Friday, November 23, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone’s Thanksgiving went well. Here are some highlights from ours.
Everyone gathered at my parents’ house which got crowded fast. Here is a pic of an assortment of aunts, uncles, cousins and grandmothers.


It was good to see Kait again (whom faithful blog readers and friends will remember is my cousin that lived with us last year). She is doing well and recently made the honor roll.

Long overdue, I borrowed my cousin’s skateboard and proved yet again that my athletic prowess knows no bounds. Don’t I look graceful?

The highlight of the day easily was spoon wrestling. If you aren’t familiar with this gag here is a video clip I found on youtube to see it in action.

Matt introduced me to this game in college. I usually played his accomplice. We even did this to one of our college professors once.
Basically 2 people are given spoons and told to face each other. One player will put his head downward (facing the floor) and the other will put the spoon in his mouth and hit the other player in the back of the head with it. They trade off hits until one gives up. This proves to be exceptionally hard to do with any force. This time I was the referee while my brother played against our new victim, my cousin Brandon. Here is the rub (its easier to understand to watch the video above)….Chris (my brother) was in on it and when it was his turn to hit Brandon I would grab another spoon from my back pocket and whack my cousin in the back of the head (pretty hard) and then slide it back in my pocket while he was still facedown and unable to see our little ruse. This inevitably proves frustrating for the victim because he is getting whacked pretty hard while being unable to counter his opponent with any real force. Always great family fun. Here is a pic although it isn’t a great shot.

On a side note, I was just reading an article on Slate about there being a new rally cry against “the secularization of Thanksgiving.” Much like a few years ago when the “War on Christmas” was in full fervor, the new focus is on Thanksgiving. I have one objection……I have never assumed Thanksgiving was a religious or Christian Holiday to begin with….therefore it would be hard to secularize it. I don’t even recall ever seeing a church do a special event for Thanksgiving. What do you think? Religious holiday or just another holiday?

Monday, November 19, 2007

Bible 2.0

Recently I have been using a new web-based application from Lifechurch.tv called YouVersion.
It’s an interactive online Bible. It’s a free resource that allows you to read the Bible on your computer in multiple translations, keep a on-line journal, and find supplemental resources (commentary, videos, etc) from others users. You can even create your own study group if you like. For me it’s been a great way to read the Bible in my downtime at work.
You can find out more here.

WWJ..B?

Morgan Spurlock (the guy who brought us Supersize Me) has a new movie out called “What Would Jesus Buy?” in which he tackles how consumerism has gotten completely out of control especially at Christmas. Part of the movie he follows a guy known as Reverend Billy who is a caricature of a charismatic televangelist who is rallying the cause of the consumer revolution. I am excited about this movie because I think it will force me (and hopefully others) to reevaluate how and why we shop.
You can find a great interview with Morgan here on the Relevant Magazine Podcast (one of my favorites). It’s about 18 minutes in for the interview.
You can also visit the official website for the movie here

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Small Dogma Publishing

Matt, blogger buddy and my college roommate, along with working on his doctorate and writing a few books, has also started a publishing company called Small Dogma. The website just launched. You can take a look here. I’m blown away by how he has grabbed life by the horns lately….and somehow now feel like a lazy bum.
Congrats Matty and good luck.

Kidneys for Sale

Recently I answered the phone from a number I didn’t recognize. The following is a paraphrased transcript.

John: Hello
X: Hi, this is _____ _____, may I speak to a Mrs. Pate (pronounced Pat)
John: No, you just missed her, is there anything I can help you with?
X: Just tell her that _____ is calling from the Kidney foundation
John: Oh, you are in luck….I’ve got a kidney
X: No, that’s alright sir
John: Matter of fact, I’ve got 2 and they’re just barely 30 years old. They’re awesome, I’ve never had any problems with them.
X: No sir, that’s alright
John: What do you mean….are you trying to say my wife has better kidneys than I do? That girl has had not 1 but 2 kidney infections.
X: (dailtone)

Now to the serious content that you all crave. This post on the Freakanomics blog discusses how the current kidney shortage (available for transplants) gives new life to the discussion of opening up the American market to kidney sales to raise the supply levels. It also even suggests that it might not burden the poor which is a popular belief but actually help the poor.

Friday, November 09, 2007

books on my radar

Here is a list of books that are in my queue to read next (not in any particular order).

Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis, and the Revolution of Hope. (brian mclaren)
A book that will definitely challenge and shape my world view.

Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade (david batstone)
The more I hear about this book, the more stirred I get about the movement. I recenltly listened to a podcast featuring the author and was blown away by the stories he told about human trafficking. When confronted with the truth about modern day slavery…its utterly abrasive to the soul. How is it that this largely goes unchecked…and unnoticed?



The Brothers Karamazov (fyodor dostoevsky)
Started reading this book last year and enjoyed it until I realized that I had mistakenly bought an abridged version. It felt like cheating….so I decided to start over with the uncut version.


The Pearl (john steinbeck)
One of my favorite fictional authors. I enjoy his stories on a multiple levels. His tales are composed of elements of faith, social justice, philosophy, and ethics, while still being enjoyable to read. The man was a master storyteller.


The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical (shane claiborne)
Shane founded the
Simple Way, and is becoming a revolutionary voice in the Christian community right now.

Searching for God knows What (donald miller)
I’m a big fan of Donald Miller. Compelling as an author and a speaker, he is a good blend of academia and humor.


Watership Down (richard adams)
Matt recommended this book to me once. I take his recommendations pretty seriously since he introduced me to Lord of the Rings in college.


God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything (christopher hitchens)
An atheist’s perspective on religion. A good literary diet is one that consists of books that you don’t agree with.


Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World (bill clinton)
Despite what you think about his politics….the guy is a gifted and charismatic communicator. You can find out more about the book’s concept from a talk recently given by former President Clinton here

People’s History of the United States: 1492 to Present (howard zinn)
Matt also recommended this one to me. Telling the story of US history from a different point of view than our textbooks, it may (as Matt declared) make you never want to celebrate Columbus Day again...although I am not sure I would go to work in protest.

the Mystery Christmas Gifts

Chrandy (my bro and his wife) were at the house the other night. Later in the evening Janelle and Mandy informed my brother and I that they had just purchased us the ultimate Christmas presents. They won’t tell us what it is…but with 7 weeks to go I’m betting they will crack prematurely.
Here are the clues so far:
1) It’s something for both my brother and I, but not something our wives will be included in
2) It can’t be immediately redeemed/enjoyed on Christmas day
3) It cost $63.50 each (that was let out of the bag by accident….see I told you they can’t keep this secret for another 7 weeks)

My guesses so far:
· A day at rodeo clown school
· A sweet pair of Heelys (but that doesn’t jive with clue #2)
· As a tribute to our honeymoon, a massage by a brawny Mexican woman with man hands

Any ideas?

halloween pics (the janelle version)

Janelle spread her creative wings and tweaked some of the pics from the slideshow posted last week. I think you will be as impressed as I was. Here are some of my favs:



de plane, de plane

Last weekend marked the inaugural flight of the r/c plane my parents got me for my birthday. My parents and Caden were there to witness my mad pilot skills. The plane survived the day but just barely. Despite my father’s protest I convinced him to take the controls….he then inadvertently flew the plane into a dense thicket like a heat-seeking missile. The result was quite a few dents and parts of the wings were dangling by a thread (generally not a good sign). A little scotch tape and some TLC nurtured the plane back to life. But dad is banned from flying the plane from now on if there is a tree/thicket with 1,000 yards.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

October Recap

  • We put in a offer on a house.....then we backed out.....now we are buying another one
  • a weekend trip to Ohio (by car, not by plane) for Jerry's surprise 60th birthday party
  • I got the wrong card from my grandmother
  • Patterson Farm
  • I turned 30....wow
  • I got a iPod
  • the 1st Pate yard sale
  • Cowboy Caden
  • Dana (Janelle's mom) was in town for a week...though we don't have a lot of pics to prove it.

Halloween Slideshow



The Poffs got Caden his costume this year. At first all I saw was a vest and chaps....so I thought it was supposed to be a stripper outfit....which was a little alarming. Thankfully it turned out to the start of some sweet cowboy digs.

1st Pate Yard Sale

With the big move coming up we thought it would be a good time to get rid of some of our accumlated horde of stuff.

caden and I are being helpful as usual

Hi strangers....take our crap

Posted by Picasa

Our homeless version of "Scared Straight"

Posted by Picasa

Who you looking at?

Posted by Picasa