Please Come Home For Christmas...

Well... It's official. According to the shelves in retail giant, Wal-Mart, Christmas season started today. I feel like, when I was a kid, stores didn't put out their Christmas stuff until the day after Thanksgiving. And now, it's out a full two holidays in advance. What ever happened to good old fashioned holiday patience...

Feelings... Nothing More Than Feelings...

Here's a little peek (via this awesome blog) into my heart right now...

Did I Just See...

I had to go to Fashion Valley today to pick something up at the Apple Store. And... I saw some weird things.

You know how people used to tie shoelaces together and throw them over some powerlines to be mean? Well have you ever heard of someone tieing a shoelace and a pan together and throwing it over some powerlines? Yeah... Me neither. That's why I was utterly confused to see this:

Yeah... somewhere in San DIego is someone wishing they had their shoe... and their pan.

And then, in the parking garage, I saw another take on the Jesus fish auto decal. I've never seen this one before, so I got a good laugh.

Oh how I love religious satire as depicted in pewter automobile decals...

Body Double 16: Marko... Polo...

If I had a DeLorean that I could use to go back in time, I would take advantage of the opportunity, nay, the blessing, to visit historically significant people and ask them to borrow money. Just kidding. I'd loan them money at a reasonable interest rate so that I could take advantage of their financial ignorance. ...Which means that I could never visit any historically significant bankers. ...Not that I know of any.

Anyway, all of that to say, if I went back in time to vist Marko, I think that I would be greeted with a youth ministry rookie that looks just like Mike Lovato. And then I would tell him about how bad Michigan's season is going.

I think we've got a body double...

I Now Have the Strength of a Grown Man and a Little Baby...

Tonight is the night! We finally get to see what happened on Jim and Pam's date! I can't wait! T minus 10 hours, 14 minutes...

10 Seconds In the Microwave...

I moved into my present residence (or "presidence") at the end of October 2006. With the new location, came the discovery that every new apartment has pros and cons. However, I thought that this particular apartment had far more pros than cons. One particular pro that I was excited about, was the close proximity (less than a mile) to a Krispy Kreme. But, much to my disappointment, it closed the week before I moved in. Editor's Note: Don't worry. It's now a Del Taco. But, last night, joy was brought back into my clogged little heart...

Last night, an entire dozen of delicious "O's" was given to me. But not just any dozen. A fresh dozen.

God is good... All the time...

Keep On Truckin'...

I took this picture outside of Best Buy this afternoon. As I walked back to my Xterra, I couldn't help but notice how the sun was blocked out by this mountain of machinery: the Chevy Kodiak 4500. I immediately felt overtaken by the awe and wonder of a little boy staring up at an elephant at the circus. Could you imagine how mush it would cost to fill this monster up with gas?

I would just like to point out that, right in front of the truck-zilla, is another Nissan Xterra. Yes, it is half the size of the beast...

Do You, You Got Any Gum...

Last week, someone asked me, "What's your dream job?" Now, some people, when asked this question, would feel "put on the spot". They would have to take some time to think about it, as a dream is something that must be carefully considered. Lucky for me, I've spent so much time thinking about this, that I already have an answer prepared.

I want to be the host of The Late Show.

Perhaps I should clarify. I don't want to be David Letterman. I want to be me, hosting The Late Show.

There's a whole list of reasons why I would want to do this, as well as a list of reasons why I think I'd be really good at it. But that's not what this post is about.

I think if you were to ask former or present coworkers of mine "What are some things that stick out about Josh?", you would hear from each of them that I like to talk. Be it conversational or instructional in nature, I love it. And, I think, I'm pretty good at it. That's why this weekend was so frustrating to me.

You see, Friday night was fairly normal. I went, with some friends, to a house that one of them was housesitting and ate some delicious food, watched a few episodes of It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and then baked brownies. We talked, we laughed, we (or more specifically, I) hurt from all of the lactose in the ice cream that we ate with the brownies. And then, Saturday morning came.

I went to bed Friday night with all of my abilities in tact. Saturday morning, however, brought with it the discovery that I had lost my voice. No sickness or soreness in my throat to warn me of my impending muteness. Just the absence of the ability to verbally communicate. Which wouldn't have been totally bad, except I was asked to guest teach at another church this weekend. Not only was I asked to gueast teach, but I was asked to guest teach at 5 services!

So, I tried everything. I tried clearing my throat a lot. I tried hot tea and honey. I tried Throat Coat. But it barely got better.

So, I struggled through Saturday night, relying heavily on the microphone. Sunday morning was a little better, but not a lot. I made it through 4 services on Sunday with the aid of a little coffee and a lot of water.

I can't even begin to tell you how frustrated I was that I lost my voice for no apparent reason. What do you do when you lose something you depend on so heavily? Evidently you ignore the problem and get something to make it even louder and more noticeable. And here's the kicker: when I woke up this morning my voice had fully returned...

How It Should Have Ended...

