More Important Tahoe Updates

While Gracie takes her mid-morning nap I thought I'd use my few free minutes to post some info including maps for all to print out. Only 3 weeks away and after watching the Celebrity Golf tournament on the shores of South Lake Tahoe yesterday, Abigail and I are both itching to head north! We're planning on getting to the cabin on Monday the 6th to get stuff set and ready for everyone. Since most everyone else is landing/arriving on Wednesday, Abigail has volunteered to prepare dinner for the cabin that night. There will definitely be a mountain/cabin theme to be sure! Here's some other important info:

1) How do I get to the cabin?
We're all coming from different directions with some from LA/OC and some from SF so I'll post a more general map here
and a more specific map here
It's basically one of only two cabins on Hupa Rd and it's the last cabin in the back. If you get lost in transit, call me at (626) 536-8014.

2) Pack and Plays for Kids
I've been able to secure 3-4 pack and plays for the kiddos to sleep/play in. I'll assume that Cash and Greyson will need one, and I heard that Eden will have his own since he'll be in SoCal earlier that week. If I'm wrong on any account, please let me know.

3) Appropriate Clothing
No, this is not a pre-S.I.T.S. talk about how moddest is hottest...Gracie's got a cute two piece that would have gotten her sent home. This is about the fact that you'll want to throw in a jacket or sweater, because even in August, the nights at 6,200ft have been known to get a little cool.

4) Bedding
If everyone could just throw in a set of sheets, that would probably help cut down on the amount of laundry we have to do on Sunday. There are plenty of blankets at the cabin we can use, but it'd be a good idea to thrown in a set of sheets. We'll check the pillow situation when we get up there and let everyone know what to pack. There are pillow, but I can't remember how many.

If you have other questions that I'm not thinking of, post it on this blog, as I'm sure I'm forgetting something. See you soon!

Baby's First Race

Over the past weekend we ran a team marathon with Becky's sister Kristin and her husband Mike. This marks the official start to the running career of our newest addition. Becky ran a 5 mile section of the marathon and did great. Minus a 20 minute delay on our last exchange (due to the shuttle driver's fault) we would have come in 27th place overall, out of 80 teams. Not bad for our first team relay. It was fun had by all and we already are shining our shoes for the Bellevue marathon sequel.

From a Gladiator, to a Golden Bear- thats right, after a long week of contemplating, I have accepted a job about an hour away from Glendora as the Activities Director of Temecula Valley High School. This job is going to be such a great experience, as I work toward an administrator. The actual job is teacher/administrator. I will teach one class of Spanish, one class of leadership, and then the rest of the day will have an office and be on the administrative team. I guess that the one dance I went to in High School paid off, since I will be incharge of all the dances at TVHS. Norm...any help???
The only bummer is that we will have to move closer to Temecula, thus distancing ourselves from J&A and Andrew, yet will still be close. Also Becky will now need to leave the Homework House after a great 2 year run, thus giving her time to be a mom as we start a new chapter in our lives!
Thats whats new in our 626.

Ode to Magic Shell

We had another warm summer evening last night and so after putting Gracie to bed I set out for Vons with a craving for cold ice cream. Needless to say I came back with some Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough...what else? But, while purusing the ice cream freezer, I can across a shelf that took me back to Thursday nights with The Cosby's and Family Ties. Magic Shell. I had almost completely forgot about this mysterious goodness. I paused and picked up a bottle to see just what it was made of remembering how I used to put ample amounts of it on the creamy goodness. The back label informs you that this stuff is packed with nutritional magic. It has 16 g of fat and 210 calories in a 2 Tbsp serving. I remember using at least a quarter cup = 4 Tbsp = 32 g of fat = 420 calories. Throw that on top of at least a cup of cookie dough ice cream = 18 g of fat = 360 calories and you get the picture. 50 g's and about 780 calories. But, hey it made Theo that much cooler and Skippy that much funnier. I say we all indulge in Tahoe. Who's in?

5k

Felicidades to Wes, Steve, and Jeff for running the Brighton Hungry Duck 5k on Wednesday. The race raised enough money to provide something like 160,000 meals to Livingston County through the food bank. We all carbed up with them the night before (courtesy of Debbie and Shea), but perhaps it was those pre and post-run coffees at 7am that helped them push it that last mile.

