If I knew you were willing to be a team player I would have asked you to be my Turk so I could be JD...I thought you were too selfish to contribute to the cause. My bad...

PEACE
Doug

That title doesn't make sense I know. But, I just read an article in TV Guide that said there is going to be a spin off of the Office! I don't care what people think, I would love to see it. Apparently they are not planning on stealing one character from the original show. But, starting a whole new office with it's own new issues, but hopefully the same old uncomfortable, dry humor. TV Guide asked the questions:

I love those ideas, and they would probably make the show a success, and probably would be willing to do it too. Considering Steve Carell stepped into the Sitcom world after already being successful in movies, knowing how great the show was going to be. I don't care how they do it, or what the premise for the show is, as long as it has a fantastic "Michael Scott and Dwight Schrute" like characters it will be an "A" in my book.
PEACE
Doug

With the release of the new OS for Macs, came an interesting jab at PCs. Anything that is supposed to run on windows automatically has an old school CRT monitor with the blue screen of death as its icon. I'm sure most Mac users think that is hillarious and, I can see why. But, it just seems arrogant. Don't get me wrong, I don't use a Mac but I do use a lot of their stuff, itunes, ipod, and my crappy phone has a whole lot of iphone envy. Even if Mac is the best of the best it isn't an attractive attitude. If the Patriots (who are dominating every opponent they face) started having press confrences about how they are way too good to be playing these weak teams. Even though it is true, I'd think they are jerks and I'd like them less than I already do (if that were possible). I read a blog that said it really well:

Liz told me yesterday about a woman and baby that died during childbirth. I was bothered, like anyone would be, but eventually I went on with my day. Then, today, a friend I have a couple classes with said his cousin was that woman Liz had read about. Then he told me the rest of the story. The woman's husband had lost her job last week because their van broke down while in Nebraska. They had it fixed and sent back this week, then she went in to have the baby and within just a couple hours she had passed away, and they found out the baby had been dead for about three weeks. The very next day someone took their 2004 van they had fixed and totalled it. So now this man has lost his wife and his baby, his job, his transportation for any potential job and he has SEVEN kids to take care of, all between the ages of 2-10.
When I asked Thon what I could do to help him and his family, he said that they had been asking their friends and family to give $5 - $10 and had raised $280. Liz and I think that this isn't enough, and would like to ask anyone reading this to pray about what they can do to help. Prayer IS enough! But if you would like to give more just email me, or leave a comment, or tell me via our contact page. It's one thing to see this kind of story on "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" but it's a new thing when we are the ones asked to respond, I realize. But thanks for reading this and thanks for your prayer!

PEACE
Doug

Got a new idea for my Halloween costume. Again, it will only make every third person giggle, then the rest will just ask why I have a mullet.

I haven't been able to touch my book since I started it a few days ago. I figured I'd be done with it by now. I'll try to make an extra effort this week to finish it up and give a good review of what I thought of it.

Better get going to class...I'm late so I could write this. That's OK, today we are learning how to multiply and divide fractions (in case I forgot from eighth grade). Easy A I guess.
I'll probably post some more later today.
PEACE
Doug

I think I've decide what to be for Halloween on Wednesday. I'll be sure to post a picture, but it is going to be great! It'll make a couple of people laugh and the rest of the people ask "what are you supposed to be? And why do you keep asking me 'what's happening?'"

PEACE
Doug

I took a day off. Sorry, I didn't mean to, it just happened. I was in Iowa city yesterday for the Iowa game and I was pretty happy with the outcome. Today I sat around and watched football, but I did try something new. I was watching "the Office" and Dwight (and Jim) made a SecondLife character.