Those of you who know me well know that my heart was broken with the release of Spider-man 3. Over a year of build up quickly (if you think 2 hrs. 20 min. is quick) flushed down the tiolet. Anyway, I just ran across a video on youtube called "How It Should Have Ended- Spider-man 3". It pretty much takes all the plot holes from the movie and makes fun of them in 6 1/2 minutes. And if you want to see how Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Weird Science, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre should have ended, check out howitshouldhaveended.com...

Have You Ever Noticed...

·How you can ask God for something, only to receive it and say, "Yeah but, that's not the way that I wanted it..."

·How everybody else is a bad driver except for you...

·How easy it is to let ungaurded curiosity and interest turn into unhealthy obsession...

·How no good movies ever come out from mid-January through the end of February...

·How hard it is to find truely great friends...

·How important it is to hold on to the ones you do find...

·How, whenever you put something off until tomorrow more that 3 times, tomorrow never comes...

·How, whenever you're in a hurry, lines always move slower...

It's a Good Day Sports Fans...

Right now, life in my world of football is absolutely perfect. My South Carolina Gamecocks are 3-0 and ranked 16th in the nation and my Packers are 2-0 coming off of a history-making weekend for my hero, Brett Favre.

I just hope that LSU and the Chargers don't ruin my life this weekend...

You're On Notice...

If you like The Daily Show, then you'll LOVE The Colbert Report. It's just... well, genius. And one of the things that's so genius about it is his "On Notice" board. On it, he puts things that he's fed up with and are, henceforth, "On Notice". Looks like he and I are fed up with the same things...

Just kidding. But you can make your own "On Notice" board here...

Very Untypical...

Last night on Jimmy Kimmel, Mute Math became to first band ever to perform live backwards. Check it out...

Food (Kind of), Folks, and Fun...

Every year, when the time comes around to begin promoting small groups, I try to think of a new way to visually show the purpose of fellowship. This year, staying true to my roots, I chose to use a NASCAR pit crew.

I had to find decorations for tonight's "Meet and Greet". Would you believe that I couldn't find any NASCAR decorations? Not even for a kid's birthday party! What's this world coming to?

So, I had to improvise. It just so happens that next door to our church is a hardware store. So, I walked next door and looked around for a bit until I got to the tire aisle. Yes, that's right. The tire aisle. It was there that I found these little bad boys.

It was a great, if not well attended, night of students and parents meeting their small group leaders for the year. I love small groups! And I can't wait to see what God's going to do in them this year...

The Winner Revealed...

Well, readers, our journey through the summer cinema is finally complete. Today, we can finally announce the first ever "Part of the Process" Best Summer Movie champion. And, it should come as a surprise to no one, that the title belongs to that bastion of childhood memory, Transformers.

To say that Transformers ruled the box office this summer would be like saying that southern food is only "ehh". And here at "Part of the Process", the story was no different. With victories over Ratatouille, The Simpsons Movie, and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, it was no surprise that Transformers soundly defeated Knocked up in a landslide vote of 20 to 4.

And so, it is with great honor that I declare Tranformers as the first ever "Part of the Process" Best Summer Movie champion. Hopefully, this great honor will be just as satisfying to Michael Bay and Stephen Speilberg as the many awards for visual effects that the movie is sure to recieve...

I Wish I Had (iTunes Receipt: Part 1)...

...an iPod Touch. I'm not saying that you should get it for me for my birthday, I'm just saying that it's an idea.

If I did have an iPod Touch, then these last five songs that I bought off of iTunes would fit rather nicely on it...

1) Rocksteady by Marc Broussard

2) The Rising by Bruce Springsteen

3) I'll Stand By You by The Pretenders

4) Brighter Than Sunshine by Aqualung

5) Time After Time by Quietdrive

Sometimes the Clothes Do Not Make the Man...

...But sometimes they do.

Here's the deal: I'm not going to say that I'm not stylish, or that I have poor tastes in clothes. I just don't care. I really don't. I am now, and forever will be, the most comfortable in a pair of GAP jeans and a T-shirt.

But, tonight I made, what I consider to be, a very stylish purchase.

You see, I was downtown with some friends this past Friday night when I strolled by the Puma store. That's when I saw it: the jacket that I had to have. Now, I should probably say that, I love track jackets. I mean, if I could, I'd wear them all the time. Which is why I knew I had to buy this:

It's a blazer made from track jacket material!

So, this jacket has now become the most stylish thing I own. Allison and Rachel, you are the only two people whose opinons I value in relation to this garment. What do you think...

Café 222...

I've said before that one of my favorite cooking shows is Sam the Cooking Guy. Well, one of the recipes on his website is for peanut butter and banana stuffed french toast. In addtion to providing the recipe for preparing it yourself, Sam also says that one option to save time is to just go to Café 222, where it was created, and try it from them. So, today I took his advice and went.

It's such an awesome little place downtown. As I walked up, I couldn't help but notice the line that was about 10 people long. This is, of course, a good sign when walking up to a restaurant. Here's what I ordered:

It was awesome! Editor's Note: It was a bit rich, due to the peanut butter, but it was still delicious.

And, after I finished eating, I was walking back to my truck and saw this beauty...

If only getting one for myself was as easy as in GTA...

