actually - more like a jog/walk around my new neighborhood.

couldn’t sleep, so i got up around 5:30 and did some reading. then surfed the web a bit. still having lots of nervous energy and not wanting to wake up the rest of the house, i went for my first run since october. i am sure my feet will hate me later (still looking for the right arch support inserts), but it felt really good to get outside and experience the morning.

wildlife encountered:

4 bunnies (1 little baby, ahhhh cute)

4 squirrels

2 dogs (both inside, so i wasn’t chased, but one was angry)

1 deer

lots o’ birds singing

hopefully, i can start a new habit of waking up and briefly hitting the road.

Seth Godin, marketing guru, has really influenced my thinking. From how I should be dealing with those I work with, to the story we tell here at OHC - more than just about anyone else recently, Seth Godin has changed the way I think, and challenged me to be better at customer service and  the selling of an idea.

In particular,however, Seth has changed the way I think as a customer. I now have much higher expectations of vendors I deal with. And I am ruined.

Today I placed a call to get info on a product that I am going to buy. I have all ready decided that the acquisition of the product will be highly beneficial to how I operate. When I called to inquire about the product, namely price, I was put on hold. No problem. It was a pleasant experience, actually, with on hold music that wasn’t blowing some speaker cone somewhere and was clean and crisp in terms of audio quality. However, I never got through to a person. I was placed in someone’s voice mail and informed that the person’s mailbox would only be sporadically checked during her absence. This mailbox was designated for those wanting to become a customer. Not a good way to treat a potential client, in my opinion.

If the new customer person was out of the office, then why wasn’t someone else handling the call traffic? At the very least, talking to a person who would say, “Our normal new customer representative is currently away and will be returning on such and such a date. Can I help you with anything, or would you prefer to leave a message?”

This way, I wouldn’t have to save the info, adding another bookmark to an all ready cluttered list, spend the time waiting to call back when someone gets back into the office to ensure my question gets answerewd, or spend time looking up a competitor.

Now, I just annoyed that I have to wait for this miracle product and spending time blogging about it rather than doing my real job.

Thanks Seth.

p.s. Anyone know where I can get some velcro cable straps?

I made over fifty phone calls this week. I usually make about three.

Currently, I am running lights for a service.

Monday, I am selling a conference to another church, on my day off.

I have to write a script for July, and have it done by Tuesday.

Wednesday morning I am running an event for about 30 local church leaders. Then running audio for church in the evening.

Thursday, I hoping to get some scenery built.

Friday I am back to lighting design.

Saturday and Sunday - running lights and audio.

I think I multi-career personality disorder.

Wow - just finished  an intense few days of worship and learning at the Drive 08 conference, at Northpoint.

There was amazing teaching and slamming music. but my overall favorite experience was the staff of Northpoint. All three campuses - Alpharetta, Buckhead and Brown’s Ridge - were represented, and wow - did they bring it.

No question went unanswered. No room was closed to a tour. It was amazing. Maybe its just that southern hospitality thing - but I felt like  I had known these people for years after sitting with them for an hour.

Mad props to the Northpoint people.

And I met my blog hero. And he linked me on his blog. Yep. I have a blog crush on Carlos.

Now that I’ve had this awesome experience I have to ask, “Now what do I do?”

clipafriend.com

go there. give $5. build an orphanage

sucks.

must plan better this year . . .

Yesterday was my dad’s birthday. I have been thinking a lot about my father these days, as I continue the adventure of fatherhood myself.

It has taken me quite a bit of time to adjust to having a kid, especially in the decisions that get made for me. For example, I wanted to get some reading done the other night, but my child wanted to scream into my ear for a while, and scream louder when I put her down.  Now, I don’t holding a crying child, well, I don’t mind holding my own crying child. I’ll toss yours right back at you when it starts to cry - which is usually because I am holding it. I have an uncanny act for making babies cry. And women and men. <Mostly due to my awesome good looks and unnatural charm. Anyway.

I don’t think that my daughter is being selfish when she wants to be held, although she always wants to be held when I want to something else. But I do realize that when I was younger, I was really selfish. I didn’t recognize it at the time - really young kids don’t comprehend when they are being selfish - but I was selfish none the less.

