Just Charlie

A digital commonplace for a Regular Guy called Charlie Pharis

Category: Thoughts (page 12 of 15)

January 18, 2008 / 2 Comments

Friday Night Unwind, 01.18.08…

Still got The Derailers on my mind, in my ears, and out my speakers! What else is in there, you ask? Well, you didn’t ask, but since I told the woman from the paper today that the main thing I like about blogging is that I don’t have to get anybody else’s permission to write what I think, I can put it down here if I want to! So there!

January 16, 2008 / 0 Comments

OK, You Asked For It…

…you got it! And I hope all you folks who wanted some winter are happy! Man! I hate – yep, that’s H-A-T-E! – that cold white stuff that’s steadily falling from the sky!

Funny, there’s already a massive shortage of bread and milk at our local mega-mart. Why bread and milk, anyway? I asked that question to no one in particular at our YMCA today, and people responded with some variation of the following…

Because you can always eat the bread and you can put the milk outside to stay cold if the power goes out.

What?!?!? There’s a lot of other stuff you can eat besides bread (Confucius say: Man does not live by bread alone; he must have peanut butter). And you can put anything – not just milk! – outside to stay cold if the power goes out! But there they were, lined up in our mega-mart, toting gallons of milk and loaves of bread! Go figure!

Anyway, if you wanted some winter, and if you think the snow and inevitable ice is a good thing, then God bless you! Personally, I’m praying it’ll turn 70 degrees before morning!

December 24, 2007 / 0 Comments

Christmas Eve…

The lovely and gracious “Mrs. Just Charlie” is sound asleep. “The Boy” is out celebrating. I’m listening to the Jazz Holidays channel on Pandora. I’m working my way through a French press full of Christmas Blend…

  • The more I think about it, especially with the funky way the school calendar falls this year, the more I’m inclined to celebrate Christmas the “old-fashioned” way. You know, start decorating, etc. on Christmas Eve, then have twelve days of simple but joyful celebration. Just a thought in an exhausted, frustrated mind.
  • I’m worried about not having the right kinds or amounts of Christmas gifts, and somebody in our area is spending the night in the hospital after a head-on collision about 3 miles from our house. Oh, and somebody else’s daughter is dead – along with her passenger and her unborn child. I’m praying for these families tonight. Won’t you?
  • I’m trying to formulate the right words to say if I get the chance tomorrow.
  • An awful lot of people were at the Y this morning doing a preemptive strategic strike on Christmas calories.
  • Our neighbor really does talk in more than monosyllabic sounds!
  • I’m determined to be a better husband, dad, leader, communicator, boss, son, and friend starting now.
  • John Maxwell is right: Talent Is Never Enough.
  • We had an intimate and elegant dinner this Christmas Eve. At Chick-Fil-A, just before they closed.
  • I have some gifts ordered, but they didn’t get here in time.
  • What time does the last Christmas Eve service in our area start?
  • I scored some small but thoughtful and practical gifts from Y members today. Cool!
  • I helped one of the neatest ladies get back on track with her fitness program. I had helped her daughter about a month ago. And the daughter specifically asked me to help her mom. Very cool!
  • If the M in YMCA stands for “Men’s,” why is everything so “girlie?”
  • I’m still digging Gesu Bambino!
December 15, 2007 / 0 Comments

Another Saturday Night…

Taking a break from last-minute preparations for tomorrow. Here’s what I’ve got on my mind and in my heart right now…

December 9, 2007 / 0 Comments

Sunday Night Unwind, 12.09.07…

ala_mill_xmas

Got one of those “not-really-an-actual-album” compilation things going for tonight’s Unwind…a thrown-together selection of Christmas music by Alabama and Ronnie Milsap. Pretty good country Christmas stuff…especially Ronnie Milsap’s spectacular rendition of O Holy Night. And of course, there’s Joseph and Mary’s Boy, Santa Claus, I Still Believe in You, and the great classic (at least in my family!) Christmas in Dixie!

