. . . Do not eat all the candy in one sitting.

I really missed it this year. "Talk Like a Pirate Day" is September 19th, and I was so busy, I forgot to celebrate. So, in honor of Columbus Day, and for those of you who want your pirate fix, I'll let these guys tell you why I missed it:

My father-by-law e-mailed this little video that he found posted by Will Shin. The Blushing Bride's dad is a preacher, too, BTW. Enjoy!

As the Cardinals look toward another shot at the title (at least they made the play-offs again), Puddin 'N Pie brought home this pencil drawing from her 2nd grade art class.I call it "Bush Stateyum" -- Enjoy!

So, if it was Christmas Eve a couple of days ago for Sci-Fi Wonder Boy Henry Melton, then it felt like Christmas for me today when I opened up the mail and found this . . . (see picture)

It's been awhile since the word police reared its ugly head, but I just couldn't take it any longer. I saw it again today on a blog where the author should know better. What was it, you ask? That bear of a usage error known as "less." The word "less" is a quantitative amount, and not a numeric register. In other words you can have less water or less money, but you cannot have less dollars.

The culprit this time happened to be a book reviewer who suggests that one should rate a book that they are reading with "5 or less stars."

Of course, this is just another of those things that for no particular reason gets to me, but when reviewing, and using a five-point scale, you should rate with 5 or fewer stars.

Thanks again for listening.

Then you'll be interested in Charles Ardai's Hard Case Crime. I've read a couple of selections from this publisher and find them very satisfying escape novels. Also, check out their Twitter drawing for ARCs of upcoming releases.

It's hard for me to believe that I found this before it made it to Bill Crider's Pop Culture Magazine (so I probably just overlooked it there [update: as I suspected, Bill was up on this story when it first came out--see the comments section]), but the Blushing Bride alerted me to the release of a new Robin Hood film starring Russell Crowe. Interestingly enough, Crowe seems to be taking his role as the outlaw of Sherwood Forest seriously. Read about it here.

I thought perhaps many of my readers missed the blatant beg for a new Slush Mug in my last post, so here's a vintage clip that shows why they are so great. Aside from the cool bike with the banana seat in the opening scene this is just kewl!

Like most awards in the world of blog, the Deer Cupcake Award is really another disguise for the dreaded meme. But I won one!!! So, what else could I do but participate (thanks to my e-friend David Kirk over at Frogtown for the acknowledgement). And here are the rules for accepting this prestigious honor:

• I must answer all the following questions on this blog,
• I must replace one question I dislike with a question of mine own invention,
• and then I must add one additional question. Eventually, some poor blogger, who seeks to accept this award, will wind up having to answer a hundred questions, huh? But not today!

1). What is your current obsession?
Usage—it’s been an obsession for a long time. It’s why I occasionally include the “Word Police” category on this blog. It’s also why I get aggravated with big house publishers who should know better but crank out books full of those pesky typos that were missed by the spell/grammar check software since all the line editors were “let go” for financial reasons. So much for integrity.

2). Where are you right now?
Mulberry Grove—look it up.

3). Coffee or tea?
Depends on the mood: coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon . . . unless we’re talking about ice cream.

4).What’s one of your favorite movies?
All-time: It’s a Wonderful Life (no secret with my love of Christmas) – but recently I was really moved by Fireproof.

5). What’s one thing you’re looking forward to?
Pastors & Wives retreat with my Blushing Bride—in Branson!!!! Thanks for keeping the kids Mom & Dad!

6). Who was your childhood crush?
I remember Mary Ann was so much more beautiful than Ginger.

7). What is your (current) favorite Song?
The old hymns “Fairest Lord Jesus” and “Jesus, I Am Resting, Resting”.

8). What would you like to get rid of?
15 pesky pounds, but they just act as if they’re here to stay.

9). What’s your favorite book?
Grisham’s A Time to Kill. It’s his first, but still his best.

10). Why did you start your blog?
I needed an outlet to write. I then started a more ministry-related blog, and finally started my book review blog (check them out).

11). If money was not an issue, what is one thing you would purchase for yourself?
A big, big house—part of which would be my family’s living space, part of which would house a quiet study with all the latest equipment and books for me to do some serious writing, and part of which would be home to the best used bookstore around.

12). If you could live in a foreign country, which one would you choose?
Ukraine—specifically, Crimea . . . Been there, done that, would love to do it again.

13). What is one trait about yourself that you wish you could change?
I have a tendency to procrastinate, but I’ll stop that tomorrow.

14). Chocolate of choice?
Mocha-flavored Blue Bell

15). What is one thing you've changed your mind about in the last ten years? Dr Pepper (used to abhor the stuff, now I can’t get enough)

16). What is one thing you've changed your mind about in the last ten days? I know everything. Yes, I do. No, I don’t.