Then I think about what my father must given up for me. All the times that I screamed, kicked, yelled for attention. I wonder how much more he could have accomplished, how much more fishing he could have done if he hadn’t had to run my all over the place for this activity or that. I think about how unselfishly he gave time, money, cars, advice, more money, education.

I think about how I hope I can live up to his example for my daughter, including always having to clean a gun when a boy came over to see my sister! I hope I can give to my little girl in the same selfless, yet not spoiling, manner as he gave to me.

Thanks, dad. And happy birthday.

Yesterday, reality hit me in the face.

I was confronted by someone I respect much, Gregg, about some comments I had made. To me, they were made in jest. To him, they were hurtful. These comments were not made face to face, but over an intercom system.

This brings a few things to mind:

I was completely unaware  of how the manner in which I was communicating was being received.

I can be a very insensitive jerk sometimes.

If it wasn’t for the other person confronting me, I’d have never known and would more than likely continue being snarky and insensitive.

So first off - Let me apologize publicly for being a jerk (I did seek forgiveness from Gregg personally). Gregg, sorry bro - didn’t mean to rub salt in the wounds. Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

Secondly, let me send out a blanket apology to anyone else that I may have offended along the way. More than likely, I am completely oblivious to the fact that I have offended. Please talk to me if I have, that i might be made aware of my mistake and begin to seek forgiveness from you.

Finally, I have a new mission now - to be more aware of my impact on others, and to be more positive so as to not poison those relationships that I cherish.

Recently, I was asked to share in a few minutes my life story. After listening to many others, and examining my own here is a summary:

I was never the prom king.

I wasn’t the homecoming king.

I wasn’t the star athlete.

I wasn’t a member of the popular crowd at school.

I wasn’t the smartest in my class (though I acted like it).

I drove a crappy, crappy car (after I wrecked the camaro).

I sported a mullet at one time.

All in all, I lived a pretty ordinary life - never the stand-out in any one area. But I have also:

Seen the sun rise and set in the Caribbean with no land around.

Heard Vivaldi in Vienna.

Felt the rush of performing in a play (or several).

Drank wine in Burgungy, France.

Drank (lots of) delicious beer in Germany.

Sang to God in St. Paul’s Cathedral and at Canterbury.

Got married surrounded by nature.

Witnessed the birth of my daughter (at least from around the curtain)

Heard a symphony in Prague.

The artist Jamie Cullum sings in the song Photogragh “When I look back at my ordinary, ordinary life - I’ve seen so much magic though I missed it at the time.”

I am so thankful for the magic in my ordinary life, and thankful that I haven’t missed it.

Here are some things I learned from watching the big race today:

1. Caution breeds caution. Announcer Darryl Waltrip uttered this phrase several times at the end of the race, which saw three cautions in the last ten laps. His point - all the scrambling for position after an accident often leads to more accidents.

2. Everything in America is for sale. Allergy drug company Claritin apparently owns the naming rights to the race restarts. Honestly, lots of money is being spent to get the Claritin name out there. How long before we see a church sponsor a car? I think Young Life sponsors a funny car, but let’s face it, the big viewership is in Nascar. C’mon, admit it. You’d love to see your church name on the hood of an 800 horsepower machine. I’d love to see the GotNoBlue Ford cross the finish line at Daytona. Question: would you be willing to accept corporate sponsorship of your ministry? The Viagra men’s ministry. High school club brought to you by Mountain Dew. Given how consumeristic America has become, this probably isn’t a bad approach.

3. Airing ads for another Larry the Cable Guy movie (really, another Larry movie?) during a race broadcast only reinforces the stereotype that Nascar fans are rednecks.

4. From the King (Richard Petty, if you don’t know): “All you can do is put yourself in a position to win. The circumstances will determine the outcome.” Are you putting yourself in a position to win? Whether it be in a personal struggle, project, or long term goal the best we can do is put ourselves in a position to win, and let God determine the outcome. It’s freeing to know that success only lies so much in what I do.

Well, that’s it for the race. Congrats to Ryan Newman on winning an exciting race.