Just Keep Swimming...

I received a nice little text message today...

Noticed you haven't blogged in awhile... Just making sure everything is ok??? :) Miss you.

How great. One of my five blog followers poked her head in, and I appreciate it (thank you, MA!).

So for the other 4 of you, I want you to know that I'm fine. Pretty darn great, in fact. But April and May have kept me on my toes, that's for sure...

Since I returned from my glorious spring break in Italy, I have gotten to be a part of so many cool things!

• Led a retreat for Single Ministry Leaders within the Free Methodist Conference of Southern California (FMCSC);
• Presented a seminar on "sustainable youth ministry" to the "Northern Lites" district of the Coastal Region (again, FMCSC);
• Taught a month-long series on ancient world civilizations that I titled "The 'Isms" at Providence Hall;
• Took a lovely day trip to San Luis Obispo with 3 amazing high school girls I've loved and met with regularly for three years ~ before they graduate and head out to Great Beyond;
• Consulted with a wonderful church in Seattle about their youth ministry, entering a 17-month project with them (and got to visit with some friends whom I love dearly after the consultation!);
• Published an article with YMToday on ministry and parenting with 5th/6th graders;
• Started a new coaching project with a 102-year old Free Methodist church in LA;
• Finished the Ism's with high school students and then taught the same series at church to adults, ranging in age from 20 to 75;
• Started another series with Providence Hall, this one framed around John Stott's final book, The Radical Disciple (pick it up ~ I really like it!);
• Saw my beloved Lakers completely muff this year's path to the playoffs (grrrrrrrrr!)
• Celebrated my best friend's birthday with a great dinner with her family and an incredible concert in Hollywood, seeing Slow Runner and William Fitzsimmons (do not pass up the opportunity if he appears near you);
• Picked up two more youth ministry consulting projects through Youth Ministry Architects (when it rains it pours!)
• Met with a pair of Cantonese Free Methodist pastors who are guiding a summer camp for neighborhood children;
• Just finished leading a retreat with this year's inaugural round of Summer Interns for FMCSC ~ I'm already in love with this bunch of talented and earnest young leaders.

PHEW. There it is. I cannot deny that I am ready for the 3 days of Memorial Weekend to recuperate, garden, read, sleep and relax. But these things have all been fulfilling, challenging and I consider each one a great privilege. Thanks for reading and caring.

I read these verses yesterday, and they sum it all up perfectly. Life is good.

¹ Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
² Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
³ He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
⁴ He redeems me from death
and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
⁵ He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s! (Psalm 103:1-5)

The 90's are Back... or Whatever

I have mentioned a podcast I listen to weekly (NPR All Songs Considered), and they came through with a TREMENDOUS show this week...

If you are a child of the 90's (as are many of my friends) or you are too young (blast you!) but love so many of the songs from this era (grunge? hip hop? alternative? rap? strong female vocalists?), set aside 90 minutes, put the kids to bed, put on some good headphones and follow your bliss as you enjoy this link. Yes, there is a panel of commentators on this podcast, but they are FANS, so I didn't find them annoying. And then you hear music from Jeff Buckley, Nirvana, Neutral Milk Hotel, Collective Soul, Radiohead, Lauryn Hill... I must stop. There are so many.

(Fun extra: they have all the original videos on this link as well... stroll down MTV memory lane and have a good laugh.)

February Favorites 2011

This holiday weekend has been wonderfully relaxing and full of favorite things... some of them won't surprise you... cooking, riding my bike (had an especially fun ride getting drenched to the bone on Saturday), reading on the couch with a latte close by, and watching NBA Basketball (the All-Star Game Dunk Contest was insane this year).

But to drill down a bit deeper, here are some of the specific things that I am enjoying these days...

• Abuelita Chocolate: I've picked up the new habit of dissolving 1/8 tablet of Abuelita Mexican chocolate in my milk before I steam it for a minute in the microwave... then I pour in my espresso that I brew on my stove, a habit I started after my first visit to Italy in 2006. This makes the BEST mocha I have ever had. Period.
• The Cloister Walk: I picked this up at the Borders closeout downtown before it closed. I'm fascinated by Benedictine spirituality, and this book profiles Kathleen Norris' 9-month experience worshiping with Benedictines. A good, creative read. Next book on the list to read is one I received for my birthday: The Blue Parakeet.
• The Prayer Circle: My friend Megan turned me on to this album. I don't know I missed it when it first came out in 1999, but this album is transcendent. It's called "A Choral Symphony in 9 Movements." I put this on when I'm writing a lesson for my Foundations class at Providence Hall or just writing a long letter to a friend. Put it on, sit on the couch and close your eyes. Absolutely lovely.
• Fleet Foxes ~ "Helplessness Blues": Go to this link and download the song. The harmonies, the lyrics, the production of it is beautiful. It sort of reminds me of old Simon & Garfunkel stuff, but it's also brand new.
• "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars: No apologies here... occasionally a pop song gets in my head and goes on "repeat." I am addicted to this song.
  
• My Dansko clogs: Oh my heart. These things are a dream. I wear them EVERYWHERE. My poor housemate was so sick of seeing my one pair that she got me another pair for my birthday.
  
• Cottage Cheese Pancakes: I found this recipe in December, and I still am making them at least once a week. With raspberries, they are ridiculous.
• The Book of Hebrews in The Message: I am using the devotional Common Prayer, and am currently in the Book of Hebrews. There is such good news in this book. Read it and smile with joy, relief, and praise.
• My cat Oliver. Recently my friend Cameron mocked me for not blogging lately about my kitten. Have no fear, I'm not done talking about my fuzzy friend.

