steve-o
Introduction To The House of Carr
Introduction To The House of Carr

For Pete's Sake

Full disclosure: I love Pete Rose.

It has to be tough for Pete that another Hall-Of-Fame class was inducted and he wasn't there. I've made a promise to myself that if Pete is ever enshrined, I'm going to Cooperstown to watch. At this rate, my grandkids might have to wheel me there. For the reason why, look at some of these comments he dropped at a recent speaking engagement:

"I was ****ed off that Marge [Schott, former Reds owner] didn't leave me any money in her will; she left it all to the zoo."

"Marge loved to smoke and she would have smoked in her sleep if someone was there to hold her cigarette all night."

"I saw Joe DiMaggio in the shower and he saw more of him than Marilyn Monroe ever did."

Interesting, to say the least. Apparently he also got off a couple of F-bombs. Nice. It's even more interesting when you realize these comments were said at a baseball camp in front of 7 to 14 year-olds. Do seven year-olds even know who Marilyn Monroe is, let alone Joe DiMaggio? I bet only a handful knew who Marge Schott was. As a professional public speaker, I would like to offer the Hit King this valuable piece of advice: know your audience before you speak so you don't reference things they're not familiar with.

Ah, Westside Godfather, how many more times are you going to embarrass me for claiming you as my favorite baseball player of all time? It's like I've run out of defenses. Pretty soon I'm going to have to claim my own addiction to explain my imbalanced choice.

I should note one thing he said that drew a lot of criticism from parents. He told the kids that "winning is everything and if you get second place you're just losers." I bet some of the parents were more put-off by this comment than the F-bombs. Personally, I love it. Who else is going to come out and say that anymore? Parents might deceive little Johnny and Suzie into thinking the world's a big love-fest where everybody wins, but they're liars.

In order to make it in this world, you've gotta go for broke. And Pete Rose actually exemplified that. This guy didn't have the talent to make the Majors, let alone be one of its greatest players. But he clawed his way to the top with his can't lose attitude and made something of himself . . . and then he gambled it all away.

This is a trainwreck from which I cannot look away.

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About Hype

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Over-hyped: The movie 300. I was stoked when it came out on video only to discover that it was the p0rn version of Gladiator/Braveheart. Watching King Leonidas in the trailers scream statements about Sparta seemed cool. In the context of the movie it became laughable. Under-hyped: Fatherhood. It killed me to go to class tonight as Kaelyn cried for her Da-dah. Lucky for me she was still not wanting to sleep when I got back so I got to hold her as she fell asleep; occasionally she'd look up at me while sticking her tongue out. As I left her room she uttered out a "night-night" [which currently comes across as "nah-nah"], and I knew life was good.

Just-right-hype: My wife. Just this past week in my class, we discussed the institution of marriage. An article we read absolutely ripped it apart, suggesting that it was an archaic institution that needs to be abolished; that if you're married life pretty much sucks and you wish you weren't married. I was partly pissed/partly sad because, when I think about our marriage, I can't imagine life without it.

When we were dating I knew that Kelly was something special. There's always a little doubt as to whether the romance can last and I can proudly declare that ours has. Nine years to the day when we said "I do" it's all been worth it.

My wife is amazing. Perfect hype. Happy Anniversary, Kel.

Hot! Hot! And, Dare I Say, Hot!

Truth: my sister-in-law makes the best salsa ever.After eating it yet again this past weekend I had Kelly call Mandi to get her recipe. Kel went shopping today and got all the ingredients necessary.

And Steve rejoiced.

Before heading to class tonight I decided to cut up all the vegetables and make the legendary salsa. I never really knew what cilantro was before today. It could soon become my favorite spice; sorry, oregano. After dicing all the ingredients, including three kinds of peppers, I washed my hands thoroughly twice and got ready for class.

As I was getting ready I scratched my nose [not a pick, I swear] and it felt en fuego. I proceeded to wash my hands once more, thinking the third time's a charm, and went over to Xavier.

About half an hour into class my left hand, the one I used to hold all the veggies while cutting, felt tingly. Within the next thirty minutes, the hand felt warm. By the end of class, it was absolutely on fire. As I type this, I have to stop periodically to clench my fist because it's still burning up.

Not really sure what I can do about this. Never knew working with vegetables could be so hazardous. But when I'm chompin' down on some freakin' incredible salsa tomorrow, it'll all have been worth it.

Up and Down

A strange couple of days here have left me scratching my head. Saturday we were looking forward to getting together with my mom's side of the family out at my brother's place in Indiana. It's about a forty-minute drive out there and we were having a great time until Kaelyn just went a little crazy; she had a few weird days where she's barely slept. So we left after a couple of hours, spending almost as much time in the car as visiting. Not so good.

