Mr. Deeds - A true story.

Yesterday a mother and father were approaching some bleachers on the rugby pitch. Their son was knocking the all living out of some poor sacks from some unlucky school. A fellow parent saw them and said: "come sit next to me; I saved you a seat". The first parent with the rugged son said "as usual". The bleacher dad then dashed off this gem: " she (the other dad's wife) can sit on my face". WOW! That play was way offside.

Mr. Deeds would have asked him to refrain - if he wouldn't Mr. Deeds would punch him in the face. Maybe the husband should have...at least done something. He just chuckled as his wife blushed. Weird.

Over on another set of bleachers a grade nine lad was cussing worse than Ricky and Bubbles. In front of some nice young ladies. Mr. Deeds...

I thought that maybe we should go back to not cussing in front of or about women. Fair?

Today my opinion had to shift. Virtually every f-bomb that I heard lobbed about the hallowed halls where I work were bursting out of girls' mouths. Even Mr. Deeds in his supreme wisdom would be a loss.

Crazy society. I thinks Jesus is, more or less, in accord with Mr. Deeds. But society is not. Where do we go from here? Thoughts?

Sick and 1984

The term "sick" has morphed over the years. It used to mean bad, in the non-Michael Jackson, sense. Calling someone sick in '84 would get you a cuff about the ears and teeth. I'm sick right now - being sick is not sick; in the current sense. I'm considering the Dutch wine cure: drink wine until your cold is gone. Could work.

1984 didn't end in an Orwellian blast. For me 1984 was the beginning. That was the year that I bought my first tape/album: Van Halen 1984. It still holds up as a very fine album. An album full of classic hits and a few rare gems too: Jump, Panama and Hot for Teacher...yeah! Getting your first rock album is moment of passage. I'm glad that my first album, bought with my own dough, was so nice. Shit...Culture Club would have gotten me a solid boot circle - so I made the right call. Van Halen 1984 - a most sick album. This is the album that launched my total love of music - just slap that tape into my yellow, sporty, Sony Walkman - very choice.

What right of passage is there today for the youth of our nation? My first legal download? Crazy times. Send me back to 1984...besides maybe I would not have to drink so much wine.

Snoop Bloggie Blog

There are moments in life that just seem to transcend. You feel this deep feeling of rightness. Pure goodness can do this for me.

- cold beers in an icy pail, bbq smoking, wind in the trees.
- a perfect song as I roll down an empty road
- strumming a flat top guitar and finding that sweet chord

What is your moment? Joseph Campbell called this a place of bliss. Zen Monks would pause and compose a haiku. Maybe...modern society needs to snag these moments and recognize them and give them their due credit, value and worth.

Certain songs can do this; I listened to the new Tragically Hip album this morning on the way to the wheel of which I'm a cog. I could barely work - I was drunk with euphoria. I came in telling people to convert to the church of Gord Downie. Read: get these tunes right now.

The thought that I'm having is what makes these moments so great? What causes this huge connection with the universe? Cool shit though.

Also, it is an impossible concept to teach. Kids don't really get haiku...but hey maybe they will someday; when they have one of these moments of super clarity and rightness.

Go get one of these moments for yourself...find your place of bliss.

Being Grown Up

Being an adult is rough one. As a kid I always bounced back from a lot of the evils that befell me. Kids tend to move on; stare at the Star Wars poster on their bedroom wall and watch toons with a bowl of frosted flakes.

Somedays I'm reaching for my PS3 controller, the Bible, a book of old philosophy, beers with a chaser or some tender tunes from a great band. Nothing seems to really set my mind at ease. But hey maybe a few transcendent moments will help.

I'd trade it all for a big rock solid faith...maybe.

The journey is the thing though. Right?

Okay, last couple of days two teens that I know are dying of cancer, and one student of mine from a couple of years ago has schizophrenia. Brutal - not like a catch phrase - but really brutal. These kids have to pack their lives into a short little span.

I'm stuck thinking about these folks and their kin. How do you hold up? Being a grown up, in a way, just means loading up the burdens and bearing on.

