I Hate Commercials...

So anyone who knows me knows that I hate TV commercials. I have been known to mute the TV whenever commercials come on just because they are like sandpaper rubbing against my soul. The very purpose of commercials is to try to convince you to buy things that you often don't even need in the first place.

Now there are some commercials that are pretty funny. Take, for instance, that new Master Card spot with Peyton Manning. I love the humor in it.

Busboy: "You're going down, Manning."
Manning: "That's right, I am. Fourth floor. Gonna get a massage."

Hotel Maid: "Take a hike."
Manning: "You know, I think I will. The weather here is sweet!!"

This commercial always makes me laugh. But to me, the ultimate purpose of a commercial is to sell a product or service. And another benchmark of a good commercial is that you know what product or service is being marketed and you can associate the ad with the product.

This Manning commercial is funny, but I fail to grasp how it makes me want to use a Master Card. And I would not have associated Master Card with that commercial if it weren't for their slogan and logo at the end.

Which brings me to my rant for today...

What the heck is this???



I saw this commercial a couple of times during the BCS bowl games and could not for the life of me figure out what product they are advertising here. Can anyone guess just from watching this commercial what product or service is being advertised?

If you guessed Gatorade, you are right. In a new marketing campaign, Gatorade is remodeling their image for reasons that I don't quite understand. I watched this commercial about 10 times during the BCS and still had no idea what the heck this "G" was. The only way I found out was I happened across an article on the web that was talking about the commercial and this new Gatorade marketing campaign.

Now, I'm no marketing expert, but from a consumer standpoint, it is probably a good idea for advertisements to always inform the consumer of a few key points of information:

1) What is the product you are trying to sell?
2) Why would I want to buy it?

If I can't determine these two things in the first 10 seconds of a commercial, then you've lost me. So great job, Gatorade. You've lost me.

And just how did they get Jackie Robinson on there anyways?

Snow Day!!!

So today, I got a rare snow day and got to stay home from work! It's only happened a couple times since I've started working here in Cincinnati. All the local schools around here had closed for the last three days, but today I finally got to join in on the fun!

This is what it looked like outside my front door today. The bad weather rolled in yesterday afternoon and just kept coming. We got freezing rain last night and I had to chip the ice off of my car just to drive back home from work. Yuck!!

Then this morning, I got a call saying that my office building didn't have power. So they told everyone to stay home today! Sweet! It's just like being back in school when they would cancel for bad weather!

So what should I do with my time off? Do laundry? Work on my taxes? Take down my Christmas tree? All good options, but none that I feel like doing on a "free day." Instead, I'll play some PS2, watch some TV, and even write a blog about it!

Speaking of watching TV... so normally I don't watch much TV anymore. I'm way too busy for that. But recently, Julie has got me hooked on "The Biggest Loser." We happened to watch it together a few weeks ago and now I can't resist it! I had DVR'd this week's episode from last night and watched it today. So for those of you who haven't seen it yet, consider this a spoiler alert.

With all the truly bad TV shows on nowadays that reward greed and selfishness, "The Biggest Loser" is definitely a breath of fresh air. The people on the show are genuine folks who just have trouble taking care of themselves. I've never seen a show like this where all the contestants truly care for each other and genuinely want to help each other better themselves.

I hate watching the end of the show when one of the teams is voted off. You grow to like everyone on the show and you hate that some of them have to go. Like this week, it came down between Ron and Mike (a father/son combo who are both really great guys) and Dan and David (two teenage friends who both weighed around 400 lbs when the show started). You don't want to see either of these teams have to leave because they all need it so much. You can just see the self-esteem and confidence building in them each week.

But Dan and David got the axe this week in a close finish. After the show, they showed that Dan (who started out at 454 lbs) had lost 101 lbs to date. That is amazing! Here is a kid who decided to take control of his life and make a change for the better. He is truly an inspiration for millions of overweight teens everywhere! This is TV that is worth watching!! Not like shows like "The Bachelor" where people play each other week after week all for the chance at winning a large sum of money.

I think that if more shows were like "The Biggest Loser," it would be a good step towards people actually caring a little bit more about each other and less about themselves.

But I still think that parts of the show are fixed for ratings. It seems to me no coincidence that Joelle was spared from being voted off last week. I think the producers wanted to keep her in the game to boost ratings, since she has had some very lively interactions with Bob (the trainer) and others. Plus, this last week, they had the Super Bowl challenge and brought on guest Kurt Warner, quarterback of the Arizona Cardinals. Now my question is, if this show was filmed over the summer, how on earth did they "by chance" select Kurt Warner to be a guest on the show? Somehow it is all a coincidence that Warner just happens to be leading the Arizona Cardinals in the Super Bowl this weekend against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Don't get me wrong... I have nothing but respect for Kurt Warner, what he has done, and how he gives glory back to God. But it is a strange coincidence, no? I mean, Warner was not even named the starting QB until after training camp. And on top of that, the Arizona Cardinals had not been to a Super Bowl since, what, like 1942?