Michigan 4th of July

We've had a lovely extended weekend in Michigan to celebrate the War of Insurrection (if you want to know ask the over-bearing employee at the Copper Pickle in Howell). Sunday we all went out for a friendly golf game (Cash and I enjoyed the view from the cart). Unfortunately for Wes, Bill challenged him to a duel and ended up playing the game of his life. Par. 11 shots ahead of Wes. Ouch. The competition was relatively friendly, other than Wes muttering, "Cocky" between his teeth after Bill put his club in his "hip-holster" following a killer putt (and another killer putt . . . and . . . another killer putt). But the real award goes to Lena--not only for getting Bill out on the course more often but also for playing her best game yet! Three cheers for Mama Gaines!


And now . . . Bill playing golf:

And Wes playing golf:
(I couldn't resist that one).

Tahoe Wildfire Update

Just a quick update on the wildfire that earlier this week was threatening South Lake Tahoe. If your check out this article you can get full details but I'll summarize. The fire's now 70% contained (which is good) and the high winds that were forcasted and were supposed to turn this thing into an inferno, never came. The article calls it "good luck"...perhaps... "be still". We'll certainly be able to tour some of the damage in August, which is quite fascinating if you've never seen the remains of a forest fire like this. Jake's Tours anyone? This picture was the view from Highway 89, a couple of miles south of the cabin. Yikes!

Lake Tahoe Update

Can you believe only 45 days until we gather amidst the towering pines and clear blue skies in the Eastern Sierra Nevada's? We're getting excited for what should prove to be an epic 5 days. I just wanted to give a brief update on a few items to make things roll as smoothly as possible and invite all valuable feedback.

First, let me reiterate that when Jeff and I hashed out this vision awhile back we wanted this to be a week to just enjoy the Gaines-Lampi fellowship that has been so sweet for decades now. I want to put the populace at ease that for all W.P.Gaines planning genes that invade my every cell, I really want the schedule to remain quite flexible. Yes, I have a few ideas and there has been some groundswell for Jake's Tours to be in full effect, but I'm resisting the urge. My rationale... 5 little ones on different nap schedules and sleep schedules that are sure to put Jake's Tours out of buisness.

But a few ideas and answers to a few questions you might have...

#1) Sleeping arrangements- right now we're planning on have the Lampi clan in the cabin that we're renting from the nextdoor neighbors (literally 5 pine trees away)which should easily accomodate everyone. I'll get exact confirmation on numbers of bedrooms and bathrooms in the next week. That means all Gaines' will be in the Aldrich cabin and we think we've configured it to make it work.

#2) Meals- Our thought is to do all the grocery shopping in South Lake Tahoe on Wednesday. Breakfast and lunch should be simple to do at the cabin's or down at the beach and can really be flexible. We thought it would be nice to try and do dinners all together and put someone different in charge of each night. If everyone's game, I'll put together teams and assign an evening later. As far as the cost for food, we'll have to tally receipts and then all chip in afterwards.

#3) Evenings- Part of our hope was to spend some intentional time each evening to allow God to work as he may through the various gifts he's imparted. The hopes would be after the kiddos go down we have some worship (Wes and/or Steve) and then have someone prepare something in advance from the Word (short devotional/discussion/homily, etc. etc.) End the night will some prayer and share under the stars or wherever it leads. Anyhow, throw ideas out for this as I know God gives you vision too. If you'd like to take a night, let me know as well

#4) Grandma and Grandpa's Night with the Kids- Okay, this was only given the thumbs up by Bill and Lena so I'll let Norm and Deb have their say, but we were thinking about one night letting the Nanas and Papas take the kids and the rest of us hit the town. This could mean a nice dinner at a lakeside restaraunt, or we throw caution to the wind, follow Jeff across the stateline and hit the casinos in Nevada. Question: Is that morally reprehensible, and what are the odds that the bookie, aka Jeff throws down a Benjamin on snake eyes at the craps table. My bet... he's all in!

#5) Other Completely Optional Recreational Ideas in the Works- There will most likely be opportunities for an incredible hike up the Mt. Tallac trail with amazing views of Fallen Leaf Lake and Lake Tahoe. The Gaines - Wes + Steve did this one years ago, and we must try and find BAB's (Bernie A. Blair) pine. There's also been talk of a golf scramble tournament. I did some online checking and best bet is probably that we hit up the local nine hole par 3 course which would only put us out $20, unless the patriarchs want to ante up about $60-80 to play in paradise. We've also got a kayak for the lake, the horseshoe pit (give Steve 5 minutes he'll be throwing ringers), tether ball, ping pong, and a whole host of vintage puzzles and old board games.