Do you give this burden to Jesus? - I wish it was that easy. What does that really take?

Pick a metaphor: life is a burden, life is a journey, life is ...distractions, life is growing up...

Kicking Down the Old Dirty Trail...a Ramble

Sometimes I just dive into a faith...sometimes I find myself diving out. Lately I've been playing Metal Gear Solid. I get addicted like mad when I'm in these phases.

I wonder should I pull out and do something good and real and pure.

Should I just play my old beat up flat top while sipping a couple o'buds from an icy pail. That feels like the answer right now.

Crazy as it sound I put a lotta faith and comfort into my dog; Bonnie the pug. You may look at her and see a fat, one-eyed, flat faced little fucker, but that little canine was my best pal. Something right and good about the loyalty of a dog. Some of the best songs ever written by the likes of Neil Young and Fred Eaglesmith are about their dogs. That dog made me feel real good after a day slamming away at the frontiers of ignorance and the bureaucratic behemoth of education.

On March 10th at 6am ish that fuckin' dog took off, ran away and got hit by a car...dead. I cried for 4 days. Brutal. I live in a world were, so far, I've cried more for a dog than any person; except, maybe, my little baby brother.

Too many blogs on Death too. Life is just a bigger bitch when the young, the cool, and the dear ones pass on from this vail of tears.

We've all got these trials - I'm just not sure why we are on trial. Guess its time to get a new dog. Maybe start a "funner" blog too.

Chris 2.0

I've been through a really wild swing of faith over the years. This comes from growing up United, attending an evangelical camp for many years (15 years/Camp IAWAH), getting a degree in religion (mainly psychology of religion, Jung, Freud, and world religion), I even practised Buddhism because I became convinced that it was more practical than Christianity, I was married and attended Anglican church for the last twenty years and now I am a baptised member of the very evangelical Christian Missionary Alliance Church.

I tend to get really addicted, but oddly for a limited amount of time. My addictions go from really intense to a foggy memory over time.

I have been OCD/addicted to: Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, Zen Buddhism, Smokes, booze, Gnostic Christianity, Mars Hill Sermons, Jack Kerouac, poetry, drawing, playing guitar, basketball (playing and viewing), the Ottawa Senators, Jim Morrison, Hockey Pools, Jimi Hendrix, Carl Jung, Ryan Adams, ebay, Facebook...when I'm in the midst of these addictions, they are pretty all encompassing. I, for a time, become a Jungian, or a Gnostic, or a Beat Poet. Luckily these passions fade and only take over my psyche for a time. I sometimes wonder when, or what the next fire brand of a concept will burn into my brain, and set me going. I also always hope that my next obsession will be a worthy and useful undertaking.

Right now I'm a Christian Apologist. Is this just another addiction, or is this the real thing?

I seem to be annoying some people with my Christian coloured responses, so they'll hope this passes, and I go back to being the guy that always knows the +/- of every forward in the NHL.

I'll let you know.

Church (planting) Attending - 1

This old camp buddy called me up in the spring last year; he was planting a church and starting a revolution: to paraphrase him in all his zeal. This lad, JD,  is working hard raising a family and planning on taking on a massive undertaking: building a Christian Community.

At the time I was barely going to church. If I went, I was going in the most reluctant way. I'd fuss and screw around like a crazy teen, just like I used to with my buddy French - back in my youth.  Most of the time I'd sit and draw cartoons about what I heard. This would, maybe, be "charming" if I were 15 - I was 35.

When I was in church it felt like some sort of museum, or a social club for the over 50 set. It was a stagnant place, at least for me and my family.

I pondered what JD was doing and started to think about my stupid sinful attitude. I took on the task of making a step to rectify this situation. I looked for a new church online (modern man).  If some of my Christian friends of mine are planting churches I thought that I should at least be going to one. My wife agreed that we needed to move on as Christians and a build a better home/family life grounded in faith. The theme song of hell is "I did it my way"...we needed to be part of a Christian Community.

I chose Redeemer Alliance Church.

On the downside I 've done way less cartooning.

Revisted - Redited  - Reposted for...