17) If you had to choose between books and movies and could only read or view one or the other the rest of your life, which would you choose?
Books are imagination builders—movies, imagination binders. Which would you choose?

18) What’s something from your childhood that brings fond memories? Slush Mug! This was great fun--and now I find that you can still get one. If anyone is listening, I've got a birthday coming up! (Red or Blue is fine ;))

Congratulations to Kavya Shivashankar. The thirteen-year-old from Kansas who spelled all her words out in her hand as she spelled her way to the national championship this year.

To all you Mothers out there. Here's a cup from me.

Today, I baptized my son while his mom, sisters, and Poppi looked on . . .

I'd just like to take this moment to wish the most excellent of birthdays to the most beautiful of women -- My Blushing Bride.

Happy Birthday, Sweetie.

Luv Ya; Luv Ya, Honey!

Just so you know. I try to post sermons weekly at a podcast site--Loom & Wheel Sounds. On March 15-18, our church participated in Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary's Spring Practicum in which we had a SWBTS student bring the messages for a Four-day revival effort.

Our meetings were well-attended, and our student--one David Miller from Mansfield, Texas--delivered excellent sermons straight from God's word. You can listen to four of the five sermons delivered here, here, here, or here.

Today' s the day to let your Irish show. Have a safe and happy St. Patrick's Day.

Bear with me on this one. I'm including this video, not for the sake of the definition of a political agenda (but you may enjoy Uncle Jay's news items there as well). Go ahead and watch 'til the end where "Uncle Jay answers one of your news questions." Jay's onto the direction of all things media. . . Just watch

As we were finishing our services this morning I received word of the tragedy in Maryville, IL.

Today I'm praying and would ask all my readers to pray. Fred Winters' life was taken for reasons we don't know. Now his wife and children as well as First Baptist Church of Maryville have lost one that they love.

I am speechless. I must pray.

Check out the review of my first two novellas over at Coffeespoons.

Thanks to the ever-vigilant Bill Crider, I've added another lesser-known holiday to my arsenal. And so I give you Square Root Day (we'll wait until the uncontrollable applause and mayhem subsides). Grab your calculator and start dividing. Remember that we can't celebrate every year, so kick your heels up with extra special vigor today!

If you haven't decided how to celebrate Texas Independence Day, why not have some Tex-Mex tonight and enjoy the holiday.

It seems our local school district looks for any reason to dismiss, and exercises its right to dismiss on every occasion it can find. The occasion today is Pulaski Day. This holiday is celebrated in Illinois for the apparent reason of taking another day off.

So, happy Pulaski Day, even though (unless you're from Illinois or of Polish descent) you've probably never heard of him or his day. Take the day off, relax, and enjoy life.

I heard that one of the most familiar voices of our time has been silenced. I recall many days when we would listen for Paul Harvey's commentary as we had breakfast (as I grew older, I discovered some stations played him in the middle of the day). Like many, my favorite part was when he would tell "The REST of the story." I could almost see him turning the page after an inserted commercial for the Bose acoustic wave machine or some other sponsor, and he would say, "page 3."

It seemed that one of the things that helped begin the day was to hear Paul say, "Hello, Americans . . . " concluding with a hearty "Good Day!"

Thanks, Paul, for the memories, for the laughter, and for making us sometimes think about what we thought.

I recall a time (more years ago than I am ready to admit) when we celebrated the birthdays of significant presidents. Typically in the month of February we set aside times to remember George Washington (the Father of our country) and Abraham Lincoln (the Great Emancipator) because (1) they had birthdays in the month of February, and (2) they held certain distinctions as presidents of the Union.

Then someone got a burr under their saddle (look it up) and decided that we should honor all of our past presidents. The school boy in me said, "Cool, now we'll get more holidays!" But alas, what the decision-makers decided was that, instead of celebrating all of the presidents' birthdays, we could lump them all together into one. Consequently we went backward in the number of holidays we received, from 2 in February, to 1 in February and none in the other months which held birthdays of past presidents.