I smell a conspiracy between the NFL and NBC...

A New Hallelujah...

So this weekend, I had a pretty cool thing happen...

I finally graduated from the RAFFA Discipleship School!

That's right! It's now been almost two years since The Lord brought Brother Larry into my life and I sit in awe at what God has accomplished in me since then.

When I think back to where I was before RAFFA, I can't believe how little I actually knew about who God was. I'm not talking about knowing things about God, but rather I am talking about knowing him personally. As a person. As my Heavenly Father.

Enrolling in the school was probably the best decision I've ever made in my life. Which is ironic, because I really didn't even make it myself. That night back in May of 2007, when Brother Larry came to Cincinnati and spoke about the school, I felt The Lord telling me that I needed to enroll. So I took a leap of faith and I am so glad that I did!

I can't even begin to describe the changes The Lord has brought about in my life through Brother Larry and through the RAFFA school. The school teaches you how to develop and nourish a personal and intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father. And for me, The Lord used the school to teach me about myself too. Who I truly am in Him. He has brought me healing, identity, purpose, and joy unspeakable!

It's funny now to look back at who I used to be. My friends will all tell you about the changes they've seen in me. And I've noticed them more lately too. The old me who used to grumble and complain about everything, and who used to feel so guilty, shameful, and unworthy of God's love whenever I didn't quite meet His standards, and who used to worry so much about my future and what other people thought about me... that person is gone!! I am a new creation! And I am a son of God, the same God who is the creator of the entire universe! I finally understand what it truly means to be "born again" and to die to yourself daily to be able to walk with Christ.

The Lord has liberated me and I have never felt better! He has healed past heartaches and pains, brought me courage and confidence, and He is still working on me and molding me into a powerful man of God! I know that someday soon, He will use me in a powerful way to bring glory to Him and His Kingdom! Hallelujah! Glory to God. Glory to God forever!!

We had the graduation ceremony Friday night, complete with homemade dinner. The dinner was excellent and it was great to spend such a great evening with my close friends and my brothers and sisters in Christ. I was pretty excited that Julie decided to come with me to the graduation ceremony. The school has meant a lot to me because of the changes God has brought to my life through it. And it was all the more special to have her there with me. We posed for this great photo.

I think that our photos together get better every time!

So since I have now been through the RAFFA school, I am starting to see some cool things that God is doing in our church and in the community. People are being drawn to Christ and their lives are being changed forever. Even so-called "veteran" Christians are experiencing God at a whole new level or for some such as myself, in a whole new way. People are serving and showing love to the community and our worship is off-the-charts awesome! God is clearly making Himself known in this church and He is going to use His church to revolutionize the world. Cincinnati is only the beginning. Get ready for a new hallelujah!

The Lord has really been putting this song on my heart right now. Maybe because He is allowing me to see what He is doing in the church and community. But it is so appropriate. There is indeed rising up a new generation of followers who are not going to settle for their parent's "religion." They want to know our God in a much more personal and intimate way, the way it was intended to be. And this new generation will rise to a new song. A new hallelujah. And I think it is happening right here in our church, right before our very eyes!

This song just reminds me of the folks who have been through the RAFFA school. God has allowed every one of them to break out as new children of freedom. And He has strategically placed Brother Larry and the RAFFA school close to our church for a reason. I think He will grow our church into a model of what He originally intended the church to be, which is the very bride of Christ. And I could not be more excited!!

_____________________________________

"A New Hallelujah"

Can you hear, there's a new song
Breaking out from the children of freedom
Every race and every nation
Sing it out, sing a new Hallelujah!

Let us sing love to the nations
Bringing hope of the grace that has freed us
Make Him known and make Him famous
Sing it out, sing a new Hallelujah!

Chorus:
Arise!
Let the church arise!
Let love reach to the other side
Alive! Come alive!
Let the song arise!

Flowers, Joel McHale, MLK, and JT...

So let me just say that this last weekend was really awesome!!

Let me first lay the background...