That night I was invited to a party hosted by a guy on my soccer team. It was cool to meet some of his friends but it ended up being a classic frat party with keg-stands and liquor luges. It was a great venue in which to start a conversation with, "So, yeah, I'm a minister." But I was actually able to have some meaningful discussions with people who were only slightly inebriated. So, all in all, pretty good.

Then yesterday I was speaking out at the Bethel Church of Christ. They have two services: a traditional and contemporary. In the traditional service, median age 68, I might have delivered the worst sermon I've given in a few years. I did, however, get in the line "baptize them in beer" which actually received laughs. I was a little better in their second service, but still not great. Again, not good.

But we had a chance to go to lunch at Rob and Alicia Gee's house out there. Rob and Alicia are some great people who drive a half hour each week to come to Echo. Their kids Henry and Sydney are wonderful to Kaelyn and Alecia's food was restaurant worthy. So things were getting better.

At church last night Derek and Rachel Brown filled in for Tye and told about their mission trip to Guatemala. They did awesome. But I followed that up with another egg, rounding out an overall bad day of preaching. I thought I could put the weekend behind me and woke up early this morning to work out at Xavier. I get in the Explorer and it refuses to start. It's at this point that I wish I had my own liquor luge.

But before I fret, I call my buddy Micah. We were on staff at Mason together. He's a mechanic and knows my car from three years of working on it. He and his wife Missy just welcomed their fourth child, Levi, into the world and he was glad to give me advice. He reminded me that it was a similar problem that I had with it four years ago [the idle air control for you auto-clubbers] and all I really needed to do was disconnect it, tap it with a hammer, and reattach it. Sure enough, I did that and the car started right up. Excellent.

Honestly, I'll forget about this weird weekend in a few days but I was really down last night; I even went to bed a couple of hours early. But that's what I like about the new week: it can all turn around today.

Can Do Anything A Spider-pig Does

Took some time-out during my study day to catch The Simpson's Movie. I remember all the hullabaloo [nice word] surrounding the series in its early years. It was frequently cited as an example of decaying family values. It's interesting that now, compared to South Park and Family Guy, it's incredibly tame. There are even people who use the show to examine issues of faith in America. So this show that was originally labeled dysfunctional is now admired.

All in all, good flick. The creators used the film to do a few more edgy bits than they normally do on TV, but still it's clean compared to those other adult cartoons I named earlier. I thought they could've done a little more with it but it's still good for some great laughs. Dare I say, it's a family movie. Maybe I should market it to my church . . .

Sidenote: As I scanned the movie theater I was counting the number of people there who weren't alive when it first aired [on the Tracy Ullman show in 1987]; it was more than half the audience. So they've never known life without the Simpson's. Scary.

Need More Info

If Roger Goodell is trying to play hard-dog in light of the Michael Vick case by not reinstating Odell Thurman today, then he's a putz. From all we know, Thurman has kept his side of the deal, sought out counseling, and cleaned his life up. If there's something more we don't know, the league better release it quickly so as not to look like inconsistent buffoons. You know who looks like a genius now? Paul Tagliabue who retired as NFL commissioner this past year. Just when everything hits the fan he rides off into the sunset. Best . . . decision . . . ever.

The Joy Of Blogging

I was thinking the other day of my blogging tree. I've stated before that Tim Reed and Brian Coates [no hyperlink available] were the early blog pioneers that led me to this discipline [and this was before the days of MySpace and their terrible blogging app which means everybody became a blogger by birth]. Since then I know of quite a few people who decided, "if Steve can do this, anyone can," and started their own blog. And there are probably branches that stem from this blog that I don't even know about. And the interwebs is a much better place, I'm sure of it. For those of you who still contemplate whether or not you should try blogging [or try blogging for a second time] let me give you my favorite reason for doing this: the ability to archive your life.

I can barely remember what I ate last night, let alone what I was thinking at major points of my life. I started this blog in the fall of 2004. That was before we went to Israel, before we had ever really thought of Echo, before Kaelyn. Because of this blog I can go back and see what got me here. I can quickly reference my highs and lows, see things I wish I hadn't written, and remember mole hills I crafted into mountains. Whenever I think I'm going through a rough period I can look back and see something even worse that God brought me through.

I've never thought of it this way, but blogging is a blessing that I'm grateful for. That's not to say that I haven't littered cyberspace with my share of meaningless YouTube links, but I've also documented some important things in my life. And I'm better off as a result.

