I've Moved!

I've moved over to WordPress -- come check me out at transitionpete.org!

This is kind of random...

I normally listen to SportsTalk 980 (WTEM 980 AM) in the mornings during my commute to work. Yesterday was the start of the NBA season, and tonight is the first game for the the Washington Wizards -- lots of talk about this off-season and prognositcation about the contenders and losers.

I dunno why, but I am excited about following the 'Zards. I know very little about who all is on the team and what they are "expected" to do, but I can't seem to shake the growing interest. Maybe it's because they were fairly competative last season and have seemingly upgraded their team to be just that much better this year (team/chemistry-wise) than last.

We'll see if I maintain any enthusiasm about the NBA -- I never really got into it. In any event, I can certainly cheer for the hometown team! Go 'Zards!

can't get to you (Susan)

There are, what seems to be, a gazillion high school/college alumni network sites.  It's a brilliant idea to have a source for alumni to set things up to be able to keep touch and follow-up on one another after so many years have gone by.  The trouble is, there are too many and they all require $$$ in order for you to be able to access the contact info, or get in touch through whatever their contact vehicle is.  Bummer.

 

Susan (Carter) Buckley (and anyone else who would like to touch base)... if you happen to come back to this site and read this, please email me, or IM at transitionpete.  I guess I'm a miser and don't feel like paying the $20 to be a 1 year member to an online alumni site.

 

Reconnecting with old friends and acquaintances is fun!  I love the idea that we all have gone off and done different things and experienced life in a myriad of fascinating ways!  The thing I've realized over time is that CONNECTION is important -- it's important to be connected to others and be able to share in life's experiences.

nostalgia, losing touch, and trust

i've taken a turn at waxing a bit nostalgic.  yesterday, a high school friend initiated contact... i ran across some names from early college days... i listened to a conference tape that reminded me of where I've been and where I'm going...

 

so, i sent out an email yesterday, shortly before leaving work, to an old friend.  she wasn't there.  apparently, her email address has changed, and so, she didn't get the email -- no change notice, not email forwarding... just a bounce back from the email server.

 

she was pretty big influence in my life -- what she was to me (nothing romantic) has shaped who i am today and i can honestly say that i am grateful for her example and witness.  there are many people to whom i can accredit significant influence.  where are they now?  i hear rumors of them here and there, but i never get beyond thinking (THINKING), "i should call this person," or "i ought to email so-and-so."  it's always easier to say, "i'll touch base later."  well, by the time might actually get around to doing something about potentially losing touch, you've already lost touch.

 

it stinks to lose touch.  there are memories, experiences, lessons, wisdom.  relationship. history. honesty and accountability.  truth.  trust.

 

i guess i'm thinking about such things partly because i had IM'd with a pal the other day, and we got to philosophizing and psychoanalyzing what trust is and why it's often so difficult for us to trust others.

 

i kind of came to the general conclusion that the more self-absorbed a person is, the less trustworthy that person is likely to be.  conversely, the less selfish or self-absorbed a person is, the more likely that person will offer a helping hand and worthwhile company.  of course, there are judgment calls to be made in all types of relationship and you cannot gauge trustworthiness solely on selfishness alone.  i suppose this is better left for another conversation as i attempt to return from my tangent.

 

i miss my friends.  my good friends whom i had shared meaningful, life shaping experiences with.  there are a smattering from high school and more than a handful from college. 

 

i wonder who would show up if i were in the spotlight for the show "this is your life?"

it's a small world after all

I ran across the blog of Ben Arment, who is the pastor at History Church in Reston, VA. I had met Ben on a few occasions and found him to be very engaging and genuine. I think I might really dig the History Church if I were not committed to Gateway (which I love) -- but that's neither here nor there (the point is to engage in authentic Christian community and to serve and grow).

Anyway... I was perusing Ben's blog page and ran across the name Jason Roberts. I think Ben and Jason had served together at a church down in Virginia Beach... in any event, they know each other. I know Jason via my early college days and volunteering with Young Life in the Central Fairfax area. Jason is from Fairfax, and his wife, Aimee, and I did a summer staff stint together up at Saranac Lake, NY, as well as attend George Mason University together. Jason is now pastoring the Crosscurrent Church down in Virginia Beach.

I've long since lost touch with Jason and Aimee, as I am GREAT at losing touch so many other people I know. But I am encouraged to know that God is at work in the lives of Ben, Jason, Aimee, and myself, as well as through the ministries of Gateway Community, History Church, Crosscurrent Church, and Young Life.

Small world. Big God.

will work for free

On Oct. 16, our church (gatewaychurch.org) served the South Riding and Stone Ridge communities though what's been designated The Big Event. The Big Event was inspired by Texas A&M's Big Event that's apparently has been ongoing since 1983! Others have done similar things over the years and it seems like it's beginning to spread...