Oh it has losers... I looked into the game and found out that anything you want to make you can, if you take the time to make it work. So, I thought I'd try to make an eNGedi store. And so far the game is confusing and difficult, and it keeps crashing. So, maybe it won't be worth it, or maybe our stuff will catch people's eyes, and we'll make some FirstLife customers. My name on their is Crash Mumfuzz btw.
PEACE
Doug

I'm starting a new book it's called "unchristian what a new generation really thinks about christianity...and why it matters" From what I've ascertained it has data they collected from a research group on the topic. So they look at what people hate about churches and asked the question "do we really do this?" unfortuneatly from just glancing at the points the answer is "yes" so then they tackle how to stop doing it and what that would look like. Sounds pretty cool. But I've been wrong before.

I'll give a review when I finish it. Hopefully in the next two days.
PEACE
Doug

Last night I was recreating the apparel page of our site by awesome suggestions from David (ty), I was tired and should have gone to bed. But something made me check my email one last time...I ended up reading a post by my friend Ryan that was, pretty much, a 4 page rant on anything he could think of. It was funny and kind of serious at parts but mostly it seemed like it just helped him blow off steam about whatever was bothering him. That's why I love blogging. It is just my opinions and my life you're reading about. How often do our thoughts get published? It is therapeutic. Though I almost had an aneurysm trying to finish "Ryan's rant" it was fun to hear what he was thinking. So I'm recruiting, go to www.blogger.com and start a blog. And tell me about it, post a comment on here saying how I can get to it. I could even add a side bar to my page with a link to all my friends blogs (if I can figure that out). So once Reed starts blogging again, I'll hopefully have at least a good 5 friends that I can get updates on daily, that's nice.
PEACE
Doug

Well everything on the website should be working now, and we are already selling out of certain sizes of the hoodies, exciting!

Well I'm starting my sex series tonight for youth. It is always fun to watch everyone react to me being blunt about what the bible says concerning sex. It also scares me that they are so surprised at some of it. I've already given this talk a couple times so most of the youth attending are 100% prepared for it, but I know there will be some that can't believe I think that sex is really good, and I like it a lot. They'll go home thinking I'm a freak, but at least they'll know the truth for a change.

I think I love to give this teaching because my mom was so brutally honest with us during our "sex education after dinner talks" she would talk very openly about the realities of sex. Unfortunately almost no one else I talk to, had that openness with their parents. They learned about sex from movies and friends. That is terrifying! So I'm glad I get to pass on the Cloven sex talk to unsuspecting youth, and someday in the next few years to Jaxon.

PEACE
Doug

I touch machines and they break...I was excited yesterday when we got the hoodies, so I went to add them to the website, because I had a couple minutes before class. But instead of adding the pictures and an "add to cart" button, I made the page look like one of those sliding puzzles, and I don't know how I did it. Then I couldn't fix it, nothing I could think of would do it. So, I had to call Chad, to have him fix it. I even amazed him, but he reset it for me to try again (thanks Chad).
I still think the shopping cart system is broken somehow, I'll try to fix it today if I get a chance. I got a good 5 comments a school today about my cool hoody...that's always an encouragement. I will post something of worth later today hopefully, once I get some work done.
PEACE
Doug

I am pretty pumped today, for a few different reasons. I am loving these photos we got from photo frog (thanks for being awesome) they are looking good, and I can't wait to update our site with all these great shots. The zip-up hoodies should be here any minute which is SUPER exciting. And of course it is Matt's 21st birthday! So now that he is a man, I can share with him the 3 secrets of manhood...

1. This one isn't a huge secret but it is true, and it is the most important of the three: Happy wife, happy life.

2. It's better to ask for forgivness than for permission.

3. Always get chili on your nachos!

That's it Matt, don't say I never got you anything.

PEACE
Doug

PEACE
Doug

Chiefs v Raiders that's going to be a good game. I can't wait. This is going to be a day of sitting around and drinking Diet Dr. Pepper or DDP as I call it. GO CHIEFS!

My friend Nick is in a movie! That would be enough for me to fall in love with it, but there are more attributes that add to its beauty. I'll now list these qualities in order of importance:

1. Nick, not just because he's my friend, but because he was probably one of the top 3 actors in the entire movie. And he had a much bigger part than he made it sound like he was going to have. What a Modest Molly he is!