Some other thoughts that dropped out tonight…

  • I pretty much stunk up the place with my message today. Just never seemed to click. I guess that’s what being tired will do for you!
  • But then again, any Christmas message that includes references to J.I. Packer, T.S. Geisel, and M.H.Tormé can’t be all that bad, I suppose.
  • “The Boy” (recently dubbed “Whiney Boy” by “Mr. Know-It-All”) is finally getting a little relief after his recent surgery. He had a pretty graphic description on the phone today, but let’s just say there’s tremendous power in poop and leave it at that!
  • Cafetière à piston. Rôti français. Ooh la la, and pas mal, mon ami!
  • The things one can’t help but notice when helping people get set up on weight machines at the YMCA…
  • I love friends who challenge you and encourage you without even knowing it.
  • Hey, how ’bout that Tebow kid for Heisman! I’m still a large Gator-hater and always will be, but it’s pretty cool to know that an historic Heisman Trophy winner is the brother of one of my best ministry friend’s daughter-in-law! (Yeah, yeah…six degrees and all that jazz!)
  • Did I mention I stunk up the joint this morning?
  • Did I mention our folks were gracious and forgiving?
  • I love type! I’m not a great – or even good! – designer, but playing with fonts floats my boat!
  • One of my strengths, according to the StrengthsFinder assessment is Input, meaning I collect things that may have real value in the future. I’ve come to the conclusion that the collecting is not nearly as big a deal as the retrieval. And I need to work on that. A lot!
  • John Maxwell still pulls my chain after all these years!
  • The fact of the Incarnation is staggering!
November 26, 2007 / 0 Comments

Thoughts from an Incommunicado Curmudgeon…

Still waiting for the replacement phone to come. I was worried earlier about being without my cell phone, but now, I guess I’m kind of over the cell phone DTs I guess, because it’s actually kind of cool not to be checking it every so often. Anyway, while I’m waiting patiently, here’s what’s going on…

  • What did we ever do before cell phones anyway? Sounds like an old coot, I know, but I noticed something last Friday in the shopping crowds at the mall. I unscientifically estimated that 9+ of every 10 people had their cell phone apparently surgically attached to their ears while going about their business. How did we ever stay in touch before we carried our phones with us? What’s so important that you’ve got to be on the phone with someone all the time? Just wondering…
  • I guess if my phone had been surgically attached to my ear on Friday, I wouldn’t be waiting for the replacement one to come now. Touché!
  • At Fusion Church on Sunday, they had one of those “hearing protection dispensers” with the usual disclaimer about the loud band, etc. Somebody asked me if we dispensed earplugs at my church. I responded: “Nope, we have to hand out hearing aids!“
  • The old City on a Hill Christmas CD is a pretty good way to spend a Monday morning.
  • Still no word on Chan Gailey’s future with the Jackets…probably a dim one at best. UPDATE, while writing this post: Never mind…
  • Anybody else think the Mannheim Steamroller’s Christmas albums after Christmas and Fresh Aire Christmas just seem kind of gimmicky and formulaic?
November 25, 2007 / 0 Comments

Give the Dawgs Their Due…

Both of you loyal readers know that I’m not really a huge University of Georgia fan. So my comments are totally unbiased.

Coach Richt’s Dawgs are better than any of the three teams ranked ahead of them in the polls right now. Way better. Go figure…

November 25, 2007 / 2 Comments

On the Outside, Looking In…

That’s what I’ve felt like all day today. Very weird. While I was waiting backstage to speak at Fusion this morning, it felt like I was watching someone else waiting backstage to speak. And when I started, it seemed like I was watching someone else speaking. It was all kind of a blur, and I’m not sure that’s a good thing.

Oh, well…

Anyway, got the usual attaboys from  Tony‘s folks. Had a big time, hope it was good for somebody. Hope Jesus was lifted up. Hope I didn’t cause any problems.

Seth and the band rocked. Adam was a gracious host. The new digs are pretty cool (except there was no eau de popcorn lingering in the air, no place to pay the Macy’s bill on the way in and out of church, no mall security to tell me I was parking in the wrong place, etc.). They even laughed politely at my stories. God is good. Thanks to Tony for the opportunity!

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