So every once in a while Ben Crawshaw or Clay Scroggins over in Student Ministries ask me to do some music tracks for them. I do the music, they write a rap, and good times are had by all.
It’s usually a “sounds-like” or “inspired-by” type of project, and they’re a ton of fun to do, even if I end up doing it at Midnight with my gear spread out across my kitchen table…
So here’s a music video they made of one song recently for camp, featuring Ben and his buddy J-Mac. The theme of the camp was Vegas, hence the blackjack theme.
(Interesting… Maybe gambling with your future depending on the decisions you make? I don’t know, or ask. I just create the music, kids…)
Anyway, this track was inspired by a Flight of the Conchords track. Enjoy…
Michael and Ashley (my sister) are in town this week. Michael’s leading worship on Sunday, and so he and Ashley came down for rehearsal last night and are hanging for the weekend.
So you get the four of us sitting in our microscopic living room late at night (WAY past our bedtime!) watching SNL reruns on the DVR, add in some of our favorite YouTube clips, Ashley’s under-baked ginger snaps, giant bars of dark chocolate, RM, Spicy Guacamole Pringles, and some long-day-delirium and you’ve got the recipe for a good time.
So check out a few of our new favorite funny YouTube clips:
This product is a miracle, and the Moreton family patriarch, Jerry, has become Master of the Egg.
The food that comes off the Big Green Egg is second to none. Better than anything in any restaurant - anywhere!
It’s made of thick ceramic, seals when closed, and functions simultaneously as a grill, smoker and oven, allowing one to cook the most succulent meats imaginable.
This thing is amazing.
Jerry even did last year’s Thanksgiving turkey in the Egg, and we all agreed it was the best turkey any of us had ever tasted. Moist, juicy, incredible.
From fine cuts of meat to the simplest chicken breast, the Egg rivals all…
But last Sunday, on - of all days - Father’s Day, something horrible happened…
Yes - a member of the family, via a loose screw, was decapitated.
We were all in shock and awe, and felt horrible for Jerry, as the Egg is his passion.
Plus, Kelly’s birthday dinner is this upcoming Sunday, and she had requested Kabobs on the Egg - a request that looked impossible to grant.
But, after some research, Jerry has found out that the now defunct lid can be replaced.
So…. Please be in prayer for Jerry, Kelly, the rest of our family, and, of course, the Egg as Jerry attempts to purchase the replacement “head” to Humpty Dumpty tomorrow…
“What kind of monitors do you have on your desk? I have been looking for something small like that, and affordable, but at the same time, not just the local blue light special. There are a few other people in my office building, and my office isn’t exactly soundproof. The iMac speakers aren’t good to mix on, but the Genelec monsters would be too much. The size you have look like they would be a good balance. Any thoughts?”
I actually researched and found these speakers as a result of that same exact problem!
They’re great sounding, especially thanks to the subwoofer. The highs are crisp and the lows are rich, even at low volumes, without sounding artificial.
I’m a big fan of BlueSky products, and these live up to the company’s reputation. These are very good sounding speakers - provided you use them as they were intended: Near field/desktop monitoring.
BUT… The coolest thing about this system is the built-in mixer box thingy that sits on your desk. The main little control box simultaneously receives:
2 - 1/4″ inputs (R/L stereo) (I use these for my Pro Tools Mbox)
2 - RCA inputs (R/L stereo)
Stereo 1/8″ jack
The unit has separate volume and subwoofer controls, as well as a headphone jack, that, when inserted, overrides the speakers. Cool for offices…
The only reason this system gets 4 out of 5 is because the system buzzes when I’m using the 1/8″ jack hooked up to my laptop’s headphone output, and if I have a Firewire hard drive connected.
Fortunately that’s a rare combination. Maybe it’s some sort of grounding issue or something. Weird.
BOTOM LINE:
I wouldn’t trust a final mix on them, since the bass can be so easily compromised due to the size of your room and where you manually choose to set the subwoofer level.
They are, however, a great option for high quality listening in small desk areas or for casual listening in a small room.
So we’re getting kicked out of our cubes and offices…
Our Middle School program has exploded over the years, and there’s just not enough small group spaces for them on Sunday mornings.
So, in order to aid that need, the remaining main building offices are being renovated into small group rooms.
Basically that means that a few dozen people (including me!) are having to move out of our offices and work in some temporary spaces for the next few months. Then, by the end of summer, some of us will take residence in some newly created spaces, and others will move to our rented office space across the parking lot.