Okay, well that's all I got for now. I'll post maps and such in the near future. Any other questions or input, let me know. Cheers!

Get your thinking caps on.

I'm working on some trivia questions for Tahoe (I'm on a kick after a heated round of trivia with Bill last month). Just thought I'd let you know incase anyone wants to put in a good word for their favorite category/subject. I'm not making any promises, but if you're lucky I might throw in some familiar questions to increase the competition. Sports are a given, I'm sure. I cannot be bribed . . . I don't think I can be bribed. And no betting on this one (ahem, Jeff). Tahoe or bust!

the boy's got ups

We buckled. We bought the boy a jumper. As we walked out of the second-hand children's store, giant jumping mechanism in hand, Wes's cheeks were flushed with embarassment and we both agreed our six month-old had "taken us to the bank." It's just that he has all this energy. I mean a lot of energy. The kind of excess energy that caused him to grab his dad's sandwich basket at Zingerman's and fling it across the restaurant. And wouldn't you know, he loves the darn thing. I snuck a little video (sorry for the darkness) of him and Wes together last night to show you just how much Cash adores the jumperoo (and the guitar)!

Expect more jumping videos soon. Click here to see another video of Wes and Cash. Background for this video: Cash wasn't going down for a nap, so Wes said he'd go upstairs and lay with him for 10 minutes to see if he could get him to fall asleep. After 15 minutes I didn't hear any squawking, so I went upstairs and this is what I found. Biiiig surprise.

Lugnuts get Screwed

Well we made it out to the ballpark tonight, and were treated to the Zooperstars (yes they were as funny as they look), a questionable Wizard homerun, and a near no hitter against the Nutz. Oh yeah and with the Wizards win, the Lugs were eliminated from the 1st half playoffs. I hope Lansing doesn't take this one too hard. A couple Wizards fanatics in the making here. Below is a look at the plans for our new downtown stadium. (Testy topic in the Fort, a laundromat on my way to work has a sign saying, "If You Build It, We Won't Come!" Next up...Bring it Lance Parrish!! Go Baddeley!!

Grandpa Locklin in the Hospital

Many of you know and remember Becky's Grandpa, Bill Locklin. He was taken to the hospital yesterday via ambulance due to being very weak from the chemotherapy. Becky's Mom is down from Seattle, her dad will be coming soon as well. Please keep Becky and her family in your prayers as this is not an easy time. Becky and I are taking the day off today to go out to Loma Linda Hospital so I will update you with any further info.
Bendiciones

Top Gun?

So Jeff calls me up today with the challenge to be his wingman in Brighton's July 4th Half Marathon. The problem being the run is three weeks away and besides a handful of mountain biking excursions, this dude has barely broken a sweat in the past few months, well all year...and into last year too. I went out for a test run tonight, and logged about 20 sluggish minutes. So I pose the following question to y'all...

Is Wes up to the task?
	Yes. Jeff you can be my wingman anytime!
	No. Wes your ego is writing checks your body can't cash!
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Those who vote yes, I need a three week plan to get me to thirteen miles. Any advice from the pros?

Family Pics

Yesterday, Abigail, Gracie and I had a 2 hour session with the same amazing photographer from LA who shot Ben and Becky's wedding. As you'll see when you click here, she hasn't lost her touch! She took over 600 photos and these are the first we've seen.

FINALLY!!!!...The Cup Comes to SoCal

Cue Queen, "We are the Champions" because Lord Stanley's Cup will be spending this year just off the 57 and Katella. We finally brought it home tonight and now the party in the O.C. can begin. Emilio Estevez was right...the Mighty Ducks could and did win it all and to say that SoCal is Cup Crazy is putting it lightly.

Okay, okay, eeeaaaasssy fellas. Before the Midwest crew hits that comment button and lays the wood to this redcoat, bandwagoner, my tongue is planted firmly in cheek when I celebrate this win.

