Should I Switch?

I’ve been with AT&T since they were Cingular, but I’m considering making the switch to Verizon.  It’s not that I’m unhappy with AT&T, I’m just toying with the idea.  I’m actually really leaning towards making the change.  I’ve mentioned this to a few people (mostly my teens) and have come to realize how loyal people are to their wireless providers.  It’s almost as bad as the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry.

Verizon supposedly has the best coverage, but AT&T definitely has cooler phones.  I like Verizon’s data plans, but I also like AT&T’s rollover deal.  As far as commercials go, it’s a toss up.  So, I dunno….

Have you been missing out on all the fun at The FUNdamental Foodie?  I just recently reviewed an interesting filipino grocery store.  Check it out!

Fave Fives #30: Southern Gospel Performances

The 30th Faves list had to be big.  And something I really, really enjoy.  Music is a huge part of our family life.  The following list features the performances I’ve deemed to be the most stirring I’ve seen and heard.  They’re not necessarily my favorite songs (though I really do like all of them), it’s the arrangements and interpretations that I’m highlighting here.  Warning, some of the songs do have … drum roll, please … drums.

1. Champion of Love by The Cathedrals.  This line-up was simply the best quartet ever.  Give them a masterfully arranged power ballad and you’ve got one of the most memorable performances of all time.  I’d like to know whose idea it was to have Ernie Haase not sing until the end.  His tenor part just explodes!  The song is anchored by a powerful and passionate lead while George Younce peppers in some really low bass notes at just the right times.  Amazing!

2. Let Freedom Ring by the Gaither Vocal Band.  A really good unison is very under-appreciated.  It really takes some skill for four men to sound like one voice, and GVB nails it here.  Then there’s David Phelps.  Buckle your seat belts at around 3:05.  The ultimate power tenor’s interpretation of such powerful words is truly moving.

3. God’s Building a Church by Gold City.  First, I think this is a really fun and exciting song.  Then you’ve got prime examples of freakishly high and tsunami-inducing low.  If you can get past the nasally tenor, you’ll get to the really fun stuff.  Tim Riley pulls a bit of a fake out by singing some middle-of-the-road bass notes in the first chorus.  Then he goes down an octave.  Whoa!

4. Wonderful Grace of Jesus by The Cathedrals.  Okay, back to the best quartet ever.  This acapella rendition of an old hymn is a music clinic.  They also masterfully sing in unison, then pull off one of the coolest key changes I’ve ever heard.  My fellow music-philes will appreciate the complex chords they just nail beautifully.  Also, the visual appeal of the quartet sharing one mic and adjusting their individual distances from the mic to attain the perfect blend makes this performance an all-around classic.

5. Since Jesus Passed By by Ernie Haase and Signature Sound.  Ernie Haase obviously learned a few tricks from The Cathedrals.  They use two mics here, but their movements to adjust the blend is more pronounced and, maybe, more impressive.  Tim Duncan gets a chance to show off the beauty of his upper range.  He’s not the lowest bass around, but I think he has the smoothest singing voice of all the basses in southern gospel.  The highlight for me is Ernie Haase achieving a crescendo by walking up to the mic at about 2:13.

The Anatomy of a Choke-Job

It still hurts.  I know, I know, there are more pressing matters in the world than a silly football game.  Chargers fans have heard it over and over again since Sunday: “San Diego Super Chokers”, “Chargers lose their poise”, “Rookie QB, rookie RB, rookie head coach shock San Diego”, “Nate Kaeding tried to shoot himself … but he was wide right.”  As a true fan, I’ve got to weigh in.

First, let’s give credit to the Jets.  They’re a solid team.  When you’ve got a great defense, you have a chance to win.  Plus, they have a very good running game.  But a solid team has no business beating a top five (maybe three) team on that team’s home turf.

I believe the Chargers’ downfall starts with overconfidence.  The week prior to the big game, a whole lot of smack talk was going around.  A little bit of that for showmanship is normal, but some of the knuckle-head Chargers really disrespected the Jets.  Saying the Jets were lucky to be in the play-offs or that they didn’t deserve to be there just served to fire up an up and coming team.  Very unprofessional.  I thought my Chargers were more classy than that.