(NOTE: the majority of our staff is already in that facility. Only Children/Student ministries, some of the Resources staff and us in the Service Program Division still have offices in the main church building.)
It’s actually very easy. Simply find the desired song on the iTunes Store, and right-click. (On a Mac you can Ctrl-click). A little menu will pop up, and select “Copy iTunes Store URL“.
You can then paste that as your link, assuming you’re comfortable with creating links in your particular blog platform.
Here’ a Hyperlink 101 for you newbies out there.
I’m using iTunes for this example, although you can copy any Web Site address (URL). I’m also going to show you the steps using the WordPress Web-based editor, although the general concept is common to all blog systems’ Web editors and 3rd party external editors.
Personally, I use Ecto as my external editor - it’s a lot easier than the Web-based editor. But that’s just my preference.
Step 1 - Copy:
Copy the Web address (URL) for the desired file or Web page.
Step 2 - Text:
Write! Create! Vent! Whatever…
Step 3 - Highlight:
Highlight the text you want to have linked:
Step 4 - Hyperlink Button:
Find the “Hyperlink” button to select that option…
Close up - it usually looks like a chain:
Step 5 - Paste Link:
(+V) for Mac or (Ctrl+V) for PC are great Paste shortcuts!
Before Paste:
After Paste:
That’s it! You’re done! Now your text should automatically be a different color, indicating that it is now a hyperlink:
…….
And links are not just for blogs! They can be used in emails, Word and Excel documents - all kinds of stuff!
So The Avenue Forsyth is this cool new shopping area that just opened half way between work and home. The big deal, at least for me, is the new AMC theater complex.
Jennie and I went on a date night last Friday, and found 3 especially cool things:
#1 - The coolest watch ever…
It’s by NIXON, and retails for $355.00.
So I won’t be getting that. Ever.
# 2 - A store called “Relax The Back” - completely dedicated to your back. Massage chairs, posture chairs, mattresses and pillows, massagers - you name it.
So we “unwound” in the big vibrating massage chairs until the sales guy started hounding us…
And # 3 - the AMC Theaters. They are incredible.INCREDIBLE!!Best movie experience of my life. And it’s just down the road…
Check out this part of the press release:
“AMC Avenue Forsyth 12 is the first all-digital theater in the area and has Sony 4K digital cinema projectors that create images with more than four times the resolution of HDTV. Two auditoriums have screens that are more than three stories high and 50 feet wide.
The complex will have 12 auditoriums with more than 2,200 seats that feature “rocking” backs and lifting cupholder armrests. The auditoriums also will have stadium seating with 18-inch risers and 48-inch row spacing for unobstructed views.”
WOW!The quality of the picture and audio, size of the screen and comfort of the chairs is second to none.
I’m sure my “score” would have been quite different 10 or 15 years ago.
I wonder what it will be 10 or 15 years from now…
I actually just took the quiz 3 times, and my results changed after doing some research on some of the people’s names and their theologies, and thinking a little longer about some topics. First I was Evangelical Holiness, then Emergent/Postmodern, and finally…
What’s your theological worldview?
You scored as a Reformed Evangelical
You are a Reformed Evangelical. You take the Bible very seriously because it is God’s Word. You most likely hold to TULIP and are sceptical about the possibilities of universal atonement or resistible grace. The most important thing the Church can do is make sure people hear how they can go to heaven when they die.
Reformed Evangelical
79%
Fundamentalist
75%
Emergent/Postmodern
71%
Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan
68%
Neo orthodox
64%
Charismatic/Pentecostal
61%
Classical Liberal
50%
Modern Liberal
25%
Roman Catholic
21%
Ohhh, my Charismatic friends are going to be miffed….
Hey kids - the Stat-O-Matic is less than 400 away from 20,000 !!!
That means that early next week, or even this weekend, YOU could be the lucky 20,000th viewer and receive a lovely Claxton Fuitcake and assortment of Potpourri in a lovely gift basket.
I have been slacking with congratulating each thousandth viewer, so let me catch up…
12,000
John Belush
13,000
Andy Kaufman
14,000
Gilda Radner
15,000
Danitra Vance
16,000
Michael O’Donaghue
17,000
Chris Farley
18,000
Phil Hartman
19,000
Charles Rocket
Alrighty super sleuths - what do these people have in common???
), this one’s kind of fun….
