, with a cool breeze blowing... I am just trying to get as much of this as possible... Oh and I have been watching season 2 Office episodes instead of reading... Hey Jesus, Happy Birthday- sorry your party is lame.

So, I will go home, try to stay out of the moving guys' way and load up the truck and roll on back to Texas.

Goodbye pulled pork, hello sliced brisket.

Back to Texas.

Back...

2008-05-12T18:42:00.000-07:00

After almost 2 months of not blogging, you might hope that I would return with something important to share. You were wrong. Click to view more!

Rose, Bryan Rose

Have a great week.

Trash Can Diaries...

2008-03-24T15:40:00.000-07:00

I think I could have napped all evening, but at some point it is time to get up and be a responsible adult. Meaning of course some snacking on Triscuits and Hummus and blogging.

Definitely took it easy today- ensured by the fact that I popped a NyQuil at 11pm last night... As I shook the fog off to finally get up at 9am, I did something completely counter-cultural to who I am: I threw away a book. Yes a real, hard bound book (no dust jacket of course) in the trash can. The story was horrible, the characters as thin as the nap film on my teeth right now, and the ending so obvious, it took a whole 3 chapters to see it coming. So I threw it away. Because it was really the only way I wasn't going to read it.

A thought... what else needs to be thrown away? How much of what we do do we do simply because it is there to do? Reading a crappy book. Watching stupid TV shows. Studying the Bible. Just kidding. But seriously what is there hindering other areas of my productivity and will I be counter-cultural enough to throw it away?

Deaf for Cymbals

2008-03-23T19:10:00.000-07:00

Wow... What a week! Here is a recap...
Sunday 3/16 - Services Sunday morning... 5k race Sunday afternoon (yes- I ran/participated in a 5K... 38:11 -3rd place in my division... Should have classified by weight- I would have beat everyone!) Set deconstruction and design that night. Bedtime 12am.
Monday 3/17 - Usual Monday junk... Meetings, meetings and meetings... My legs were really sore for some reason... Set construction... Bedtime 1am
Tuesday 3/18 - Running hard starting at 8am for creative- got inspired sometime after 11 monday night for the flow of the Easter service, so I spilled that during Creative meeting... Off to the races for Sunday... Big night for set construction - much pizza consumed... Bedtime 1am
Wednesday 3/19 - working on Easter stuff all day getting the house ready for guests... took the night off & let "the young guns" do Wednesday night without me... better without me I think... hung out with the 3 ladies in my life: Kelly, Macy, & My Mom... ate my favorite meal (roast, brown creole rice, broccoli, & rolls)... Finished 700-odd page Tom Clancy book, read until 2am.
Thursday 3/20 - wore out the plotter - photoshopped until I had mouse blisters... great crew working on finishing the set... ate lots more pizza... finally put the big sign in place about 12am... went home at 2am... bedtime - 3am
Friday 3/21 - more plotting and finishing stuff for Sunday... Drove mom to ATL to meet Dad- hung out at IKEA... back in Athens and worked on Welcome Packet and message slides until 2am... Bedtime (after watching LOST- 3:30am)

Enough is enough. It was a busy week and I am glad to be back to blogging... Oh yeah today was Easter - How easy is it to be doing the work of Christ and not stop to let Christ be doing work in me. Humbling thought that all of that listed above (except for the 5K!!!!) sounds a lot like clanging cymbals right now... Deaf For Cymbals

Today

2008-02-25T20:34:00.001-08:00

Some 1 word highlights from today:
-Cough
-Flagpole
-Pulled-pork (2 words, but fun to say)
-Pipe
-Drape
-Kite

In A Pit With a Lion

2008-02-23T18:38:00.000-08:00

So I got a chance to meet (and confess to... and come off a little stalker-ish I'm sure) Mark Batterson at the Church Planters conference last week... During the first breakout he sat about 5 feet from me and was hammering away on his laptop as Steven Furtick "shucked the corn" for about 50 minutes... Afterward, I thanked Batterson for being a learner and not just sitting in some curtained off VIP area eating apples while waiting to speak and then catch a flight out of town... I also apologized for ever comparing him to another writer who took a certain obscure Old Testament verse and created a whole "bless me indeed" empire... You see, after actually beginning to read "In A Pit..." there is so much breadth and width to this book... Well, instead of fluffing on, I have decided to blog my findings:
Chapter 5 - Guaranteed Uncertainty
"...security scares lion chasers more than uncertainty." What a prayer! God, let me never choose the safe over the unknown.
...reminded of one of the most inspirational lines in the whole Bible... "Perhaps the Lord will act on our behalf." - Jonathan had some huge confidences!
"...what if, instead of spending all of our energy making plans for God, we spent that energy seeking God?" GULP. I am great at overplanning and an underseeking!
"...your explanations are more important that your experiences." Uncertainty is defined by perspective which is determined by my operating theology: do I really believe that God is who He says He is?
"The greatest hazard to your spiritual health is thinking that your past is haphazard or that your future is left up to chance alone." Again, operating theology question.

The Rundown 02.23

2008-02-23T18:09:00.000-08:00

Sitting here watching the Memphis-Tennessee game... With a flurry of 3 pointers to start the game on both sides of the court... This one will definitely keep me up- to bad I am preaching tomorrow... Not speaking, but prea-ch-ing. Its all about Impacting People- no way to just "talk" about that.

Other highlights from today:
-"Movie Morning" with waffles since "Movie Night" fizzled.
-Memphis just HIT ANOTHER 3-pointer... of their first 20 points, 18 are from 3's!
-I had zero motivation (thanks to Nyquil & waffles) to study... but struck out for downtown anyway... on the way I found my motivation at Mrs. Hemphill's house... Stopped in for quick hello and was physically reminded of our MANDATE to be impacting people!
-Hung at Jimmy Johns & Starbucks- things gelled with the message pretty well.
-Did some personal devotional time... Great verse: 1 Kings 1:6 jumped off the page when it comes to child-rearing- our kid needs accountability for her actions!
-Cut the dormant lawn... cleaned up the weeds and just shaped it up- Spring is coming and the yard awaits!
-Parked downtown with an expired meter and dodged a ticket AGAIN... The streak continues- my truck must be a lot like Sonny's mom's airplane.