Secondly, the talent-laden Chargers proved to be mentally weak.  They just fell apart under the pressure of the play-offs.  They were sloppy, penalty flags flying hither and yon for personal fouls, unsportsmanlike conduct and numerous false starts.  False starts??  Okay, that might be excusable if you’re on the road with the enemy crowd disrupting your cadence.  But at home?  Inexcusable.  Then you had the uncharacteristic dropped passes and horrid interception Philip Rivers threw late in the game (the first one that bounced off of Vincent Jackson’s leg into Revis’s hands was a fluke).

But at least we have the most accurate kicker in NFL history.  Check that, he’s the most accurate regular season kicker in NFL history.  He just had to end a streak of 69 consecutive field goal inside 40 yards when it counted the most.  I’m torn about what to do about Nate Kaeding.  Do you just let a pro bowler go?  But can you ever trust him in crunch time?  I wouldn’t blame the Chargers if they parted ways with Nate the not-so-great.

By the end of the year, I was really pulling for Norv Turner to win “coach of the year”.  Now I’m wondering if the Chargers made the right choice in giving him a contract extension.  It is evident that he did not have this team ready for the Jets, and proved to be inept at making any of the needed adjustments to pull off the win.  His offense was completely miffed by the blitz packages and coverages.  Did they not watch any film?  I’m just an eight-man flag football coach, but I could see that they needed to go more to the check downs from the max protect set ups.  Will we ever win it all with Norv?  I’m a bit skeptical but I have a glimmer of hope.

That glimmer is all about #17.  Philip Rivers is the type of super-star quarterback who can put a team on his back and take them to the promised land.  Keep some weapons around him and we’ll get there.  But, please … no more choke-jobs.

I just had to get that off of my chest.  But I don’t feel much better.

McGwire’s Shocking Confession

After a storied career putting up legendary numbers, Mark McGwire has pretty much become the poster child of Major League Baseball’s steriod fiasco.  In 2005, McGwire essentially asserted his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself before the House Government Reform Committee.  Testimonially, he remained silent.

But his Popeye arms were screaming, “Juiced!”

Finally, McGwire has come clean.  Though never having tested positive, he has admitted to using steriods at different points in his career.  More than likely, it is true that Jose Canseco did the friendly deed of injecting him.

In related news, the planet Jupiter, obviously inspired by McGwire’s new found transparency, has also made a public confession.  After millenia of speculation, a news conference was called to confirm that Jupiter is indeed the largest planet in the solar system.

“I’m glad to finally put that controversy to rest,” said Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon.

Reports are emerging that yet another big announcement is in the works.  Vapor, the publicist for Water, has agreed to an exclusive interview with Katie Couric.  Could our fragile hearts be able to handle the shock of learning that water is … dare I say it … wet?

C’mon, Barry Bonds, your turn.

Youth Ministry Trick #8

Chill.

We all like to relax and hang out.  The high-energy, full-scheduled activities definitely have their place in youth ministry.  They’ll more than likely dominate your repertoire.  But it’s good to mix in some times in which the leader and his teens simply end up … chillin’.  Of course, you have to know your young people.  If they’re a bunch of bumps on the log who need someone to structure they’re fun, “chill” activities just won’t work.  But if you have a naturally fun group, they’ll love it.  And so will you.

One such activity is our Goofy Olympics, in which the kids compete in zany events to set youth group records.  Both athletes and klutzes can have a good time shooting Froot Loops from their nostrils, tossing raw eggs, designing paper airplanes, and other goofy things.  They go from station to station to be measured or timed, and, every so often, records fall.  Sure, they may practice for an event, watch their friend jump rope or get grossed out by “piggly wiggly”.  But for the most part, the kids end up chillin’.  Hangin’ out.  It’s a lot of fun.

Then there’s “The Day With Jay” (check out last year’s event here).  It’s my opportunity to share my favorite places, in my favorite city, with some of my favorite people.  I grew up in San Diego and know both the tourist traps and local treasures.  This year we went to Torrey Pines State Preserve and took the Beach Trail down the sea cliffs to the beautiful beach.  From there we made a quick stop at Mt. Soledad (best views of San Diego) before heading to Coronado Island to chill around a blazing bonfire!

As much as I love San Diego, I’m thinking about mixing it up next year and staying more local.  Maybe … “A Day With Jay in L.A.”?  Anyway, here’s how we chill….

Chloe', seriously SWEET pic! You should consider it for convention.