In actuality, I like the rest of LA/Orange County tuned into less than one period of the series. I went to LA Fitness right after the big game expecting to find it empty with all the locals celebrating the Cup only to find it packed out with no one seeming to notice. "What's the Dodger's score?" was about the only thing I heard. On the way home, local sports radio was talking about whether or not we should boycott the Bejing Olympics. Probably will be Page 2 of the LA Times tomorrow. Isn't it great that the last 3 Cup winners come from Anaheim, Tampa, and Carolina. Whatever happened to Boston, New York, Toronto, Chicago, and Detroit? All I can say is that the Anaheim PD is trying to figure out how to contain tomorrow's parade at Downtown Disney where they're expecting hundreds of Duck's faithful. As much as I detest Chris Pronger for giving it to Holstrom's dome (ala Claude Lemiux on Drapes), he did separate his shoulder in the first minute and still played the rest of the game with it popping in and out. Bring back McCarty and Shannahan, and get Stevie Y out of retirement for one more run!

HAPPY 1st BDAY EDEN!!!

What a weekend! We had a great Bday fiesta for out two lil guys, and a special dedication to Jesus performed by pastor Steve joined with loved ones. Wish you could have been with us, but we'll see you all soon. Eden is officially a year on tomorrow morning. I "Stand Amazed" (ref to Wes' song) everyday at how SIMPLE and beautiful life is I play playing with my two sons. I know this is so cliche, but there is a reason behind the truth of the saying,"Don't blink, because they grow up so quickly." To think Caleb is heading to Preschool this fall and answering the phone and Eden is...well....we'll give it a lil longer....about ready to walk. Stay tuned. WOW! I can't wait for Gracie, Grey and Cash's first bday!

Hey, there's a thought. let's do a lil celebrating in Tahoe since we prob won't be all togrther for their first bdays???

I blogged some pics from the party/dedication ...and I have to say me WIFE IS AMAZING! She was the hit of the party ...everything from her cakes (w/ Jami's help too) to her dino games-- a dino bone dig in sandbox, train painting, dino tattoos and masks, etc! I was in charge of ...you guessed it...dino swim in the pool! (ironically , Saturday was National Dinosaur Day-we had no idea)...she is such a FUN mom and stellar Party Planner. Thanks Babe.

I love you all, perros and all

Jeff xo

Allen County Public Library Makes it to the top 5!

In a contest for Thomson/Gale Publishing libraries were asked to submit a short video depicting why we love our libraries. And . . . my library's video made it to the top 5! Click here to view the top 5 videos and to vote for Reference Zombies--our submission. Winner gets a big prize. You have to vote by the 11th. Quick! We're in a close tie with the Columbus, Nebraska submission.

A whole new world!

Happy 29th Birthday Blog!!

Today my wife turns 29, and what a year it's been. This year has seen Abigail become a mom, an aunt, and an executive director, not to mention following that up with still being the best wife a guy could ever ask for. I think we all agree that Abigail is one of the most passionate, insightful, and Godly women that we know. She amazes me more and more with each passing day. To celebrate her today, take a moment to share three words you would use to describe this birthday girl, and any other funny Abigail moments or memories. Happy B-day mi amor!

Kitchen 90% Completed

If I might use the Blog to update everyone on our new kitchen. No pictures yet. However, I will say that your mother/mother-in-law/Lena batted 100% on all the new things in our kitchen. I may start calling her Maglio (for Ordonez) who is leading the Tigers in hitting and RBI's.

My one decision which came, because your mother was not available, was on the sink. They had to cut a space in the granite for the sink to fit in. For 24 hours I kept saying, "I am so stupid" for the decision I made. One tub versus a two tub sink. I went with one for various reasons. Well, after a night of sleeplessness because I was "so stupid", the sink came and it perfect. Vola. We'll get some pictures on the blog as soon as we figure out how to do it. I think all of our sons have shown us, but it just has not stuck into our computer minds.

Happy Memorial day to all,

Dead Wings

Valddy
Originally uploaded by famousscientists.

Read this interesting article in the LA Times this morning about the Dead Wings who got booted out of the playoffs last week, didn't even sell out a playoff game and may be in Jeopardy of losing the title, 'Hockeytown'.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-elliott24may24,1,7190539.column?coll=la-headlines-sports&ctrack=1&cset=true

I swear one of the angry letters sounds like it came from the Karabelski household.