Be that as it may, today is the special day designated to honor our presidents, so here's something I couldn't do from memory -- list the presidents:

1. George Washington, 1789-97
2. John Adams, 1797-1801
3. Thomas Jefferson, 1801-9
4. James Madison, 1809-17
5. James Monroe, 1817-25
6. John Quincy Adams, 1825-29
7. Andrew Jackson, 1829-37
8. Martin Van Buren, 1837-41
9. William Henry Harrison, 1841
10. John Tyler, 1841-45
11. James Knox Polk, 1845-49
12. Zachary Taylor, 1849-50
13. Millard Fillmore, 1850-53
14. Franklin Pierce, 1853-57
15. James Buchanan, 1857-61
16. Abraham Lincoln, 1861-65
17. Andrew Johnson, 1865-69
18. Ulysses Simpson Grant, 1869-77
19. Rutherford Birchard Hayes, 1877-81
20. James Abram Garfield, 1881
21. Chester Alan Arthur, 1881-85
22. Grover Cleveland, 1885-89
23. Benjamin Harrison, 1889-93
24. Grover Cleveland, 1893-97
25. William McKinley, 1897-1901
26. Theodore Roosevelt, 1901-9
27. William Howard Taft, 1909-13
28. Woodrow Wilson, 1913-21
29. Warren Gamaliel Harding, 1921-23
30. Calvin Coolidge, 1923-29
31. Herbert Clark Hoover, 1929-33
32. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933-45
33. Harry S Truman, 1945-53
34. Dwight David Eisenhower, 1953-61
35. John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 1961-63
36. Lyndon Baines Johnson, 1963-69
37. Richard Milhous Nixon, 1969-74
38. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr , 1974-77
39. James Earl Carter, 1977-81
40. Ronald Wilson Reagan, 1981-89
41. George Herbert Walker Bush, 1989-1993
42. William Jefferson Clinton, 1993- 2001
43. George W. Bush, 2001-9
44. Barack Obama, Our current president
    

In the midst of a publishing community that is debating the value of keeping editors on staff, and the wash of a techno-age that fills young minds with convenience spelling for the sake of saving space on a text message, it has apparently become less than important to properly proofread tests.

Kudos to Geoffrey Stanford for his attention to a standardized test won him his fifteen minutes of fame. Read the story here.

I was intrigued recently by a commercial blitz. It started with the Superbowl ads for Pepsi Max. You know the campaign—targeting real men with this “healthy” version of Pepsi-Cola. The big ad on Superbowl Sunday had men encountering outrageously harsh pain with the age-old statement “I’m all right!” (or some variation thereof). It says a lot about a man’s machismo if he can be hit in the head with a bowling ball and respond with “I’m okay”. My son understands this concept and, whenever he trips and falls, re-echos, “I’m okay! I meant to do that.” He’s been doing that since he was three.

So these ads – I especially like the one which claims that the can houses a nuclear reactor (or some such) and upon crushing it the guy says, “Hey, I just crushed a nuclear reactor.” [For those who have seen the ad more than once, don’t fill the comment section up with corrections to my memory, that’s not the point. I'm posting it here to avoid confusion.]

Now I’ve periodically tried diet sodas. They’re supposed to be better for you and all that. And any time that I have encountered the word “diet” in the title of something that’s not really all that good for me to begin with, I get suspicious. I’ve heard the mantra of the diet soda cult – “You can’t tell the difference!” (repeat four or five hundred times).

And now for the truth: Some of the drinks sold in the category known as “diet soda” do indeed taste worse than others. I recall a swig of Tab from years ago. That seared a memory that will forever be with me. I recall the days of Sugar Free Dr Pepper, and a taste test of Pepsi One (supposedly not a diet drink, but it had the same effect on me as Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, and Diet Dr Pepper). The bottom line is that if a drink substitutes anything for the sugar or syrup that’s supposed to sweeten it; if the manufacturer tries to sell it with a “sugar free” tag-line – or even a “low sugar” tag line – the product will leave a taste in your mouth.

“You get used to it,” some of my friends argue – but if I have to get used to it, why would I want to drink it? As it is, I don’t drink that much soda anyway. I hear the same arguments about the use of certain artificial sweeteners, and “natural” sweeteners (you can’t tell the difference). But I have discovered that if it ain’t sugar, I can taste the difference. In fact, one popular sugar substitute today is made by changing the refining process for sugar (so it’s made out of sugar). I’m told that you can’t tell the difference when it is used – either by itself or mixed with sugar on the halvsies. But that’s a lie – you can tell the difference!

And so the point: The claim is that Pepsi Max is the kind of diet drink that real men can drink without fear of it being a sissy diet drink. So I had to try this new concoction. Who knows, maybe technology has found a way to make a low sugar drink drinkable. But alas, it has not happened. My advice to you, if you are not of the diet drink cult, and continue to taste the sugar substitute long after the drink is gone, don’t bother tasting this one. Great ad campaigns aside, Pepsi Max is just another in the long line of trying to get us to de-sugar our sugary drinks, and it tastes bad, too.

Here’s to you, Dr Pepper – and if anyone can find a bottle that’s sweetened properly with Imperial Pure Cane, send me some and I’ll be eternally grateful.