Music as Memory

I'm listening to my favorite NPR podcast, All Songs Considered. This particular episode is an interview of Jonsi Birgisson from Sigur Ros. The host Bob Boilen sometimes invites popular artists to be guest DJ's, selecting songs that have had a huge impact on their lives.

This episode is part DJ, part Q&A. I like several of the questions that Boilen asked, and basically wanted to ask myself some of these questions :) Because music is touchstone for me. Especially from childhood, but also jr high and college, I often don't have distinct memories full of details... but I remember songs I liked at various points in the past. Strange perhaps?

(I'm including a photo from my freshman year of high school. I spent two hours every day on my hair, counting shower time and blow dry.)

I'm taking some of the questions from this interview, which also spawned some questions of my own. Feel free to write your own replies to any of them.

What is your first musical memory? I remember listening to vinyl albums in our family room. In a life that was tightly controlled in many ways, we were given surprising freedom in terms of music. We could pull out all of our parents' albums, and play them on the turntable as much as we wanted. I have no memory of being told to turn the music down either. We listened to Simon & Garfunkel, Beatles (especially Revolver), Barbra Streisand, The Band, Carole King, Three Dog Night, Jim Croce, Bill Withers, Helen Reddy... When I hear anything from Simon & Garfunkel's Bridge Over Troubled Water, I can immediately picture every piece of furniture, every feeling, every word from that album.

Did you listen to music on the radio growing up? Most definitely. Back in the day, the main way everyone listened to music was still AM Top 40. You were basically not allowed to go to jr high unless you listened to KFRC out of San Francisco, 610 on the dial. We all listened to Dr. Don Rose as we got ready in the morning and when we were driven in the car to school. If you were really daring, you would sneak a listen to KOME. I won't repeat the slogans they used. Ridiculous. I still can't believe what they got away with....

I would also remember we would tape songs onto cassettes off the radio, and make mix tapes out of this. Even with the DJs introducing each song and cutting back in at the end. How goofy.

Every single person I knew memorized all the lyrics to American Pie by Don McLean. I think the song was 8 minutes long, which was unheard of back then in the era of 2 and 3 minute songs on AM pop radio.

Did you buy music? You bet. Absolutely. I would save up my allowance to buy 48's at the record store. This started young -- at Tower Records in Sacramento, around 4th and 5th grade, and then at some record store I can't remember when we moved to the Bay Area. I remember buying singles by Stevie Wonder, Jackson 5, Three Dog Night, Dawn (Knock Three Times!), Paul McCartney & Wings, Grand Funk, John Denver, Earth Wind & Fire, Commodores... gosh. Just seeing those names sends me.

First song you slow danced to? Stairway to Heaven, Led Zeppelin, 7th grade dance, Bobby Thompson. I was wearing a blue and red velcro dress with Cherokee platform shoes. I'm laughing at this mental picture.

First albums you bought with your own money?

• Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Elton John
  
• "The Song Remains the Same" soundtrack, Led Zeppelin
• Boston, Boston
  
• The Stranger, Billy Joel
• The Best of Earth, Wind & Fire, Vol. 1
  
• anything anything anything by James Taylor

Yes, I had rather eclectic musical tastes. To say the least.

First concert? This is my favorite party question to this day. You learn a lot about people when you ask it.

My first real concert, on my own with a friend, was in 1977 at the Oakland Coliseum, called "Day on the Green." 50,000 people in attendance, and the acts were The Outlaws, Santana, Peter Frampton and Lynyrd Skynyrd. My best friend Wendy and I were possibly the only two sober people in the entire stadium. We sat on the grass, and I feel like we were at the most 100' away from the stage. I got a horrible sunburn and truly discovered the power of rock 'n roll. Half hour of Freebird. Oh yeah.

Main songs at your prom? Again, a stroll down 70's memory lane... Brick House, Best of My Love, September, Once Twice Three Times a Lady and of COURSE, Always & Forever.

Top songs in the dorms, freshman year of college?

• Rock Lobster, B-52's
• Everything from Off the Wall, Michael Jackson
• Another Brick in the Wall, Pink Floyd
• Come Sail Away, Styx
• Everybody Has a Hungry Heart, Bruce Springsteen
• Train Kept a Rollin', Aerosmith (because the guys below us were idiots and played it every night)

Enough for now. The memories keep coming, but for some reason the earlier ones really burn into my brain in a different way. My memories become more formed and distinct starting in college. Music is there, but more as soundtrack than as the main dialogue that I recall. What about you?

Summer Selections

It's a bee-YOO-ti-ful day outside, and I plan on enjoying it very soon. But I wanted to check in and shoot off my mouth a bit about things that I really like.

Please feel free to share your favorites as well.

Life is good, full of small and sweet pleasures that I enjoy...

• Date Almond Rolls with Coconut from Lassens Foods
• Organic Strawberry Spread from Costco on Brown Rice Cakes (don't knock it till you try it)
• Avocados - at any time of day
• Bike rides -- to the Mission, Lake Los Carneros, Campus Point, on errands
• Scooter rides! especially with a friend in back, feeling summer on your face
• Andy Shauf - sort of a cross between Sondre Lerche (Dan in Real Life soundtrack dude) and Sufjan Stevens
• Tour de France on TV in the morning while I am drinking coffee and eating breakfast
• The Book of Joshua
• Fresh produce from Fairview Gardens -- strawberries, yellow squash, basil, cucumbers, tomatoes

But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. (Psalm 73:28)

Thanks for being part of my grace-filled life. Feel free to share your own top summer selections.