What's your take on the Red Wings woes?
Ticket prices to high?
Bad management?
Too busy watching the Pistons and the Tigers to care?

You have to see this!

OK, so we got a new puppy- you have to see this because it is similar to our experience...




Petsmart commercial



Add to My Profile | More Videos

A day in the life of a GHS teacher

Check out this link to see what happened today outside the gates of Gladstone High School this morning. Literally sirens and helicopters were right above us!! My kind of day!
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=local&id=5324834

Roxy Comes Home

PRESS PLAY




Gabcast! Roxanne #1



Today we welcomed our newest addition to the Gaines Family! Roxy arrived this morning at LAX from Marshfield Missouri, an hour south of Waynesville. She and Brenda have so far hit it off, Brenda enjoys having someone to play with, so far so good.

Photoshoot

Bea y Andrew
Originally uploaded by famousscientists.

Check this out. I did this photo shoot with my friend Bea. Apparently they're going to use it in this chic new hotel down by the airport somewhere. Kinda stupid. But you all can see my new haircut.

YOU STAND ALONE!

Well,

A VERY SPECIAL MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL OUR MOTHERS, ROOKIE and VETERAN! Abagail, Shea and Sarah Jane...what a very special day for the FIRST time! I have compiled a top 10 list of why MOMS kick BUTT ....and DADS don't have a CLUE...jk kind of

10. Organized.....enough said
9. Night Owls...what would our babies do without you?
8. Know what to say a right time (hmmm sensitivity)
7. Good Readers (not only literature but can READ child feelings (aka temperature, hunger etc)
6. Teacher (face it, C-unit didn't learn his ABCs or his mad bball skillz from yours truly)
5. Couch potato or nurtitional provider(and I think you know what I mean "attached".....)
4. Listener (almost scary your RADAR on your kids..."like the show MEdium???"
3. Rockstar looks! HOT MOMS holla!
2. Prayer Warrior (No one has this bond like you do)
1. Sacrifice. (no words necessary)

Happy Mother's Day!
Make your MAN turn off the playoff bball and SCRAPBOOK, Cook for you or take a nice SPRING stroll!!!

Jeffrey xo

TGIF

1. It was well worth staying up for the end of the game last night. What a comeback. I have a feeling Dad went to bed at half time (Be honest jet lagger). Pistons are looking great, Wings in the semi-finals, Tigers on a tear...It's great to be a Detroit sports fan, the city seems to need the good news!
2. I love the spring! The Fort is in full bloom, you can smell it everywhere. Garden planting tomorrow. Anyone else growing anything this year?
3. News stories I read this week:

• If you like Demographics...
• If you like the Pope, Brazil, or Liberation theology...
• If you like seeing lazy Europeans get a kick in the butt in France, Sweden (no offense euros)

Have a good weekend!! Be excellent to eachother.

Darfur

On Sunday I attended a community forum where they showed the documentary Darfur Diaries, and then had a discussion about the Darfur crisis lead by Suliman Giddo a Darfuri who lives in Fort Wayne. It can be overwhelming thinking about what is going on over there, and to consider how we in the U.S. can get involved. Suliman founded an organization called Darfur Peace and Development based in Fort Wayne. For those looking to get involved this is a great place to get started. The website is really informative and discusses various ways we can help. One project they talked about on Sunday was the Solar Cooker Project. This project provides women in refugee camps with a way to cook and purify water without having to leave the camp, which is when they are often attacked. Read more about it (scroll down the page). The solar cookers cost $7 and are produced in Sudan and distributed directly to the people who need them. This is a great project to raise money for in church, school etc. Anyways thought I'd share that with you.

I'm Coming Home!

We have an announcement...Brenda is going to be a big sister! She is from the show me state about an hour south of Waynesville. A beautiful baby bulldog named Roxanne!!!

Nursery Genius

Check it out!! Sarah is featured on Apartment Therapy for her decorating skillz in Cash's nursery. I guess this is wes and sarah homemaking week. Link to website

Gramie would be impressed that the pewter cup she got us got accolades, as did Antoine the Donkey from mom.

Also welcome home Mr. Bill Gaines from his tour of Asia. Any pics or stories Dad? We'll give you a couple days to recover from that jet-lag.

let me introduce you to his pride and joy

the man can bake! we had a dinner with friends last night to talk over some church stuff, and we were in charge of dessert. what to bring? ice cream? too obvious. Wes's "famous" chocolate sauce? not enough pizazz. hmmm . . . strawberry tart with red currant jelly glaze? perfect!