Best Summer Movie of 2007: the Final Vote...

Once again, the obvious choices have advanced. Both Knocked Up and Transformers have beaten their opponents, Ocean's 13 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, in a vote of 10 to 3.

And so we arrive at our final vote. Either Knocked Up or Transformers will be declared the winner of the first annual "Part of the Process Best Summer Movie" tournament.

Make sure to cast your vote in this one! It'll be open from today, Friday, Sept. 14th, through Monday, Sept. 17th.

Let's see who the winner is...

Whoa...

Just yesterday, around 2pm, I saw the biggest car accident that I've ever seen in my entire life. And it happened 15 feet from the place I was sitting...

I've been meaning to get my truck washed for some time now. The outside had gotten so dirty that it could have been in a commercial for that Mr. Clean spotless carwash thingy. So, after I got out of our biweekly pastors' meeting, I went to the carwash.

I pulled in, told the attendant which type of wash I wanted, and turned my keys over. Editor's Note: Just in case you were wondering, I chose the piña colada air freshener. Then, as is customary at this particular carwash, I walked around to the front and sat on a bench awaiting my freshly cleaned whip.

I was looking down, playing with my cellphone, when I heard it: the unmistakable, unforgetable sound of screaching brakes and colliding metal.

As I looked up, I caught the very last second of the wreck. A car had t-boned the front end of a white pickup truck. Then, as I watched in slow motion, the truck began moving toward me. I mean, straight toward me. It veered to my left and stopped just short of the exit to the carwash. The car wasn't so lucky. It careened off to the right into another parked car.

The driver of the truck, a man who looked to be in his mid-40's and holding his wrist, immediately got out and limped around the back of the truck surveying the damage. A voice came from the cab of his truck saying that it had just called the highway patrol, and that they would be there any minute. Yeah, Onstar doesn't seem so dumb now. I, along with about 10 others, ran over to check on the woman. Her car was missing its entire front end; headlights, bumper, grill. The hood was bent up and crumpled. The other men, in an effort to prevent any fire that might develop, began cutting the battery connection. The lady who was driving sat, slumped over and motionless, behind the deflated airbag. Some of them tried to open the car doors, but it was no use. They were stuck. A guy ran over with a slim jim and got the car unlocked.

Right then, one of the attendants tapped me on the shoulder and told me my truck was done. I motioned for him to wait one second and made a quick approach to the back of the car. Nissan Sentra Note to self: don't buy a Nissan Sentra.

She still hasn't moved...

As I drove away, I passed the firetruck that was on its way to the scene. That sound echoed through my mind. Whoa... if that truck would've been 10 feet more to the left...

Even now, a day later, the scene plays over and over again in my mind. It dwarfs everything else that's happening. Makes it seem unimportant, trivial.

It's interesting how facing the possibility of our own death, even remotely, makes us examine our life. Are our problems really as bad as we think? Are our priorities really in the right order? All good questions. I just hope that it doesn't always take a situation like this to get me to ask them...

I Feel Like Taking Oprah...

Just a couple of nights ago, Meg brought joy into my life by showing me an amazing video on youtube. But, before I show you, I need you to take a look at something else.

First, watch just a few seconds of this video. It's a song called Thoughts in Reverse by the band, Destroy the Runner.


OK, that's enough. Couldn't understand it, could you? That's what I thought.

So, here's the video that Meg showed me. It's the audio recording of that song with visual interpretations of what the listener thinks its saying.



Makes you want to see them in concert, doesn't it? Actually, it makes you want to see someone hold up pictures of the lyrics in front of the band in concert. Either way, you know you want to watch it again...

Knocked Up and Transformers Advance...

In a vote that really shouldn't surprise anyone, Knocked Up has won over Evan Almighty in a vote of 10 to 6 and Transformers won over The Simpsons Movie in a vote of 10 to 3. That means that, in the semifinal round, Knocked Up will battle it out with Ocean's 13 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix will battle it out with Transformers.

This vote will last from today, Tuesday, Sept. 11th, through Thursday, Sept. 13th. Remember to vote for your favorite movie...

Ocean's 13 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Advance...

We've almost determined our winner of the first annual Part of the Process Best Summer Movie Tournament! In our last vote, Ocean's 13 defeated Shrek the Third in a vote of 6 to 4 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix defeated Rush Hour 3 in a vote of 8 to 1.



Our next votes are Evan Almighty vs. Knocked Up and The Simpsons Movie vs. Transformers. The vote will last from tonight, September 7th (happy birthday Rach!) through Monday, September 10th. Remember to vote for your favorite movie...

Seal the Deal...

Well... It's been quite a week and a half. But, in the midst of chaos, sometimes the sun shines through. For me, it happened this past Friday night, when I found this clip.

If you're anything like me, then you love to scare people. Now, I don't mean like "hockey mask and chainsaw" scare people. More like "hide in a closet and jump out and scream BOO". And that's why I love this clip. It's two kids sneaking up on an elephant seal in an attempt to startle it out of it's peaceful, blubbery slumber. But intead of startling the seal, they get scared themselves.

Enjoy...