Chuck's Big Adventure!

I got my tattoo last night! Aimee and I went to Saint Sabrina's in Uptown for my appointment with "Bleach," who was a great guy (he was nice enough to tolerate some photos being taken while he worked). He first applied the template, and then began putting on the ink. It wasn't too painful, but it hurt a bit when he was working on the smaller details. Overall, it took only about an hour for it to be completed. I need to keep it covered for a few days while I'm at work because I have to wear a dress shirt, but it should be healed very soon. Here are some pictures of the event:

A Wonderful Evening

Last night, Aimee and I went to a tattoo shop in Uptown to hopefully get me inked up! Unfortunately, they were booked solid. I do, however, have an appointment for next Tuesday night with "Bleach" to get my Celtic cross tattoo (look for some pictures sometime next week)!

Afterwards, we went to dinner at the Global Market in the Midtown Building (the old Sears building on Lake Street). It's a very neat environment, and one that I'd highly recommend to others.

Then, we drove down to the Stone Arch Bridge in Minneapolis and went for a walk. I am truly a fan of that bridge. The area is steeped in history for Minneapolis, as we used to have a strong milling industry, and there are still many remnants of the old mills. From the Stone Arch Bridge, you get a great view of the city skyline - another destination that I'd highly recommend to others (and I know that it holds a very special meaning to my friends Eric and Lisa who were engaged there).

There even was somebody showing a movie ("Airplane") on the outside wall of an older brick building nearby, with only a few people watching it - however, there were a couple of us who stopped and caught a few minutes of the flick!

All in all, last night was a very wonderful evening.

We Are Sensory Creatures

"My brother just got a new Apple computer. Several of us were there when he opened it, and we were so into it that we were actually handing the various parts around the room. If you have taken part in this particular ritual, then you know that Apple ships everything in white and silver bags and liners that would make dirt look attractive. We were even passing the power cord around the room, admiring its design.

Were we losing our minds? The power cord?

The designers at Apple understand something significant about what it means to be human: we are hardwired to appreciate sensory experience.

Texture, shape, color, feel, aroma.

The things God creates in Genesis are 'pleasing to the eye.' We have an ingrained sense of appreciation for how things look and feel and smell. We bear the image of our maker."

Rob Bell, Sex God



Eric and Lisa went with me to buy my MacBook a few months ago. Eric and I were like little kids on Christmas morning, opening up my computer box, and marveling at its content's beauty!

We Shall Overcome

I just purchased Bruce Springsteen's lastest cd, "Live in Dublin: Bruce Springsteen with the Sessions Band," and have been listening to it at work today - I would highly recommend it to anyone! The cd is Bruce and company playing the great folk songs of Pete Seeger, mingled in with some of Bruce's rarer songs.

Pete Seeger, for those of you who are younger than I am, was a prominent folk/protest singer and political activist from the 1950's into the 1980's. He is now nearly 90 years old, and still sings on occassion. Pete's was a voice lent for many great causes, ranging from the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) to the Civil Rights Movement, from the Vietnam War to environmental matters. To me, his is a voice that resonates with my youth, having heard him on PBS many, many years ago. Each time I've heard his familiar voice, I am instantly brought back to that PBS special - amazing how even though I haven't seen that show in over 20 years, I can still vividly remember it, and his mesmorizing performance. Pete's life is an amazing example of fighting for others, for the rights of all, and for our planet.

"We shall overcome, we shall overcome, we shall overcome some day. Darling, here in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome some day."

Pete Seeger, We Shall Overcome

Narrative

"From the beginning of human community, the brain has made use of conversation and oral stories as primary programs of verbal learning. Since life itself takes the shape of a narrative, it makes sense that the brain would specialize in that form. Around the campfire or the kitchen table, stories stoke fires that seem to burn forever in the child's brain."

L. Brendto, M. Brokenleg, and S. Van Bockern, Reclaiming Youth at Risk: Our Hope for the Future

As I was studying this afternoon for my Counseling Children & Adolescents class, I came across the quote above, that speaks to my excitement for the narrative form of story. Sharing our past with others is a valuable way to not only pass down other people's lives, but it's a great way for us to share our faith as well. Be sure to take the time to share something with someone today...

Community, Part II

"How many people do you know who aren't a part of a church, company, or community because of the way they were treated? When we hurt each other, when we gossip about each other, when we fail to forgive each other, when we don't do the work of making peace with each other, we get severed from each other, cut off, divided."

Rob Bell, Sex God

The enemy wouldn't have it any other way - when we fail to forgive each other, we are cut off and divided from them. The enemy wants us to be not only cut off from others, but for us to be cut off from God as well. The sad thing is, churchs are not immune to these struggles either. In my limited experiences, I have seen people divided over things as silly as preaching styles and the music that we sing - how is that a healthy community, or a healthy relationship with others and with God?

One of the greatest things about community is the intimacy of it's people. But that intimacy can also be one of its greatest challenges. We must find a way to be totally open and brutally honest (lovingly) with one another, in such a way that is for our good and not for our destruction.