Wes saw this being made on PBS a few weeks ago and hasn't been able to rid its image from his sugar-coated mind. after a drive to my dad's to borrow a tart pan and a lunch break run to the store for a pastry brush (which he just had to have), Wes was ready to go. he wouldn't even let me help when i offered to finish it in the morning so he could go to bed (he was up till almost midnight monday night). his response . . . 'I just kind of want to see this through." okay then.

the tart was met by a thunderous applause at dinner. sadly, there was none left to take home. another party saved from the doldrums of brownies and ice cream by Wes Gaines.

Gracie Finds Her Voice

Tonight at dinner, Gracie went into one of her screaming routines that have become the norm ever since she got an audience in Michigan. We spiced it up a bit to make it kind of "scary!"

He didn't even see it coming. Grace's lightning quick right hand jab caught in action.

Check out more photos from the weekend on the web album.

Rebellion season comes to an end

Hercules
Originally uploaded by famousscientists.

Well, my first rugby season has come to an end with a loss to South Orange County in the first round of the playoffs yesterday. I come away from the season relatively unscathed and looking forward to building a bigger and better team for next year.

We finished the season with a 1-8 record, but in my opinion, we had more fun, carried more enthuthiasm and optimism to the pitch each week, setting an example for sportsmanship, pride and team.

We even got a nice write-up in this local magazine, check it out: http://www.frontierspublishing.com/mag/index.php?o=art&article=1334

After the game my coach asked me to move up a division for the next season to get the proper training and competition to become a better rugby player. I told him I was flattered, but I'm a Rebel for life. Mr. Falan would have been proud.

Fiesta de Pascuas (Easter) en East Lansing

Caleb gets timeout during Easter Story, Braydon cheats during the Egg hunt, Evan almost escapes into the street, Greyson, Josiah, Isa, Eden and Brooklyn!!! etc etc. My wife did an impeccable job organizing this for the kids!

Check out Wes' post on the Darfuris in the Fort first. How awesome, what an opportunity Wes!

love Jeff

Darfur Fort Wayne Connection

Here's an interesting article on Darfurians living in Fort Wayne???

Read Article

Thanks Jeff -

P1000879
Originally uploaded by stevelamps.

MMMMM........ Foooooooood!

P1000903
Originally uploaded by stevelamps.

hello everyone out there in baby land and brenda land. Greyson is eating rice cereal and as you can see enjoying it quite thoroughly. We're looking forward to the summer here seeing it is now just hittting 40 degrees, and greyson will be older, which translates into better sleep hopefully. We are going to become die hard Great Lakes Loons fans (Midland minor league team). The park is built and I have my very own t-shirt. Shea is doing well and can't wait for tahoe. See you all there.

Steve

Glendora shines on Sunday

Although, Mickelson didn't win, I still had to post this because it is such an "ACE and GARY" shot. Ha!

You can give our boy Jake the green jacket today! He won by one stroke with a low of +28. His clinch pick was the combo of Goosen/Casey finishing strong on Sunday. Second = Bill Gaines +29
Tie for Third = Bill Stelter/Jeff +30
Fourth = Wes +41

I didn't get to watch Sunday due to the fact we had a Easter Fiesta for the ninos at our house; but I did hear Zach Johnson, a normal Joe, won and thanked "his Lord and Savior" too! I gotta admit. It's good to see the someone new (and in our shoes with a new baby too )

Anyway, thansk for playing. I spoke with Jake last night, and after his victory speech we discussed how fun this is....so stay tuned for another GL posse competition. May be the ponies? NBA finals? INDY 500? Seriously, can someone else pick the next one up, to take the heat and jokes off me?

Jeff

Ancillary video clip to go with Wes' Easter message

Read Wes' previous message!!!! then watch this clip (shown at church this morning w/message)

http://wingclips.com/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16253

John 3:16 beyond words and understanding is our Risen KING!

Cristos Anesti!