One more while I am at it...

2008-02-22T19:12:00.001-08:00

Quick question... How UGLY are the Washington Wizards uniforms? (movie night is over)

Handing Off Well

2008-02-22T18:57:00.000-08:00

So, this is by no means original or even fresh, but it was a great reminder as Wesley and I sat in my office and talked about how to hand something off well. I wonder if he realized that I did the total opposite in handing off THE 706 to him? Oh well... As long as I can learn and do better next time, right? Anyhow - thoughts on Handing off Well.

As seen on the shot from by BWB (Big White Board)... Handing off is a process of 5 steps...
-I do
-I Do, You Watch
-We Do
-You Do, I Watch
-You Do

Each of the last 4 steps would have an intentional conversation before and after. The before conversation outlines the intent for said step, and sets the stage for the after conversation, which offers the opportunity to review. This review conversation would be especially critical in the 2nd step as it allows the handee to review the hander... giving permission, in a sense, for the hander to then review the handee after step 4.

The image also shows some thoughts of the length of each step slower (s) or longer (l)... Obviously, the ultimate length of each step depends on the people involved and task at hand.

Like I said, nothing original, but a great reminder.

The Day That Was Friday

2008-02-22T18:43:00.000-08:00

Highlights from today:
-Getting a ton of stuff done in the office on my day off... thats the payback from a great conference on Monday and Tuesday- still planning on breaking that down more...
-Officially retiring "Big Bry The Cool Prize Guy" after the MBES kickoff- 500 kids eating out of the palm of my hand... Not really. Although the screams when I revealed the iPod were deafening.
-Getting some study time in f0r Sunday... Liking the direction. The big question is what are you trying to fill your jar with? (Hint makes more sense in John 4 context)
-Getting a mile & a half in at the Y and then hanging with Macy in the pool... the hardest part of ramping up for the A&B5K is mental.. As I run, I cannot stop thinking of stopping.
-Stevie B's pizza and feeling like I might vomit at any moment.
-Using some of my "Big Bry" bootie (the money, not my hindquarters) to purchase "A Bug's Life" and then a family movie night.
-Blogging during family movie night, because I have missed half the movie with a bad case of the Stevie B's... I am sure I will see it again... and again and again and again.

Quick question...

2008-02-20T13:56:00.000-08:00

How many of you have read one of my blogs and looked at my header picture and laughed at my unibrow?

Officially Not As Funny

2008-02-20T13:44:00.000-08:00

The worst case scenario for me has just happened... My MUCH FUNNIER wife has begun to blog... Which of course means that everyone will now know that she is really the funnier of the two- I am just bigger, louder, and missing that "should I really say that" filter.

That said, big things are happening on the inside of me... I guess there is less going on without all the soda & sugar... And I have actually begun to work out again, so yeah... Anyway... I am formulating some stuff, really going through some much needed shaping... So, I look forward to sharing that in the near future.

I will say this- I just attended one of the most formative conferences ever... ever. I am still processing and reeling and, Isaiah said it best: RUINED.

Since Kelly is now up and running, I guess I shouldn't try to be funny anymore- she has always been my writer anyhow.

Mad props to my beautiful, witty, and poignant wife for joining the fray.

THE FAST... Is over

2008-01-29T20:10:00.000-08:00

Its over because I went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch today with Chase and Wesley... I fed the beast inside a Chick-Fil-A sandwich and some of those scrumpdilly waffle fries- a true moment of weakness. But I did go without sweet tea, so I am still off the crystal!

So yeah, wanted to follow up on the post from last night regarding Hatch Show Print... Hatch produces iconic band posters on historic hand set letter presses one color at a time... I really dont know why it was so compelling- maybe the history or the walls covered in old posters or maybe even the fact that I spent so many hours sitting inside the "Red Hot & Blue" takeout area looking at the old blues posters on the wall, and it made me love BBQ all over again. Whatever- Hatch is cool.

Stay creative.

THE FAST... Day 22

2008-01-28T21:04:00.000-08:00

Yeah- the fast officially ended yesterday with communion... But since Kelly & I were driving back from Nashville - it actually ended about the same time, but instead of grape juice- it was BBQ sauce from Marys, and the bread was still bread, but there was some pork in there too.... The reason I am calling today day 22 is that we are trying to build better eating into a habit... No chips with my burrito at lunch (actually would have rather eaten tofu than the chicken) and we had patties made with black-eyed peas, peppers, and a tomato relish - by far the best tasting meatless dinner yet. Still no soda, no coffee, or sweet tea... Did eat some french fries saturday night in Nashville at dinner.

Highlights from Nash-vegas:
-Walking around in a pretty cool city... actually could see us living there one day.
-Hatch Show Print... Coolest, most creatively stimulating place that I have ever stumbled upon.
-The Foo Fighters in concert- just a great show. Some obligatory rock star cussing, but a really really good show... Inspiring to me in one of the facets of my day job. Pictures below.

Nashville was a great place to break the fast- great ribs and steak for the food portion... great rock music for the music portion. What will stick? Only time will tell.

The Stats for today:
Breakfast: skipped it - we were out of strawberries, and I am an all or nothing guy.
Lunch: Skinny Burrito from, where else, Barberitos- should have gotten tofu, didnt need the chees.
Snack: peanuts
Dinner: Basmati Rice and Black-eyed pea patties... yummy and satisfying (who am I???)