The premise of The Big Event is to go out and serve the communities that are in your area -- yard work, garage clean-up, car washing, etc. This year was our first inaugural event and we seem to have pulled it off with success! Our original plan was for our church body to be able to serve 20-25 homes -- we didn't know how many folks would sign-up to serve, nor did we know how many residents would sign-up. There were close to 150 homes that registered, and it turns out that we were able to serve 42 homes - nearly double our expectations!

We drew names of those registered... called them up and told them they had been chosen... and we geared to to go out on Sunday, October 16, and serve.

On the day, we met at church to get some final organizational bits and then we dispersed out in teams of 4-6 and spent a few hours serving. What a cool concept! Instead of meeting for a typical Sunday service, we went out and served 2 communities as an expression of our faith. It was a good reminder to me as to what we we're called to to do: love one another. Not in some mushy-touchy-feely kind of way... we're talking about the kind that says I'm willing to set me aside and give of my time, attention, and energy to you.

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we
ought to lay down our lives for one another. [ 1 John 3:16 ]

We may never come close to he kind of sacrifice that Christ made -- dying on the Cross; but we can certainly make sacrificial choices for the benefit of others. Gosh! It sure does feel good to help others out! And how cool is it when I need help that others would be willing to give me aid? What good is being selfish?

MoCo Loco: iBelieve

Um... have we gone too far? I received this link in an email from my good buddy, Dan. His subject line reads: Setting ourselves apart or yoking ourselves to?

What do you think?

Poop!

OK... so the picture posting thing didn’t work with the MS Word add-on. Poop!

testing an add-on tool

Blogging is a pretty neat thing. I am no where near in becoming a “blogger” that is consistent, but as new developments arise, it seems pretty clear that blogging is here to stay (for awhile anyway).

I’m submitting this post because I am running a quick test to see how the Microsoft Word add-on tool will work…

So, I’ll add a hyperlink (as above), and I’ll add a photo too (cropped in Word). I’m also aligning the text to the right of the image as opposed to ‘inline’.

Here’s to hopin’. If this works, I think I’ll use this tool as it will help me use the space for blogging a bit more efficiently. If it doesn’t work, then I guess I’m no worse off and I’ll keep doing what I’ve been doing.

a snapshot of little Susanna, Ashleigh, and myself at a friendly volleyball tournament/picnic (we won!).

finishing our basement

We've decided to finish our unfinished basement. Boy is it ever EXPENSIVE! We had entertained the notion that I would scrounge up some volunteers and try to finish it ourselves, save a bit o' money and have it be done when it gets done. But the idea of spending much of what little 'free' time I had was not very appealing. Not to mention that it might take me a LOOOONNNGGGGGG time to finish, and that I might not do a good job.

So we hired a contractor to do the job in a fraction of a fraction of the time -- hooray! They started on July 12 and quoted us completion in about 6 weeks. I know that they're not going to get it done in 6 weeks, but a couple of extended weeks aren't gonna matter much to us.

So here are 2 pics of what's going on down there (click on images to see larger image with descriptions):



More pics to come...

blogosphere

After a very quick google on 'blog statistics' here are 2 links that will shed some insight into how big the 'blogosphere' is:
http://www.blogcensus.net/
http://www.dijest.com/bc/

a phenomenon

I was just setting up my fantasy football blogspot (teamKESTRAL)... and realizing that I'm not much of a journaler, I found myself curious as to how these blogs will end up, say, in a year or 2 or 5 or 10. What an interesting phenomenon that so many people would open the door to their lives and share it - however much or little! (I've gotta look up some stats about this.)

Father's Day

Yesterday was Father's Day. It was my second Father's Day as a Dad -- Susanna's second as my daughter.

Seems that I have very little recollection of the first one. Susanna would have been about 9 months old then. Back then, I would have held her and she would have been relatively content with me...

Fast forward a year and things change DRAMATICALLY. (I'm sure things will continue to change dramatically over the course of our lives.) Perhaps it's a phase. Or maybe it's me. I'll have to wait it out and be patient... but it's mildly frustrating to see my own flesh and blood "dis" me. She woud prefer the comfort of Mom almost everytime. I know that it has more to do with the fact that her Mom spends most all of her time at home with her. I know that the intrinsic bond is there between mother and child. I know that there's even the female bond going on. So it's a bit of a stinker when both of us parents are standing around and Susanna calls up to her mom to be held and not me. I hurt inside when she'd choose something other than me. Maybe it's a phase, so I'll bide my time and wait for the "daddy's little girl" phase.

I wonder if this is how God might feel about us? If God is our Creator, and we choose other "stuff" over him, how hurt must he feel when we "dis" him?