Christmas 2007. My Blushing Bride knows that I like to play Monopoly®, but she can’t really stand the game. So what does she do? She finds this interesting item called “Make Your Own Opoly”. It’s loosely (really loosely) based on the classic game, but provides for the owner software and game pieces to build a game custom tailored to their life.

It took a year, but the result I got was Benj-Opoly. Players can travel around a board and “buy” significant places or memories from my life. Once bought, you can charge rent when opponents land on that particular square. There are spaces for my birthplace, my school years, colleges, significant employment events, and references to my love for reading and writing.

There are a few drawbacks in the design of the game itself—such as “play the lottery” squares, which don’t square with my life, and the “Chance” and “Community Chest” squares have been re-dubbed “Good News”/“Bad News” with a little leeway for personalization, but not enough. I’m working on making necessary adjustments to these as well. Enjoy the pictures. And have a great day.

. . . that two of the big names in American modern history passed away this week, and I am waaaaay behind the curve on getting up an announcement, but in honor of these two men, I give you some of their work:

Andrew Wyeth (enjoy his painting, Easterly)

Ricardo Montalban (in his quintessential role -- Khan)

Yes, that's right. Today is Christmas . . . at least on the "old" calendar. In much of the world where the Eastern Orthodox church (and it's many variations) is the norm, Christians hold to the January 7th observance of the birth of Christ. In these cultures, the celebration is more of a solemn, religious experience and is not accompanied with the materialistic bent that has grown up around December 25th. (Often, as in my beloved Ukraine, this is left up to Grandfather Frost at New Year's)

So, may the blessing of the Christ visit you today.

May the Blesser bless you with all the blessings that He has for you this year.

Happy 2009, everyone!

Here's a new "Live" version of Straight No Chaser's big hit:

Readers of this blog know that I like Uncle Jay's take on the news. Each year he gives a (musical) recap of that year's news as a special Christmas gift. Enjoy:

Mary Ann Melton is an extraordinary photographer. She sometimes enjoys using her art to meet needs. This year she's produced a calendar to raise funds for the needy in Namwianga, Zimbabwe. You can order the calendar by clicking here.

You can view Mary Ann's blog here.

Take a moment to ponder this short message:


Upside Down from Pace Hartfield on Vimeo.

Thanks to Art Rogers.

Last Christmas I was introduced to the video posted here.

Here's another classic carol from Straight No Chaser, enjoy.

When Bubba turned 5 earlier this week, we decided to have his party today (Saturday). He and his sisters decided to help the Blushing Bride make the cake, here's the result:

Here's more fun Bill Crider referred me to:



Or how about with a little 'soul patch'?

In an effort to reduce lurking, bloggers worldwide are encouraged to comment on five (count them, 5) different blogs today--that's December 3, 2008. If you are not a perenial lurker (you comment on your friends' blogs) you are asked to make at least two of the five are blogs on which you've never posted a comment.

For those who are unsure about making a comment, all you have to do is click on the comment link at the end of a post you're interested in and follow the instructions to join the conversation. Most people in the blogosphere make it easy for you to participate in their thought processes. So, welcome to the world wide web.

I'm off to make some rounds.

HT: John Smulo

Update -- Just so you know, here's my five for today (I may comment more, but these are the ones I've hit for BCD):

1. Of course I had to comment at SmuloSpace. After all I found the fun at his place. (Frequent reader, occasional commenter)
2. Pickle-osophy -- I found a great Advent poem at this new (to me) site.
3. Gabbatha Ministries Blog -- Josh is a long-time blog friend who comments here from time to time, as I do on his site.
4. Ramblings -- This is a super photo blog that I visit often, and only occasionally comment on.
5. Bookish Adventures of Bibliomom -- another new blog for me, but one I should find interesting given my love for all things Book.
   

Bubba is officially a hand-full today (That's 5 for the uninspired). He's looking forward to a "skateboard" party (complete with skateboard shaped cake) this coming weekend -- yes, I'll post the pictures of the cake. So, he screamed, "Awesome!" when he got this out of the package:

The Elementary School has a Christmas program each year. Here's a clip of Puddn 'n Pie singing "Jolly Old St. Nicholas" with some of her classmates:

The Blushing Bride and I decided to treat each other to a new digital camera for Christmas this year. She braved the throngs of "Black Friday" and picked up a Nikon S210 which we did not wait until Christmas to unwrap.

Here's a sample of the first video clip:

If I did a bit of verbal and mental calisthenics I could probably fit this into the "Word Police" category, but this one is personal. So, if you're tired of the griping and belly-aching that runs rampant throughout the blogosphere, this is a great post to skip.