Weight: 283 - see Outback, Mary's, and River City Brewing Co.
Mood: Anxious to stick with healthy eating and healthy praying

The FAST... Day 19

2008-01-25T07:45:00.000-08:00

Only 2 days left! I have been lax in my blogging, no excuses, just haven't been getting around to it. I am sitting at my parent's dining room table right now- we are hanging out here for a couple of days... Kel and I are going to see the Foo Fighters in concert tomorrow night in Nashville, so we came over to H-patch a little bit early to hang with the fam and chill a little.

Fast is going good... My dad says he wants to try this eating plan, seeing as how the benefits to me have been pretty, well, beneficial... We made smoothies in their food processor this morning- they were more like gritties than smoothies... As a reward for doing so well on the fast, we are going to Lowes today to buy a new blender that specializes in smoothies- since ours is starting to smell like burning every time we use it.

Here is a funny fast story... Our transmission had some "issues" last week and we took it to "George" to fix it right outside of Danielsville, the seat of Madison County, Ga. Now D-ville is a fairly small rural town- but more and more people are moving to the area... So like most small towns it has a Hardees, Subway came to town years ago, and most recently Chicken Express. Now I loved Chicken Express in Red Oak- one of my favorite places. Anyway Chase and I went up to D-Ville on Tuesday to get the Jeep, we figured we would eat at this new cafe that opened up- being on this fast, we went in planning on some soup and salad... Well, it was awesome asking the girl at the counter what the soup of the day was - and when the response was chili, it was even more awesome to ask if it had meat in it and then say we were looking for a more vegetarian menu... As we tried to inconspicuously slide back out the door, every eye in the whole place was fixed on us "city boys" looking to eat like rabbits. Long story short, Danielsville has no "fast-friendly" options, so we ended up at Chicken Express... Eating corn on the cob and mashed potatoes- which was even MORE fun to order... "No ma'm... No chicken, No Biscuits, No Sweet Tea... Just some corn and potatoes..."

Some other highlights of the past few days:
-Eating Barberitos burritos like every other day... Their tofu is def. the best, and when you mix fresh jalapenos, grilled onions, and salsa- mmmm I could eat another one right now.
-Getting to edit the skydiving video that we shot on Monday... lets just say the Top Gun soundtrack fit perfectly.
-Getting to fly the plane on Monday... it really was a rush, and as we drove the 4 or so hours to Huntsville last night, I couldn't help but wonder how much faster it would have been in a plane.
-Playing basketball Tuesday night and having more energy than ever.
-Driving until midnight without my trusty road-trip physician- Dr. Pepper.

The Stats for yesterday:
Breakfast: Smoothie - getting to be a pro now!
Lunch: Potato with Veggie Chili from McAlisters
Dinner: Brown Rice, Kidney Beans, & Rotel Tomatoes

Weight: 280
Mood: looking forward to Sunday night steak!

Picture coming soon!

You think you are detailed...

2008-01-19T14:09:00.000-08:00

Rainy, icy day here in the ATH... Been culling our tax information for 2007, household expenses and such... Sort of had a mini-review of what we have done/where we have been... Then I started cruising some favorite blogs and found this dudes review of his year... AMAZING.

A Discovery...

2008-01-19T05:10:00.000-08:00

... I used to drive a Discovery.... Got 700 bucks for that thing about this time last year.I digress...

Many of you know (meaning 3 out of the 4 of you who actually read this) I have been on a journey of self-discovery for about the last 16 months... This journey actually led me to the woods for a solo encounter with a bear at one point... At any rate, I have been pretty perplexed by all the things I find myself doing, all of the things I find myself able to do, and all of the things I find myself wanting to do... which ultimately begs the bigger question people always ask me: "What do you want to do?" Like there actually could be "a thing" that sits atop, or identifies itself as being more me...

Frustrating is the least descriptive word that could be used here... But I have found a concept in the last few weeks that brings hope... It is the idea of the Generalist (in juxtaposition to a Specialist)... Wiktionary difines a generalist as: a person with a broad general knowledge, especially one with more than superficial knowledge in several areas and the ability to combine ideas from diverse fields.

Here is a great description of the generalist/specialist relationship from a blog I have recently started reading - The Creative Generalist

So, there you have it, just as I described at the beginning - A Discovery... some inspiration, some hope, some mental ease that I might not have to have "that 1 thing" I ultimately want to do...

THE FAST... Day 12

2008-01-18T20:39:00.000-08:00

Felt much better today... still participating in the fast. Highlights from the day:

-Finished the rough editing on the latest "Dangerous Jim" video... Lets just say that the most appropriate background song is a George Clinton & Parliment Funkadelic diddy
-Appeared as "Big-Bry the Cool-Prize Guy" to about 1000 elementary school students... what I will do for some money to fix a transmission!
-Bought 6 pounds of frozen strawberries and a gallon of peanuts... good times ahead this weekend...
-Blood Pressure check- you know its hard to pass one and not check: 125/74.. pretty good, considering everything I am eating right now has extra salt...
-Ate corn on the cob, brocolli, and red-pepper potato slices for dinner
-Watched High School Musical 2 with my "musical star in training"- MJ... much to Kel's dismay
-Was again blown away by how much you can learn by seeing someone's iPod playlist... I am amazed- snowy music = awesome

So yeah, we were out running around in the truck- like a good ole redneck family... Papa driving the F150, baby girl in her carseat ridin' shotgun, and momma right where she belongs on the hump in the middle... Kelly's Jeep cannot get fixed fast enough... Anyway- I really really just wanted to get some Chick-Fil-A... It was definitely feeling like a fast today.

