Evidence of Humanity on Planet Earth

It’s been quite a week. If you’re like me, you might be feeling a little world-weary.

We’ve had increased violence and more death in Iraq, more nuke aspirations in the Middle East, a ratcheting up of pre-election rhetoric and shenanigans, a “botched joke,” and now a nationally renown evangelical leader who admits that he bought meth but “never used it” and called a gay “escort” for a “massage” but “no sex.” And if all that weren’t enough, we only had 10 trick-or-treaters stop by our house.

Enough quotation marks already! All in all, it’s enough to make you want to crawl back under the covers.… Read the rest

A Kindred Spirit

My post-Halloween depression is shared by a kindred spirit out west.

Kate, aka “girlfriday,” waxes eloquently (as she often does on a variety of topics) on the dearth of trick-or-treaters in her neck of the woods. I particularly like this quote:

“Packed like sardines into pre-fabricated, self-contained villages, we’re buried in gadgets designed to give us more time but we don’t seem to use it to meet the souls that live 15 feet away from us.”

halloween-eye.gifI’m buried in gadgets too, and maybe it’s time I took a stroll around the block and try to make some eye contact with a few of my neighbors.… Read the rest

Is Nothing Sacred Anymore?

halloween-1998.jpgThere’s a bowl nearly full of Halloween candy on our kitchen counter. It’s not supposed to be that way, you know. But last night, we had a grand total of 10 trick-or-treaters knock on our front door and accost us for candy. What a bummer.

When we moved into this neighborhood 11 years ago, our street was the place to be on Halloween night. The sidewalks were packed with moms and dads escorting cute little ghouls and goblins from one house to another. It was one of the few times when everybody was out–a block party if there ever was one–and the spirit of community mingled freely with the other shades and shadows conjured up on those crisp, moonlit fall nights.… Read the rest

A Southern Halloween

grim-reaper.jpgHave you ever met a ghost?

I haven’t (as far as I know). But that doesn’t mean they don’t exist. My friend Jeff believes he has met some ghosts and offers up some sobering thoughts and Halloween reflections on these denizens of the afterworld in his essay, “Stumbling in Endor.” I felt a shiver or two running up my spine (at least I think that’s all it was) when I read this, and I bet you will too.

With its storied tradition of gothic tragedy, it figures the South would produce more than its share of tortured souls wandering the earth in search of redemption and release.… Read the rest

Wainwright Saves

jesus-saves.jpgInto the sea of Cardinal red which filled downtown St. Louis during yesterday’s victory parade and celebration waded Dave Finke of Maryland Heights, Missouri. For Finke, a sidewalk evangelist, the “fields were red unto salvation.”

Hopping aboard a pair of stilts for maximum visibility, Finke carried a “Jesus Saves” sign in one hand and a cross in the other. He ambled about among the revelers, a veritable John the Baptist crying out in a wilderness of concrete, glass and steel.

Several partygoers stopped to have their pictures taken with Finke and engage him in conversation. Others offered up their own commentary asides as they passed him by.… Read the rest

If I Were a Rich Man

When the final out was recorded in the 2006 World Series, I was nowhere near a television set. Instead, I was watching Tevye dance and prance across the stage in the Harding University production of Fiddler on the Roof. But I still knew within seconds that the Cardinals had won:

CARDINALS WIN!!! WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!

10:25pm 10/27/06

cardinals.gifThat’s the text message I received from Number Three Son back in Huntsville who was watching and recording the game for me. You’ll notice that there are a lot of exclamation points in that message. If I didn’t know better, I’d think that Number Three dumped the Tigers somewhere along Game Three and came back to the fold.… Read the rest

Rain, Rain Go Away

Wednesday night’s Game Four of the World Series was a rainout. Play will hopefully resume today, which means we’ll be listening to the game on the radio, at night, as we travel to Arkansas to visit my alma mater Harding University (Hail!).

I’ve always enjoyed driving at night and having my pick from seemingly hundreds of radio stations whose signals skip across the lower atmosphere from sea to shining sea. Although my overly visually-stimulated sons would disagree, there’s something particularly dramatic and exciting about listening to a baseball game on the radio, especially at night. Without the visual cues, one is left to fill in the gaps, and radio announcers tend to be very expressive and excitable as they call the play-by-play and react histrionically to home runs and 6-4-3 double plays.… Read the rest

Sweet Lou and Mr. Tiger Too

The Cardinals gained a 2-1 game lead in the 2006 World Series last night behind a gem of a pitching performance by Chris Carpenter. The Cardinal ace lived up to his Cy Young Award credentials, tossing a 3-hit shutout for a 5-0 Redbird win. The victory was overdue relief for longsuffering Cardinal fans who had not witnessed a World Series game victory in the Gateway City since Ronald Reagan was president (1987).