Easter 2007

(This is long, so if you don't make it through, Happy Easter and much love from Fort Wayne)

On Easter we celebrate the resurrection. Jesus died, was buried, and on the third day rose again. This is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. It is a mystery that we believe by faith, and that infuses us with the hope that we too will experience resurrection. In the book of Acts the resurrection was the focal point of the apostle's teaching (Acts 2:24, 31-34, 4:33). This change in the disciples (from deserting him at the cross to boldly proclaiming his resurrection even at the point of death) to me is clearest evidence of the resurrection. Mostly because the disciples didn't expect Jesus to be raised from the dead. It was unheard of that the Messiah would be killed, especially by Rome, and then would somehow come back to life, conquering death. If anything, as seen in the Triumphal entry, people expected Jesus to restore Israel to power and overcome Rome. But as far as evidence goes, the mystery of the resurrection is not something we can take to the lab test and come out with a validated outcome. So its not surprising in our time where science has been elevated to such a high place, that the concept of resurrection is met with great skepticism. Since it cannot be proven it is cast aside as "superstition", good for those who need to put a positive spin on death, but foolishness for the enlightened. This has lead "enlightened" theologians to de-mistify the resurrection by explaining it as a metaphor. Jesus' spirit lives on but he physically remains dead like the rest of us will. This distinction between physical and spiritual has also crept into mainstream Christian thought as well. The gospel message preached in most evangelical churches goes a little like this: 1. You are a sinner 2. Jesus died for your sins 3. Pray this "sinners" prayer and you will 4. Not go to hell but 5. Go to heaven which is somewhere beyond our galaxy 6. you will be a disembodied spirit floating in the clouds in this celestial city and will probably know how to play the harp. I might have exaggerated this a bit, but this view of the gospel leads to escapism, which maintains that our ultimate goal is to be free from this body, and free from this world. You see it all the time in some of the songs we sing, "I'll fly away" "Take me away sweet Jesus". It has lead countless Christians to "rapture practice", and has inspired numerous bumper stickers "in case of rapture, this car will be unmanned!" The overall message here is that there is nothing worth saving in this world but our souls, so don't worry about "physical" things like our bodies or the environment around us, its all gonna burn. I think this distinction is false or at least misleading. We have a tendency toward this dualism because we live currently in physical reality and it is hard to imagine the spiritual world as anything other than a separate realm having nothing to do with what we can see, touch, smell, or taste. And so heaven is far away somewhere "beyond imagination", Jesus saved your soul, which will one day disappear in rapturous delight to this "unworldly place".

But listen to T.S Eliot who writes, "We may say that religion, as distinguished from modern paganism, implies a life in conformity with nature. It may be observed that the natural life and the supernatural life have a conformity to each other that neither has with the mechanistic life." Along the same line Wendell Berry says, "I take literally the statement in the Gospel of John that God loves the world. Our bodies are involved in the world. Their needs, desires, and pleasures are physical." The point is not to downplay spirituality, or to say that we are not spiritual beings, but that the belief that our souls are the only thing worth saving leads us to devalue physical reality. This same sort of reduction causes those in the scientific community to equate our bodies with machines; the heart is a pump, brain is a computer etc., diminishing in every way what was "fearfully and wonderfully made". The opposite view is what NT Wright describes as "overlapping spheres"; that there isn't such a wide gap between the spiritual and physical but that they are intermingling. Heaven is not so much a place far far away but it is God's realm, which is present all around us, "The earth is full of his glory." Through Jesus, this realm has come breaking into our present reality, and though it is not fully realized yet we are instructed to pray "your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven." And the message of the kingdom is that God is healing, restoring, and renewing his people and his creation. We are more than just souls that will float off someday, we are people who live, breathe, and move in a world which is sustained by his love and full of his glory. This is the good news, that God so loved the world that he was not willing to let it perish.

And so we celebrate Easter. Jesus died, was buried, and was raised to life. And this resurrection life, this redeeming of our physical bodies is the hope of the whole earth.

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved." Romans 8:8-24

After Three

Woah! A"GUST"A tamed those boyz today. Looks like we're shooting for LOWEST over par. And here's our leaderboard heading into tomorrow (top 5 golfers/of us):

LOWEST TOTAL SCORES ADDED FROM BEST 5 GOLFERS AFTER SATURDAY'S ROUND 3:

Bill Stelter= +25
Jeff= +26
Bill Gaines= +27
Jake= +30
Wes= +32

The MAN from Sagtown MI is quietly taking command...will one of our +5/6/7ers take charge and put some pressure on him tomorrow? TBA

(Let me know, I may have missed count...count your own if you want)

The first step is admitting you have a problem...