The Stats:
Breakfast- what else.. smoothie.
Lunch- late, after prostituting myself for the education of the masses, tofu burrito
Snack- Peanuts- in the shell- FYI- Kelly does not like the steakhouse "shells-on-the-floor" look
Dinner-Red, Brown, Yellow, & Green stuff

Weight: 283 (20 pounds!)
Mood: Just happy to be back from the brink of sinus explosion

THE FAST... Days 10 & 11

2008-01-17T18:33:00.000-08:00

Have been sick... Crawled out of my recliner to say hi, and yes, I am still sticking with it... Something exploded inside of my head, and has caused other smaller explosions elsewhere...
Not feeling good.

Eating like a rabbit... Feeling like a sloth....

Hopefully will feel better tomorrow.

THE FAST... Day 9

2008-01-15T19:01:00.000-08:00

Well... the "fast" continues today... I have a confession to make though, Chase and I went to Jason's Deli, got the soup and salad- I totally forgot that Red Beans & Rice has sausage in it... Sooooo a few bites of meat passed my lips today- well not really meat, more like meat products... I figured that since it wasn't really meat, it didn't count.

Today was a fairly straightforward day, kind of falling into a regular rhythm of this whole eating thing... I have progressed into thinking about where I go from here... I am really feeling the healthiest mentally, physically, and spiritually than I have in a long time... I really think its taking the extra time with God, and tuning out a lot of distractions that has made the difference... Oh yeah- not having a grease & caffeine fueled system probably has something to do with it too.

So I am thinking that fast food will not really be a part of my regular routine as it (shamefully) once was... It really scares me how badly I ate and how little I cared about it... It honestly scares me to think about falling back into those habits again.

So today was a good day, except for almost getting frostbitten toes trying to ice down my ankles after basketball practice.

The Stats:
Breakfast: Smoothie... what else (Blender update: still hanging in there)
Lunch: Jason's Deli Soup & Salad.... Red Beans and Rice faux pas
Snacks: Carrots, Peanuts, & more PHICKLES!!
Dinner: Banana on the way home from practice & baked potato w/ EVOO & Salt/Pepper

Weight: 286
Mood: Optimistically Cautious, or Cautiously Optimistic

PS- No picture on purpose- too lazy... Ankles hurting some... Maybe tomorrow

THE FAST... Day 8, with 5,6,7 recap

2008-01-14T18:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, yeah the title says it all.. I have not checked in for a while... That DOES NOT mean I have given up on fasting (again- I am really not fasting- more on that later) or on blogging... I decided to take Fridays & Saturdays off from blogging, and genuinely meant to check in last night, but after small group and taking the babysitter home, I was wiped- plus I had to squeeze in a couple of test viewings of A&E's new show Parking Wars... Yeah you got bumped for a reality show... Deal with it. Anyhow, if I seem kind of hostile, its because I just want to eat some meat... Maybe some cheese. Maybe some meat and cheese jammed together between seeded buns, flame broiled from Burger King...

Just kidding. Not really.

Yeah, I am surviving... I have been able to figure out how to adapt at the 4 different restaurants I have eaten at since this thing started... Kelly & I went out to eat with the Cockfields Friday night at Doc Cheys... I had General Chey's Tofu... It was the worst tofu experience, and I figured out that for me, tofu needs to be cut small, it can get gooey inside. We had Sunday lunch at Barberitos and I had the best killer burrito ever.... Black beans, grilled onions, sauteed tofu, fresh jalapenos, fresh cilantro, fresh salsa, and lime squeeze, all wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla- dang it was good! Kelly fixed a good meal tonight- flash back to Fort Myers at the Casa De Bricker: black beans over brown rice with fresh salsa... yum yum good.

Saturday's lunch had to be the lowest point of the journey so far for me... I was home alone while Kelly & Monkey were at a gymnastics birthday party and I was left to fend for myself... I decided to get creative and have some celery and peanut butter... Only the celery was old and limp and the peanut butter was all natural... Umm- that was the nastiest thing ever... I ended up eating a bunch of dried fruit and nuts.

So mentally & physically doing really well. Spiritually, doing even better than that- had some great time with God this morning, still hanging out in Psalms... Really inspired by Psalm 13- really spoke to where I feel right now. Even got inspired to write a hook for a worship song... you will never hear it- it will only exist in my little-black creative journal.

Anyhow- still trying to make time, okay not trying hard, to get to the gym, I am playing basketball though- so that kind of counts?

Thanks for the comments, even though some of you are just talking to each other.

THE STATS:
Breakfast: Sooper Smoothie, vanilla protein powder (I think I have burned our blender up)
Lunch: 5 Star Day - "Garden of Eatin'" veggie plate: side salad, mashed potatoes, & broccoli/rice soup
Snacks: Phickles & Almonds
Dinner: Black Beans over Brown Rice with Spicy Tomato Salsa

Weight: 288
Mood: Aggressive

THE FAST... Day 4

2008-01-10T18:20:00.000-08:00

01.10.08

Back in the saddle kids... So yeah today was a really good day- most everyone I talked to today had the same feelings, like a corner was turned... Today really felt like "The Fast" began to be more about a spiritual journey and less about an eating plan (although I am still trying to get used to being a herbivore)... I took some time this morning after Kelly & Macy left for school (Kelly is doing so well- brave every day) and read through some Psalms and did something I have heard about, but never for some reason ever done- paraphrasing a Psalm in my own words...Eugene Peterson is in no danger of losing his place as Christendom's #1 paraphraser that much is true, but it was very meaningful to me...