About Keith

So I was up at 5:45 when the garbage truck stopped by. Couldn't get back to sleep so I decided I'd go to ye old Panera to get some work done. Ah, the beauty of free wi-fi is like a crisp spring day . . . or just freakin' awesome. The guy I knew the best from my brief employment still works there. Keith is 21, grew up in the area, and works about 50 hours a week at the store. He's my only real connection from when I worked here. Keith is rough around the edges, plays in a hardcore metal band, and peppers his conversations with a flurry of F-bombs [this might sound sadistic, but I actually enjoy being with regular people who aren't afraid to cuss around a minister]. But he's really a quality guy. Anytime I come in to the store he refuses to charge me for my food. About a month or so ago I took him out to dinner to catch up on things. Our conversation led to the topic of spirituality [his doing, not mine] and I had a chance to share my view of Christianity. He's said he wants to stop by and visit Echo, but hasn't quite made it yet.

I still wonder why God led me to work at this Panera for those few months in our transition to Echo. It really makes little sense in retrospect. Sure, I now appreciate the opportunity to get paid soley for doing ministry but I didn't make tons of local contacts that joined our church. I learned how to make a good cappuccino, but it hasn't come in handy in reaching the community for Jesus.

But I did meet Keith. And maybe that's enough.

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Yikes [athletically speaking]

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I played softball tonight for the first time in two years. Some buddies from up in Mason needed an extra for a game tonight so I pulled out the softball pants and dusted off the glove. Kelly and Kaelyn tagged along which was awesome. I've never been a great hitter, but I usually have a great glove and can use my speed to make up for everything else. I popped out my first time up when I had to chase a ball outside on a 0-2 count. The last two at bats I ran out a couple of balls for singles. And I ended up pinch-running for this one guy throughout the night which worked out rather well for our team, scoring twice.

The first fly ball hit to me in the outfield is what messed with me. Two years is a long time not to field a fly ball and it showed. A guy hits a can 'o' corn my way and I'm tracking it decently. But I didn't play the breeze at all so I let it sail just over my extended glove. It was rather embarrassing; I'll be thinking about that for a few weeks.  I did get a chance of redemption later proving, to these guys who didn't know me, that I could actually catch a fly ball.

There were some cool moments as we got to see some old friends. And Kaelyn was a blast.

I've taught her to say "baseball" and she was saying it over and over again on our drive up there. And she enjoyed playing with a softball by the bench all night, until one time I took the field and she burst out in tears.

But the best part was earlier today when Kaelyn looked at Kelly's Reds shirt and said, "baseball?" We've never really taught her anything about the Reds, so I guess she picked up on it as we leave the FoxSports game on the television: The Reds "wishbone C" = baseball. Much to the chagrin of her Braves-loving grandfather, this girl bleeds Red . . . figuratively and literally.

It twas a very good night.

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Fast

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Besides tricking people into becoming Christians, one of the things we do at Echo is study books of the Bible chapter-by-chapter. This approach to teaching means that you deal with the text as it comes to you; there's no hand-picking certain topics while avoiding others. Case in point was this week as we worked through Zechariah and the subject of fasting presented itself. If I had it my way, I'd avoid the subject altogether because I'm not much for fasting. But I had to wrestle with it last week and came to the conclusion that I should really be doing it more. Actually, we all should do it more.

I suspect that we Americans tend not to fast because it's the most inconvenient spiritual discipline. We're bombarded with messages telling us to fulfill our bodies' every desires without holding back. In 1756 England called for a national day of fasting to prevent a war against the French. Can't really imagine a message like that going over that well today.

I pointed out last night that fasting isn't exclusive to Judeo-Christianity [Buddhists, Muslims, and Hindus all fast]. That said, the Scriptures are clear [Zechariah 7] that fasting should be done in obedience to God above everything else. The text is testifying that when we observe spiritual disciplines that don't confirm to the Lord's guidance that they're actually meaningless. In fasting we're forced to examine what really controls us. I had someone remark to me last night that they don't like fasting because of that very fact: it causes them to come face-to-face with actual condition. But when we're exposed in such a way, we have to come to grips with our spiritual condition.

I encouraged our people to perhaps try some sort off fasting this week. I realize that some people are unable to for health reasons, but there are always opportunities for experimentation. You can observe a Lenten-like period where you abstain from a certain food or activity. And when you're without, and the urges begin to seize you, you remember why you're doing what you're doing and devote yourself to prayer. It sounds tougher than it is. Maybe you should give it a try as well.

The teaching [entitled, The Fast and The Furious: Babylonian Drift] will be up this week on iTunes for download if you're interested in more on the topic.