Currently, one of the most popular Cardinals player is “Sir Albert” Pujols. Before that, the fan favorite was Ozzie “The Wizard” Smith. Are you picking up on a trend here?… Read the rest

A Mound of a Man

“I guess you could say I’m the redemption of the fat man. A guy will be watching me on TV and see that I don’t look in any better shape than he is. ‘Hey Maude,’ he’ll holler, ‘get a load of this guy and he’s a twenty game winner.'”

–Mickey Lolich

Since last January, I’ve lost almost 40 lbs. I had packed on some weight gain from a combination of middle age sloth and a nearly 3 month bout with bronchitis; when I tipped the scales at just over 200 lbs, my eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

With some inspiration from my buddy Ed, I discovered ways to change the way I eat (along with how I think about food) plus I increased my weekly running mileage to 25-30 miles a week.… Read the rest

Meet Us In St. Louis

rogers.jpgWe’re heading back to “The Gateway City” for Game 3 of the World Series on Tuesday night. Not surprisingly, the Tigers bounced back last night with a 3-1 victory over the Cardinals behind the strong pitching of 40-something Kenny “The Gambler” Rogers. Normally I like seeing “old guys” performing well on the playing field because it gives me hope, but I don’t like it as much when they’re wearing the opposite team’s uniform.

One thing’s for sure: Rogers missed the lesson in kindergarten about washing one’s hands before a game. In the first inning, Fox Sports commentators spied a dark spot on the thumb and palm of Roger’s left throwing hand.… Read the rest

Old School is Cool

The Cards got things rolling last night, jumping all over the Tigers for a 7-2 victory in Game One.

The biggest surprise of the night was the stellar pitching of Anthony Reyes who silenced the doubters concerned over his low win total (5), the fewest ever for a Game 1 starter in Series history. Reyes is old school–he wears his socks high and his cap brim flat (the better to see the catcher’s signs, he says). With players these days wearing their pant legs so low that it seems like they would trip over them running down the basepaths, Reyes is a blast from the past.… Read the rest

A Different Kind of Card

johnny-bench.jpgI made clear my citizenship in the Cardinal Nation in yesterday’s post. But as we head in to opening night of this year’s World Series, I should tell you in the interest of full disclosure that there have been other “cards” in my life.

Growing up in Southwest Virginia, I rooted for a different shade of red–The Big Red Machine of Cincinnati to be precise. This came about as the result of an event that took place one Sunday morning in 1970 on the way to church.

My grandmother used to go to church with us back then, and one Lord’s Day she handed me a small card wrapped in thin, nearly transparent paper.… Read the rest

Where Were You in 1968?

molina315x260gm7hr102006.jpgBaseball is one of those sports where King Superstition reigns supreme. Just to prove the point, I’ve intentionally avoided mentioning baseball and my team, the St. Louis Cardinals, on this blog for fear of jinxing my boys.

The moratorium ends today–Cards win, Cards win, Cards win!

In a dramatic conclusion to game seven of the NLCS, Yadier Molina struck the decisive blow with a 2-run shot in the top of the ninth inning to finally bring down the New York Mets 3-1. After Endy Chavez robbed Scott Rolen of another home run in what will go down as one of the greatest catches in baseball history, and after Albert Pujols failed yet again to produce with men on base, I thought the Cards were done for.… Read the rest

Straightening Out the Bent Things

ist2_402082_bent_glasses.jpgSunday after church, I felt a large hand grab me firmly by the shoulder. I turned around and saw that it was one of our elders. Uh oh, I thought, what did I do (or more likely, say) this time? There I stood, a 40-something man, but I still felt like a little boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

No trouble this time, thankfully. The question was not “what did you do?” but more like “what could you do?” As in, “could you possibly go over to Huntsville Hospital and straighten out D’s glasses?”

D is a 14-year-old boy who was recently involved in a horse-riding accident.… Read the rest