Some additional highlights from the day:
-Figuring out how to eat at Barberitos and still stick to the plan... If "dude" says it's brown rice, I believe him... seriously, I have had tofu for lunch 3 days in a row... I don't even know me anymore...
-Dehydrated apples
-Realizing that my wife may vote Democratic in the next election... Evidence from today: her "bring-your-own" Publix bags, insistence on recycling on behalf of the church, and buying energy saving light bulbs (which are oddly reminiscent of giant Arby's curly fries... very pale ones)
-Falling in love with my Logitech Harmony remote control all over again
-Blogging while watching a kick butt episode of Grey's Anatomy that almost made me cry... almost made me cry- my eyes are watering because its late, and I have a runny nose from sinuses

Day 4 stats:
Breakfast: Smoothie- don't think I'll ever get tired of those
Lunch: Skinny Burrito no cheese on whole wheat w/ tofu, fresh salsa, cilantro, black beans, and fresher jalapeno peppers...
Nibbles: Peanuts and Granny Smith Apple
Dinner: Cafe Rose served up edemame & brown rice, with broccoli & baked cinnamon apples

Weight: Still hovering at 295- depending on where I put my feet... either that or I fluxuate about 5 pounds either way just by breathing... Might need to invest in a new scale?
Mood: Upbeat and optimistic, at least until an old annoyance reared its ugly head... but I will survive

THE FAST... Day 3

2008-01-10T05:29:00.000-08:00

01.09.08
Yesterday was Wedensday (in case you were wondering) so by the time I go home, had a root vegetable for dinner, and watched Project Runway, I totally was fried... And forgot to check in with my fast log... Wow it only took 2 days for me to not blog! Yesterday was a carzy day, my first day as "not the Student pastor" in 6-1/2 years! That was an adjustment for sure. Ate lunch at The Grit again... those people ARE kind of dirty looking when they stand around out back of the kitchen and smoke... And they do seem kind of "better than you" on the inside, but when you are the cool place in town to eat, you could get that way.

I feel like I am still trying to tune out the desires and cravings for food/earthly and tuning in God... again, with a partial fast, my schedule is still relatively the same, so added time with God is still a very conscious choice... I will admit that lunch came and went and it was 2 o'clock before I remembered that I didn't have any "truck time."

Sorry for the short, make-up post this morning... Look for a full Day 4 recap with picture this evening!

Day 3 Stats:
Breakfast: Standard smoothie + honey and turbinado
Lunch: Golden Bowl (Tofu, Brown rice, & veggies)
After Lunch Kick: Power Punch Plus Smoothie King
706 Nibbles: Pineapple bites & Big 'Ole Granny Smith
Dinner: Baked Potato

Weight: 295
Mood: too busy to notice

THE FAST... Day 2

2008-01-08T17:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, calling this a fast seems pretty inacurate (kind of like me using the term big-boned...) I had a great day of food... But I am really tired.. I never really knew how much I have leaned on sugar and caffeine... I feel completely exhausted! Was less cranky... more just annoyed today.

Here is the thing though, over the last 48 hours, I have become more inwardly focused... (thats a wide-angle lens)... More contemplative, less outspoken (call Jenkins & LaHaye), and slower to pray outloud... weird, kindof. My prayer is that God would continue to develop this hunger for Him, and honesty with myself...

Very tired today.

Breakfast: Smoothie (OJ, Banana, Protein Powder, Frozen Strawberries)
Snack: Baby carrots, almonds
Lunch: Vegetable Tofu Rice Bowl from The Grit... Apocalyptic!
Dinner: Potatoes with Italian & Greek seasoning

Weight this am: 297
Mood: too tired to be in a mood.

THE FAST... Day 1

2008-01-07T19:29:00.000-08:00

Goal for this blog: - to be somewhat more reflective and transparent than on the DP.com site; also to keep some statistics of the journey, including intake and outake...
DAY 1- 01.07.08

Day started off different than I had planned, Kelly had a severe migraine (my B-MD diagnosis) and we were up most of the night, she started breathing heavy at about 2am... (I think, pretty sure I started snoring heavy about 1:30am)... Anyhow, I had very little time to do much of anything, as I got up showered quickly and had to get out the door and take MJ to LiveOak so that Kelly could have some recovery time at home... I was kind of down on myself for not spending more "God-time" this morning, until I realized that I really never eat breakfast- but that lunch is normally my focal eating time (I hope Fresh-Air BBQ can stay in business over the next 3 weeks!)... So I spent some time during the lunch hour with my Bible and Fast-Guide, about 20 minutes (twice as long as it usually takes me to eat)... To me, thats where the real heart of this fast will live for me - replacing what I remove with God... (1 steak = 1 hour, so what about Krystals... I could kill a sackful of God right now!)... It was good times reading out of Jeremiah (thought I would start off with some light reading!)

Staff meeting was awesome... we were all so tired and hungry, Jim could have gotten me to agree to most anything, (I think I did join the boyscouts)... Here is how out of it we were while our bodies adjusted... The power went out, and we sat there discussing the topic at hand in the dark... Chase and I looked at each other like- are we still sitting in the dark... It really got embarassing when Clint came over from next door...

Came home and broke the liquid-phase of the fast with a Strawberry-Banana (thanks for the spelling help Gwen Stefani!) smoothie... Played some hoops with the Mighty Men of Compass Basketball Team... we won. All in all it was a great day- I felt like I could have extended the liquid only fast for another day or so, but I opted (Kelly told me to) to follow the plan, and maybe do another liquid fast somewhere else along the way (or whey, Brandon)... Anyhow as I said to small group last night... Its really more about the spirit of the journey than the letter of the law (BTW- dont try that line on a cop... They have no concept of the "spirit of the journey")

BY THE NUMBERS
Breakfast: glass of OJ, 16 oz. of water, 3 whiffs of Macy's CocoPebbles Breath
Lunch: 32 oz. of water, 20 minutes with God
Dinner: Smoothie, 2 handfuls of almonds, & half a Granny-Smith
Post Game Meal: 1/2 Red Bell Pepper, some more almonds, baby carrots, OJ

Weight this morning: 303 (uhhhh... I was "preparing to fast" over the holidays)
Mood today: Cocky this moring, cranky this afternoon, creaky tonight (303 + hoops = pain)

Discernment...