Harry Potter Ending

OK, I haven't read a word of any of the first books, so why would I have the ending? So if you came here via search engine, hit your back button and try somewhere else. I decided to post this right around midnight to see if I would get any additional internet hits by hard-core fans. I find it fascinating as many websites the past few days have been trying to increase web traffic by claiming they knew the ending. This LA Times article attests that these sites with spoiler pages were rarely Harry Potter fans; rather, they were from money grubbing web geeks trying to drive-up their ad revenues. So why would someone want to ruin the ending? For cash, of course. Sneaky. It should be noted that I get no ad revenue here at Beit Carr [but we'll always accept donations].

I've never seen a frenzy like this in my life. It's amazing that in a technological age that a printed piece of literature is causing this much excitement.

UPDATE: By noon on Saturday, almost 50 different people came here from a search engine by searching "Harry Potter Ending.'

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Why Not Plant A Tree There Instead?

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A couple of days ago I mentioned that they're installing a new grass median on the road in front of our place. I'm fine with it as long as it doesn't become a popular site for fornication. Apparently a couple of locals thought that a median on Central Parkway would be the perfect location for sex during rush hour yesterday afternoon. They were arrested. Another example of police work being underpaid.

Not quite sure what to with that story but felt compelled to share.

I'll Give Him This

If Pete Mackanin, 10-4 as new Reds manager, can get this team to .500 at the end of the season, I could tolerate him getting the job. That would mean them going 40-26 the rest of the season and would prove that these guys will really play for him. But if things calm down, like it most likely will, and they play .500 ball during his tenure, then you gotta go in another direction. Fans deserve more than status quo in this selection.

Something Else I Do

I just checked my archives and realized I've never written about one of my side projects from this past year. I've been busy. Last summer I was reading local magazine and read about this group connected with the Cincinnati Preservation Association that offers walking tours of the city. I thought it might be a good idea for me to get involved with this group as

1) I'm a missionary to Cincinnati, so the more I know about the city, the better.

2) It would be a great opportunity to meet some new people.

3) Tracing back to my CBC admissions days, I'm the consummate tour guide.

4) I love Cincinnati history, so I might as well do something with it.

So I contacted the woman in charge to see if I could become a volunteer tour guide. They were just adding a tour of Clifton [think near UC] and needed more people, so I was in. Starting last October, we started laying out the tour and I began studying Clifton/Cincinnati history. Architecture is a large part of it too, and I know absolutely nothing. I can now identify a porte cochere, note distinguishable characteristics of Italinate architecture, and know a little bit about Frank Lloyd Wright [there's two of his homes in Clifton]. There's a ton of information I disseminate during the tour, but I can keep a cheat sheet with me. We started this spring and will run it through the fall; I do about one or two tours each month.

So far, I'm liking it. I've conducted a few tours with local historians that were challenging [leading people who have ], but this morning I showed a few ladies around Clifton and it went rather well. And it's opened up some great local contacts for me to get some good word of mouth about Echo out there.

This new hobby of mine reaffirmed how cool our city is. Most people think Clifton and don't get beyond the UC campus and Pill Hill. But there are some amazing houses in that area with a good amount of history connected to it.

The next tour I'll host will be next Saturday July 28th at 10am if you're interested. It costs $10 which covers brochures and administrative fees. All twenty-plus people associated with the tours are volunteers like me. Architreks not only hosts walking tours in Clifton but in Mount Adams, Over the Rhine and downtown Cincinnati. I had to take them all to become a "certified tour guide."

So come out and see what a history geek I am.

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Yikes, Mike

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I didn't hear until this morning that Michael Vick [star quarterback of Atlanta Falcons, for the sports-impaired] was indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple counts relating to a dog-fighting ring. The allegations are startling so beware, animal lovers, of reading the details. Not to sure I want to get into this too much but I was thinking whether or not this indictment would've happened twenty years ago. I really don't think so. First, advances in technology yielded a powerful combination: video+internet. Videos are shared virally so what once took place in the secrecy of your own home can now be known the world over in days. When people see first-hand this cruelty that was only rumor, opinions are altered.

But the biggest change in our society leading to the indictment of these acts has been the emergence of animal rights. I'm not sure that PETA can take credit for this [their campaigns get crazier all the time]. Rather, it's a combination of people seeking non-human companionship more as well as an industry that's tailored to take advantage of it. Americans spend $40billion+ per year on their pets. And considering over 60% of US households own a pet, you'd be better of robbing a bank than harming on animal.

Twenty years ago, Michael Vick walks free because no one knows about this. Today, however, he could conceivably lose his job and do considerable jail time.