Back around Christmas, I was surfing around online and happened to notice that Joel McHale (stand-up comedian, host of "The Soup") was going to be performing live in Cincinnati on Sunday night, January 18th. Knowing that Mr. McHale is one of Julie's favorite comedians (we watch "The Soup" together often and laugh hysterically), and that we would both have the following Monday off of work for MLK day, I went ahead and ordered tickets. But I didn't tell Julie about it. I only told her that I had a "special evening out on the town" planned and that she would have to wait to find out what it was. I'm so sneaky, I know. But it's part of nurturing romance in a relationship ;-)

So, I decided to inform her of our plans for the evening in a special way. I decided to send her some flowers and include the tickets in the envelope along with a card.

Let me just say that it worked out extremely well! Julie was so surprised! I had the flowers delivered to her school on Friday afternoon and she was called down to the office to pick them up. But she didn't know why she was being called down until she got there. She was so excited to get flowers and an envelope with two tickets to the Joel McHale show! Her principal, secretaries, and fellow teachers were so jealous. I guess that guys don't send flowers often to women that work in that school. So, I was an instant celebrity among all the female teachers and staff!

Even Julie's students were impressed. The girls in her class asked if they could come up and smell the flowers. The students were asking her if the flowers were from her boyfriend or her husband. And one girl even asked if the flowers were from Martin Luther King, Jr!! Priceless. Needless to say, it made Julie's day (and week)!! And she called me Friday evening to tell me. It was great to hear her voice and her level of excitement!

I thought that the flower arrangement itself looked really good. Of course, I picked out the roses, the vase, and the card. But the florist did a great job with the filler. It looked great! It was perfect.

So then I spent Saturday at Julie's place just hanging around with her. We were both fasting on Saturday as part of our church's current series. So even though we were hungry, we were in it together. That was nice because we could give each other support. We spent most of the day playing Mario Galaxy on her Wii and listening to some great new music. And of course, we watched "The Soup."

We also had a chance to be a little silly. Maybe it was the lack of food or whatever. But I was sort of chilly at her place, having just a t-shirt on. So Julie offered me one of her hoodie sweatshirts to wear. I tried it on and it fit me surprisingly well! I could definitely tell that it was a woman's shirt though, because of the cut. It was a little shorter than a guy's shirt would be and of course it accentuated my hourglass figure. haha! But Julie thought it looked good on me.

So then yesterday was the big night. Going to see Joel McHale!! He was really good. Maybe a little raunchy at times, but I guess that's to be expected with most stand-up comedians. But he had some great jokes concerning Britney Spears, his two sons, and of course his arch-nemesis Ryan Seacrest. Most of which were hilarious, but probably a little too "adult" for this blog.

All in all, it was an awesome weekend! I'm looking forward to spending more great times with JT in the future!!

Can't Wait for Spring...

I can't wait for spring this year!!

Normally, spring is great for the usual reasons... warmer weather and of course the start of another baseball season!

But this year, it will be extra special because I get to use my new Christmas present! I got a new bike as part of my Christmas this year!!

So let me just say that finding a bike these days is a lot harder than I thought!! Remember the days when you were a kid and you could just walk into Wal-Mart and get a kid's bike for like $40? Well, now that I'm an adult, those days are long gone!! I had no ideas bikes were so expensive!!

So my parents came down last weekend and we started our bike search at Montgomery Cyclery. Big mistake!! You know it's bad when the cheapest bike in the whole store is $400! The guy even showed me a custom racing bike that was only $5,999. That's right... a bike for almost $6,000!! I could go and buy a used car for less than that! Don't get me wrong, it was a very nice bike. It had a custom-made carbon fiber frame and everything. But since I'm not a millionaire, I chose to pass. So after politely telling the service rep that the bikes he showed me were a little out of my price range, we left to look elsewhere.

Our next stop... Wal-Mart! Probably where we should have gone to begin with. But the selection at Wal-Mart was lacking. They had plenty of kid's bikes, but not anything I wanted. So, we compromised and went to Dick's Sporting Goods. Again, they had a lot of bikes between $200 and $600. Still a little pricey.

We finally found one at Dick's that was on sale for $150. I figured that we probably weren't going to find a better deal. So I got the bike and a new helmet to protect my noggin!! It is pretty sweet though. It has 21 speeds, handle-bar breaks (makes me feel all grown-up), shocks, pegs, ... LUCKY!!! This spring, I'm totally looking forward to riding around the neighborhood, hopefully shedding a few pounds from my man-gut, and getting like 3 feet of air on some sweet jumps!!

As for the rest of the weekend, the parents came down and spent last Friday night and part of Saturday here. We did the whole "meet the parents" thing with Julie. I treated everyone to a nice dinner at Montgomery Inn. My parents had never been there, but my dad loved the ribs! Plus, he looked so good in his bib! But Julie seemed to handle the meeting the parents thing very well. And I think everyone had a good time.