2007-12-12T10:16:00.000-08:00

...New American Heritage Dictionary defines it as: "keenness of discrimination".
I have recently realized that discernment is stepping back, taking a breath, involving others, and remembering what is funny to me, might not be as funny to others... Here is the mailer that we didn't send to 45,000 people inviting them to our "Carols" themed Christmas Eve services.
Again, Discernment.

Deep thought for the week:

2007-11-11T20:18:00.000-08:00

"There's a time for Krumping, and this isn't it." -Nelson Muntz

A Great Day!

2007-11-11T18:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a great day! It started very early in the morning... Chase and I got up early to go and reserve a great spot to tailgate before the Georgia Auburn game... Then friends and family joined us to grill (and by grill I mean fill the entire street and adjacent tailgates with smoke... a smoker can grill, but it is still a smoker!)... We hung out and people watched then walked down to perhaps one of the coolest traditions in college football: the Dawgwalk... The players literraly walked between us into the stadium... Macy enjoyed slapping them on the back, patting some on the head, and even pulling a dread or two:

After the dawgwalk, we broke down the tailgate, threw it in the back of the truck and went home to watch the an amazing game: THE BLACKOUT on Goliath... Some great ziti, and a few hours later, we celebrated as the Bulldogs whooped-up on Auburn... And Mississippi State is bowl eligible... The day finished with a couple of chapters of Knowing God. A great day indeed!

The Month That Was October

2007-10-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

Since this is the 5th blog of the month, thought I would celebrate the month that was with the Top 5 Moments of October:

1. Has to 'bee' the un-bee-lievable Macy Jane. Kelly has amazing creativity, and MJ's costume this year takes the cake!

2. A great weekend getaway in Atlanta and some rock-star living with The Daylights!

3. Catalyst '07... Really, Rick Warren was amazing, really. Francis Chan is also on my radar!

4. Georgia whuppin' Florida, sparked by a brilliant motivational tactic for a team needing some fire... Oh yeah- watching it in HD on my freakin' amazing television (mad props to the dad-in-law here) had to be the key to victory.

5. Getting hooked on the Crackberry... Had to do some changing to our cell plan, and I took the plunge and have yet to look back... I also find myself not looking at the road while driving and emailing. Hit me up on the 'berry: brose at gmail dot com!

6. I know I said 5, but the guys in our Connection Group grew some sweet 'staches... can't leave that out of the October rundown!!

October was pretty sweet... looking forward to seeing God do some big stuff in November!

Bee-ing Macy Jane

2007-10-31T19:58:00.000-07:00

Well, Macy had lot of fun tonight... We got to connect with some of our neighbors, and it looks like we passed out about 70 or so "Treat the Whole Family" church invitations...

We also spent some time with the Cockfields and Arnolds trick-or-treating as a clan. Here are some pictures of perhaps the cutest bumblebee to ever buzz the face of the earth!

It's also really cool that we did not set out all of the candy when we left to go door-to-door... More for us. Still have to cull through MJ's candy as well... Not that we would pull out all of the good stuff ... I DO have a standing dibs call on all Twix mini's - a mouth-party in ever little bite!

The 'Stache Experiment

2007-10-30T20:55:00.000-07:00

Being in community means that when someone thinks it would be cool to grow mustaches, you take a couple weeks of your life, itch like crazy, and grow the 'stache. Here are the pics of the results! Enjoy, and don't fear the 'stache!

Timbaland

2007-10-23T12:04:00.000-07:00

So yeah- I think that I want to be Timbaland when I grow up... Here are two simple reasons why: amazing creativity and diverse collaborations.

Timbaland beats are worth the money you pay - his name virtually guarantees a hit or award, not to mention he's got skills.

Timbaland works with some of the most influential and cool people in pop, hip-hop, and well, music... that's got to be fun- I thrive on diversity.

Creativity & Diversity... my thought for the day.

My Monthly Check-In...

2007-10-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

...You probably don't even feel like reading this do you? I mean- I blog so infrequently some might say- "what's the point" - the point is I am trying to not set any preccedent or raise the expectation level too high... Or the point is I am kind-of busy and sort-of undisciplined. Yeah- thats the point.

So... checkin' in with some 'wax:

Right now Macy's Halloween... errrr Fall Festival... costume is up for grabs. Here are the options in play -Kelly is pulling for the "Flower" -Macy is currently pulling for "TV" -And I almost have her convinced she should be the "Potty" (think the cowboy on the horse costume -fake legs and all.) Please help us decide by commenting your vote.
Kelly and I stole away for 24 hours on Friday- it was great to get away and pretend we were rock stars... if only by the smoky smell permanently ingrained into our clothes... some sub-wax highlights:

Getting to see lots of police activity and arrests- the dull thwack of billy-club on frat-boy arm still rings in my head.
A new boutique hotel in downtown ATL with 24-hour valet and new-hotel special rates... evidently we stayed there before it opened... oh yeah-it was awesome walking through the shiekly appointed lobby with a big blue dufflebag.
We checked out a really cool coffee roaster that is about a lot more than coffee- I am really looking forward to our November study of Philippians.
Of course we hit the coolest store ever...
And last, but definitely not least getting to hang out with the coolest band ever (I wish my Wiki entry had stuck) and the best little sister/former youth kid ever (sadly no Matt/husband)! Eating at a diner at 3:00 am is so rock star.
***Addition- here are some pics with the kids... Sadly, no Sven. Sadly, no Sven.