...And I DO! Ok so after the hangover of the NCAAs, I'm back ready with another "fix." Here's the low-down for this weekend's Gaines-Lampi Posse + SPECIAL GUEST entry......BIG DADDY BILL STELTER (HE'S IN- Gave me his picks right off the top of his head, no questions asked after saying "I WANT IN!") !!! MASTERS tourney.

Pick your 10 golfers (go to any sports website) who you think will finish BEST in this weekend's "TRADITION UNLIKE ANY OTHER."

Sunday, when it finishes, we'll add up your best 5 finishers (their UNDER PAR SCORES) and see who has the most points UNDER PAR. (Thanks Jake)

If you don't have 5 make the necessary cuts, oh well. We'll count up your 4,3,2 or none???

Oh yeah, let's say (good chance) there's a tie (maybe 2 people have -42????). Then the tie breaker will be who (of the 2 winners) had the golfer with the most birdies on Sunday (Thanks Bill Stelter for that one...he's such a stud!)

There it is. Simple, sweet, and just enough to get me through to when the ponies run the Derby in the blue grass.

Please use the "comments" to post your top 10 golfers. And take some risks and pick diverse! So far it's me, Wes, Papa Gaines, Jake and Bill Stelter. ANyone else? Again this is an "all skate."

One Shining Moment: Cheers to our Wesley!

Well, part of my responsibility as the BOOKIE is not only to get the bets out, lay out the skinny, make the necessary calls, but also to give PROPS, the final report, and brake some kneecaps if our boy, WESLEY, DOESN'T GET PAID!

HAIL TO THE VICTOR! Congrats to Wes taking the annual G-L posse tourney challenge with the Gator victory last night. I am glad for you man; and I bet this feels good after the rookie NFL Fantasy season. I gots to give you props and proclaim you the SWAMI of Hoops at least until next year's tourney.

I'll confess, I can't wait. LOVED the action and drama. Here's how my take on the rest of us kinda:

Second Place: JAKE...ICE IN HIS VEINS man..you should have won with the Georgetown pick...They'll be back next year, as Champs.

Third Place: Me. nothing to say really. Blah. I was "all-in" with Memphis and got burned.

Fourth Place: Ben Brus. Amazing seeing he would have won if OSU could "pull a late Steve irwin" on the Gators last night. And he watched 0 ball during the season.

The rest of y'all finished respectfully and I was very scared of some of the runs by the women....Lena and ABs! Chispas!

Stormin' Norman, your day is coming, I know it. And that Maltby Gymnasium will bestow your paramount name someday.


Here's to Wes! the man of mystery, whose last year in Sports (including yesterday's opening day game TIGERS!!!) has been MAGICAL! He said it first:

"I'm in it to win it" Cash Daddy Gaines!

Pay Date: August in Tahoe! O WHAT A SUMMER!

Thanks for playing...any suggestions for next comp? or shall we wait till NFL season?

Jeff

Los Angeles Storm

Check out this video of this storm that passed through Los Angeles last week:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i37xoevTo7I

The high winds made riding my bike a lot more difficult. The weather was been pretty bad this winter in Los Angeles with very little rainfall. Nobody knows if this is a direct effect of Global Warming but there was an interesting piece in the times today about how water is scarce in L.A., namely because all three of it's main water sources had a dry winter too. This hasn't happened in some time. Los Angeles imports most of it's water from outside sources. It's gonna be a long summer.

In other news, my rugby team won our first game ever (EVER!) and I scored a touchdown (my first ever) to give our team the lead. I did, however, hurt my knee and I can't walk right now. That's all sure to get better soon, though. But for now I'm taking it easy and I'll be getting some crutches tomorrow. Hopefully it's not too serious. Or else you'll all probably be hit up to donate to the 'Help Andy get an MRI' fund, which may birth the, 'Help Andy get surgery' foundation.

I hope all is well with everybody.

Do you think Jesus's disciples just thought he was playing an April Fools joke on them?

HAPPY PALM SUNDAY TO ALL!!

Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime; it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds.
He gives showers of rain to men, and plants of the field to everyone.
Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey. He will proclaim peace to the nations.
His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.

From Zechariah