Chameleon Humor

Right now I am downstairs with #s 2 & 3 watching a Thomas the Tank Engine DVD while #1 and 3 of her friends are upstairs at the birthday party.  The party this year is a cooking party so #1 and 3 of her friends are each making a heart shaped chocolate cake.  If #s 2 & 3 were with them, er, forget about it. Pictures later this evening or tomorrow afternoon.

While I have a minute I wanted to share another experiment.  

This morning I took #2 to his first soccer practice.  The league #2 is in is an instructional league. A soccer guru teaches skills and all of the parents work with their kids.  Despite having never played soccer within three minutes I was made a soccer coach.  Although I have never played I have watched several soccer matches in my day and know a thing or two about the sport.  As the kids practiced dribbling I overheard a couple of dads talking about how the Boston Celtics need to pick up one more player.  

Reader, I have not watched a pro-basketball game since the late 1980s.  All of my basketball memories come from this era only.   

I moseyed over to the two dads and said rather forcefully:  I heard on ESPN last night that the Celtics were going to sign Deltef Schrempf.  One dad looked at me and asked "really? no foolin? He must be 45 years old"  I had to admit I was only pulling his leg but get this Mr. Schrempf is 45, how did that dad know that?  Mr. Shrempf has not played professional basketball since 2001.  

I know this is similar to the Folgers gag, but it is well worth adapting to whatever situation or conversation you happen to be in.  Another example to prime the pump: You overhear someone or are talking with someone about a new movie that is being produced about oh let us say George Bush.  At that moment you say I hear they are casting Ed Asner as George Bush.  

Prediction for this afternoon's game:  Marshall 75, Tulane 67.

Recent Developments

1.  Snow fall accumulation from last night: 5 inches.  I thought I could get by with just shoveling the walk, nope I had to fire up the Gravely and have at it.  

2.  Does anyone know of any surefire cure of purging the Sound of Music soundtrack out of one's head?  Those songs are driving me crazy.  It is so bad that the other day at the gym, instead of singing along with The Clash I found myself singing sew a needle pulling thread, jam a burst of shine red or something like that.  

3.  On Saturday the family and I went down to the Winter Farm Market at Hope Artiste Village.  Thankfully the market is inside, warm and roomy.  We like to go there to get apples, eggs, and coffee.  That particular day I had #3 on my shoulders and went up to the coffee provider and tried out my Folgers request once again.  I knew the man humanning the booth was a no nonsense guy, cha-ching.  I walked up perused the selections and asked do you have any of these that taste like Folgers.  The man looked at me, did not blink, and responded: NO.  

While I am on the topic of coffee...I picked up the French Roast but when I got home I wondered if it is safe to call it French Roast or am I to still call in Freedom Roast?  I have yet to get the memo from headquarters telling me which way to go.

4.  I do not know how much I am able to divulge but this semester I will be working with a group of college seniors in their marketing seminar.  More information forthcoming.  I am presenting the problems of marketing a moderate-liberal Baptist congregation in the age today.  The students will be working with me on proper questions and possible avenues of exploration.

5.  While reading some Heschel (The Sabbath) for an upcoming sermon "A Sunday Kind of Love" I was reminded how enjoyable it is to read Heschel just for the enjoyment of reading Heschel.  The higher goal of spiritual living is not to amass a wealth of information, but to face sacred moments.  

6.  I can officially say I have lost my initial aura concerning facebook.  But I have and do enjoy catching up with folk I have known since pre-school.

7.  Props to Neal Conan, host of Talk of the Nation on NPR.  Yesterday's show focused on the culture wars in America.  A caller from Iowa, I believe, called in to rant about homosexuality and gay marriage.  The caller attempted to equate pedophilia with homosexuality but Mr. Conan would not allow the caller to do so and bluntly told the caller that he was wrong.  I appreciated Mr. Conan handling of the moment yesterday.