I think that The Soup is my favorite show ever... this blog is taking forever because I keep having to look up and laugh- Joel McHale - my comedy man-crush.
HD is awesome- my Father-in-Law is da bomb!
I called out a lady at lunch today who was giving some serious attitude to the Zaxby's counter girl- she was being totally rude, demeaning, and actually threatened to grab the next plate of chicken that comes out if it wasn't hers. It was awesome - she was dressed in her Sunday best and marched back to her table and prayed with her kids- like hands clasp on the table in front of them and everything. So yeah - I HAD to say something - first I apologized to the counter girl and told her that not everybody who goes to church is that grumpy afterward - her reply was "yeah - church did her some good today..." - Then I waited until the Phari-SHE's kids were not around and told her I hope her day gets better after having such a rough time getting her chicken. She confirmed that- yes, she went to church and even "taught Sunday school" and evidently that means her chicken had better darn well be prompt. I was really close to asking if the lesson was on patience, grace, or "being my witnesses"... sigh... maybe she will find a mirror soon.
Lastly, some highlights from church today: "the twins", twister visuals, and an awkward video.

See you next month- maybe.

B

New Technology...

2007-09-03T15:27:00.000-07:00

So I had some birthday money, and some money from a few side projects that I have been working on and it was finally time to get the digital camera we have been wanting... I went with the Sony DSC-W80B because it had all the features I wanted, was on sale, met Kellys 2 requirements (purse-sized & a fast shutter speed), AND at Circuit City, came with a free 1Gig memory stick...

So far, so good.. but compared to taking still photos with our Canon Digital Video Camera, this thing is a dream... I got a chance to test it in some low-light situations last Friday night downtown, and I am liking what I am seeing.

Just thought I would check in and share some new technology!

Flying Cars & Chimpanzees

2007-08-09T12:48:00.000-07:00

Yep- Its me... I know when you saw me show up in Google reader, you couldn't believe I had actually done it.

Its been a while since I have done any blogging... I dont like to think of it in terms of slacking... I like to think that I am waiting for just the right thing to blog about... I think some amazing responses that we got last night at THE 706 count.

So, we started our Fall theme, called Best Life Ever, ripping off the immensly hilarious, and informing, VH1 Best Week Ever, and not ripping off any diets or south texas pastors... Anyway we posed the question to our 706ers- what would the best life ever look like for you? And had then write down a response to the question below... I have included the 4 most poingiant - for your enjoyment:
Ok... this first one tugs at the heart strings and reminds me of how awesome an opportunity ministry to teenagers is- we really make more of a difference than we might at first think!

Next, apparently unable to make up their mind this student struggled with having everything they could possibly want in this life... but a chimpanzee.

Indecision reigns at THE 706... Such good choices, which way to go? I GUESS you could tell a lot of "others" about Christ with 1,000 Billion Bucks...

Finally, my all time favorite, the flying car!

I can almost hear this kid thinking this decision through... "Trusting God better would be awesome, but a flying car... now THAT would be sweet."

As you go through your day today, and struggle with where you are and what God wants you to do... just remember, there is nothing that 1,000,000,000,000 dollars cannot do, chimpanzees are very under-rated, and flying cars are the answer. Peace! -B

SERENITY NOW!!!

2007-06-16T19:43:00.000-07:00

Its the eve of Summit 2007, and I would ordinarily be so pumped about taking 25 teenagers to the top of Lookout Mountain for a week that I could hardly contain myself. Its kind of tough right now... I just put the finishing touches on tomorrow mornings message -on fishing... and I spent a lot of time yesterday working on a video for the service that I would have ordinarily used to prep for camp... So my camp "get up and go", got up and left about Tuesday afternoon.

But, we had some great time with the core of our small group this evening, eating Cajun food and letting ducks nibble on my hind quarters... It was the relaxing break I needed to remain sane! The small group part- not necessarily the duck part.

Don't know why I felt this was bloggable, but I did.

By the way, something to sing about here: Summit 2005- 5 teenagers, 4 adults... Summit 2006- 12 teenagers, 5 adults... Summit 2007- 25 teenagers, 5 adults... Pretty stinkin' cool... Okay I feel more ready to go to camp now... Thanks. Sonny & Ryan, we will truly miss you guys!

I Crack Myself Up...

2007-06-08T13:23:00.000-07:00

...and it doesn't matter if anyone else laughs.

Here is a video about ribs that we shot yesterday for this Sunday's service. It is very low res, but its still funny... too me anyway. SPOILER ALERT - if you are a Compass-ite and don't want to see a video "before its time" do not click on the link.

Just thought I would share my love for ribs... Kelly says its ok to love your ribs, just dont LOVE your ribs.

Arm Paint Update

2007-06-04T15:12:00.001-07:00

Just a quick post here... the arm paint was removed this morning... frustrated at my apparent inability to see or scrub the inner portion of my right bicept... Kelly moistened a towel as I was drying off this morning and abraised the black smudge right off... "Let me just help you out here" she said somewhat motherly... Although, I must admit it was actually pretty hard work to not clean it off for the past few days... But I cracked up this morning as I filled Kelly in on the joke. I think she was relieved that I wasn't THAT hygenically challenged.

Total elapsed time on arm: about 80 hours over 6 showers (yardwork and outdoor wedding receptions necessitate additional showers).

Total time on arm since I picked Kelly and Macy up: somewhere in the neighborhood of 48-50 hours.

Speaking In Tongues

2007-06-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

Macy has recently started speaking in tongues... Not involving flaming tongues of fire, mind you, but Spanish. And really, its more yelling than speaking. You see, we in the Rose household are experiencing a new period in our child-rearing journey... We are now in the Dora-ic Period

All children who live in this brilliantly hued world of Spanglish animation learn that this is one romance language that is better screamed than spoken. There is nothing like sitting at the breakfast table, enjoying a bowl of Froot Loops and listening to a 3 year-old sprite in the next room yelling words and phrases like CASA, BOCA, and MI PADRE VA LOCO Y SORDO EN EL MISMO TIEMPO at her DVR babysitter.