Today's gripe? Namely, names.

I received another letter at the office today addressed to "Ben Potter." Granted I tried to adopt the more "manly" affectation of Ben several years ago. As a matter of fact I have several Ben friends. When we moved to a new school district at the beginning of my freshman year in high school, the computer did a massive overhaul on my name crunching my first name to three letters ("Ben") in order to include my middle name -- and so teachers had to be corrected for the first several weeks of school every year. Otherwise everyone would have been trying to get my attention with a hearty Ben Allen (don't try it, some of you out there, or you're liable to get a nasty word-lashing in your comment section).

Here's the thing -- to my friends, my name is Benjie (I've long since quit trying to correct people's spelling on the matter, although I am a whole 'e' better than the movie dog). To people who don't know me, and in legal matters, etc. I introduce myself as Benjamin. After all, that's my name. My problem with 'Ben'? Every time someone calls me that (with the possible exception of my father and sometimes my older brother) my mind flashes on an old movie, and a very young Michael Jackson's voice enters my head.



So my advice to you, if someone introduces themself to you -- use the name they told you. I've discovered that if Angela introduces herself as Angela, then 'Angie' is a bad move. Same with Jennifer and Jenny. I have a friend whose name is Robert, and he cringes when people take it upon themselves to call him Bob.

In other words, don't call me 'Ben' if you don't know me. If you do know me, then you know better. You should understand that the mail came from a source that got my name either off of a list (which should have read 'Benjamin') or from my church website in which I am referred to as either 'Benjamin' or 'Benjie' and never as 'Ben.'

Have a nice day.

Some of you will recall that the Blushing Bride and I found similar gifts for our Copper Anniversary. We don't think that will happen again, but I thought I'd share with you our Brass gifts for year eight.

I stumbled upon this possibility and was able to keep it secret from her until this morning.

I must say that the Blushing Bride did well in looking for something that said "I love you" in brass. We have collected candlesticks since we wed eight years ago. She found this candle holder and a nifty snuffer to go with.

I also made some snide remark about it being our brass anniversary, and so did she get me a brass door knocker? At the bottom of the gift bag I found this (she bought it before the remark, I must say). Now I just have to find the perfect place for it.

Ya'll have a good one, and a happy thanksgiving to boot.

It was eight years ago that the Blushing Bride became my Blushing Bride by saying, "I will" to me in front of both our dads and a small gathering of friends and family.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetie.

Special message just for you -- Olive, Olive!

Everyone seems to be playing the "grab a book" meme. Bill Crider joined in the version that includes "the bookworm award" a couple of days ago! My friend Kacy from Billy Graham's Electric Rodeo popped one up on her Facebook page. So I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. The meme says to pick up a book--any one near at hand will do (don't go looking for that intellectual tome to make you look smarter than the average bear), find page 56, and post the fifth full sentence. There are variations on a theme here.

Since I just finished one read (look for a review of Sinner over at Book 'em Benj-O soon), I had to stand up to get a new book. What I found was Ed McBain's Killer's Choice. Here's the obligatory sentence:

"That car'd been repainted."

As memes go, your suppose to tag friends. Since I'm just playing around, anyone who wants to play the game can do so in the comment section here, or pick up the thread on your own blog.

Have fun.

Some of you will not understand why the title displays today's "Word Police" entry. But perhaps by the end of your reading you to will be able to distinguish more nuances of the English language.

In our current example the writer has chosen to use a word not related to the present tense word to indicate past tense. Let me help you out --

Lead (pronounced with the long 'e' sound: ee) is a verb in its present tense, suggesting that the leading is in process (or should be in process) "Can he lead us to victory?"

Lead (pronounced with the short 'e' sound: eh) is a soft, heavy metal (symbol: Pb; atomic number: 82--don't ask me, go check your periodic table!). It shouldn't be confused with soft rock or heavy metal, though. This word can also be used to great advantage in the colloquial expression "Get the lead out!"

The offense occurs so often when people use our second example to denote the past tense of our first. The past tense, instead, should simply drop the 'a' and find its spelling as led (pronounced like our second example today). Thus, our title would rightly read "He led them to victory!" indicating a fixed past action of leading.

Have a nice day.

I just heard that Michael Crichton lost a battle with cancer yesterday. Crichton gave us works like Jurassic Park, The Andromeda Strain, Next, and Prey.

I cannot say that I always enjoyed everything of Crichton's that I read, but he was an excellent writer nonetheless. Just last night the Blushing Bride and I enjoyed the adaptation of Timeline while waiting on election results to come in.

Another one gone. May he rest in peace.