I was reminded of this strange multi-cultural world that we sometimes live in at Target today: Two Asian women and the 6 or so children that were with them (5 under the age of 4) were browsing next to me in the water bottle/vinyl lunchbag/yoga mat section, all speaking rapid fire "you ain't from around here" words. In the midst of this din of hastily strung together "long" vowel sounds, two words spewed forth from one of the boys: "Lighting McQueen!" Over and over he yelled this at the top of his lungs... As the two startled mothers looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders, oblivious to the Pixar marketing, I couldn't help but smile... And get a craving for some cereal.

**ARM PAINT UPDATE** The paint almost came off in the shower this morning... I am not sure there will be much left to annoy Kelly with...

Pleather Doesn't Breathe

2007-05-31T21:20:00.000-07:00

I officially just sat in my recliner for four hours. Right now my emotions are running the gamut between pretty proud of myself and pretty disappointed in myself. See, the thing is, Kelly & Macy are out of town, and I have worked until at least 10 each night this week, so I granted myself a night of television... Here is what 240 minutes of sweat inducing, cushion-creasing, legs falling asleep has taught me:
-I under no circumstances want to watch more than 10 minutes of a reality show where people want to be pirates. I know this because at 11 minutes, the I-will-watch-any-reality-show-no-matter-what curse was broken. However, please note that Hell's Kitchen 3 is already flagged on our DVR. And, I will miss you Tim Gunn.
-Get Macy Jane's flowerbed mulch and rocks from the busted asphalt at the edge of our driveway out of the Radio-Flyer... and dust off the trumpet I havent played since last century... I am officially a bandwagon member of the Cleveland Cavs NBA Championship. Wow... does Rasheed Wallace have ringworm or did he lose a bet?
-Lastly, after 14,400 entirely fruitless seconds on my rear, it is now time to blog again. I purposefully took 1 month off to ensure that I did have the desire, and reason to blog. Special thanks to all four of my known blog readers: Crull, Ashley, Mark, & Meredith.

There you have it... I am back on the blogspot... And there is a splotch of paint on my arm from a project I was working on at church today - I am going to see how long I can leave it on there before Kelly physically cleans it off herself. Any one want to speculate on how many days it will be?

Another blog...

2007-05-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

...is in my head and won't come out. Its about how there are a lot of new church plants out there that are named virtually the same and may actually be a new denomination of non-denominationals. Its almost like you can put some key words in a bag and pull out two or three to make your uber-hip church... Examples:

Cross Bridge Church
-also leads to a great evangelistic presentation!
Life Pointe Fellowship
-(probably purpose driven)
Church by the Retention Pond
-not everyone has a cool geographic feature nearby!

Or here's a strategy that one particular denomination, errr church uses in all of its franchises, errr plants... Just take the city's name you are planting in and add Church after it... which works well until you want to reach one of these towns (Alabama alone makes me smile).

Okay maybe the blog came out.

Proud Mary Keep On Rollin...

2007-04-28T16:56:00.000-07:00

As the vacation of relaxation continues I am becoming more in tune with what actually relaxes me and what doesnt... so here is a partial list:

-Watching the NBA Playoffs in HD: relaxing.
-People I havent seen in years telling me how much weight I've gained: not relaxing.
-Attending a strangers wedding on a fake paddleboat: relaxing.
-Watching Mark swelter in the heat as he performs said strangers wedding: relaxing & funny too.
-Blogging random things from my brain: relaxing.
-Listening to a homesick 3-year-old scream and scream and scream and scream: not relaxing.
-Eating bacon with friends: relaxing.
-Jerking the chains of Best Buy salesmen: always relaxing.
-Driving Macy Bricker around with the fuel light on: relaxing ...for me.
-Paying 3 bucks a gallon for gas: not relaxing.
-Watching Mark's neighbor edge her yard in her swimsuit: not relaxing ...first, she's about 60 ...and second, lycra affords zero projectile resistance.
-Thinking about the 600 mile drive home: not relaxing.
-Not spending my Saturday night thinking about church tomorrow: relaxing.
-Knowing that typing this blog post drives someone crazy (DM): relaxing.
-Listening to the Mark & Miller Show: potentially relaxing ...should I ever choose to listen to more than 3 minutes of one.
-Knowing when to wrap up a blog...

The Go-Go's Were Right!

2007-04-26T18:05:00.000-07:00

Ahhh yes. Vacation, all I wanted. Vacation, have to get away.

I am currently sitting at the home of one of the guys closest to me, in a purely hetero way- as opposed to Chris and Crull (don't be jealous of each other)- and I have officially reached the State of Relaxation. It took a few days of church-detox, but I am here. And I thought I would share a few of the highlights so far:

1) I have been determined to take the backroads whenever possible. We traveled a good bit of the East coast of Fla on beach road A1A, and bisected the state on Highway 80. Here is my summation: A1A is filled with dazzling ocean views and spectacular ocean-front housing. Highway 80 is filled with dazed state prisoners working the side of the roads and signs telling the bears where to cross the highway and where not too. I am sure that the signs were not for me, since a bear crossing the highway would get my attention- no sign needed.

2) I am beginning a SURF-SHOP sticker collection. On the back of Kelly's Jeep... she disapproves. Me & Mark on the other hand think that it gives a certain cool factor and some sand-cred.

3) Macy Jane loved the ocean... for about 5 minutes (see photo). Then she clued in to the whole "waves" thing. Not so fond of the concept of a relentless stream of foamy, salty walls of water crashing into her every 7 seconds. She screamed whenever I went into the water. It was great fun for the whole family. Mercifully, J&J watched her on Tuesday for us while Kel & I went to the beach together... Oh Macy had a fever/sinus/ear infection as well. The whole beach experience led me to one important question... When did they start making boogie boards so small?

Thats all from the road for now... thanks for taking in a rather long first posting.