2. Larry Miller, I don't think there are many people in the movie biz I like more than him, although his old stand-up routines aren't exactly "comedy gold." He was great in this movie

3. Underdog sports story, I don't care what sport they're playing and how bad the acting is, if it is an underdog sports story I'll watch it. I know this is true because of the number of times I've seen movies like "The Little Giants" and "Sandlot".

4. Iowa, I love that this movie is a true story that is set in my backyard.

That's it, that's all I needed for this movie to be great. I'd buy the DVD if Nick wasn't even in it...maybe.

PEACE
Doug

This is what he looks like now, just a greenish-purple bruise and a scab. The doctor said it will probably disappear completely, but I hope it leaves enough of a scar that we don't forget our first ER visit.
PEACE

Doug

Here it is! our new way of blogging. Thanks to Chad for writing and editing all the crazy code so this is possible! With our new blog page you are fully capable of leaving comments that are easy to post and view for all. You may have to sign up at http://www.blogger.com/ to leave comments, but a lot of you already are from what I can tell, so that shouldn't be too hard. That's all I have to say right now, I'm just excited that this is possible and that we know a genius that can make our dreams come true (Chad). Tell us what you think of the new setup.
PEACE
Doug

We are experimenting! Bear with us.
PEACE
Doug

New Blog Page Coming SOONOctober 19
We are going to have a new blog page up here really soon, to allow you guys to comment each blog, and to allow for better organization and stuff.Keep checking back for the updates.PEACEDoug


Children's Television October 18
I thought this was funny. My friend Chase, who is a senior in high school, was showing a group of high school aged people this video and they thought it was hilarious. When I came over I realized it's one of the shows that Jaxon loves to watch. I'm just glad I'm not the only one that found it so ridiculous.


Pro-EdOctober 18
Today is going to be a good day, I can tell already. And not because I won anything from the stupid Monopoly McDonalds game, because I resisted (go me). It's good because when I got to class I checked our statistics for the website and saw that we had a record number of people visit the site yesterday. Which probably means that the rest of my family has figured out that there are pictures of my son on here, and came to look at them. But I'm also in a good mood because I got a neat reminder in my ethics class today. We started a discussion about abortion (big ethical issue) and all but two people had raised their hand for being pro-choice. After extensive education as to what abortions really look like and how they are performed, and all that jazz, almost no one would admit to being pro-choice. There could be a number of reasons that they didn't raise their hand at the conclusion of today's class, but I liked the reminder: that education on a topic, no matter how "controversial" or "personal", does force people to reexamine their beliefs. I hope I am doing some of that in youth ministry as well. And I hope I continue to allow myself to be educated on topics I think I already know.PEACEDoug

Children's Television October 18
I thought this was funny. My friend Chase, who is a senior in high school, was showing a group of high school aged people this video and they thought it was hilarious. When I came over I realized it's one of the shows that Jaxon loves to watch. I'm just glad I'm not the only one that found it so ridiculous.

Pro-EdOctober 18
Today is going to be a good day, I can tell already. And not because I won anything from the stupid Monopoly McDonalds game, because I resisted (go me). It's good because when I got to class I checked our statistics for the website and saw that we had a record number of people visit the site yesterday. Which probably means that the rest of my family has figured out that there are pictures of my son on here, and came to look at them. But I'm also in a good mood because I got a neat reminder in my ethics class today. We started a discussion about abortion (big ethical issue) and all but two people had raised their hand for being pro-choice. After extensive education as to what abortions really look like and how they are performed, and all that jazz, almost no one would admit to being pro-choice. There could be a number of reasons that they didn't raise their hand at the conclusion of today's class, but I liked the reminder: that education on a topic, no matter how "controversial" or "personal", does force people to reexamine their beliefs. I hope I am doing some of that in youth ministry as well. And I hope I continue to allow myself to be educated on topics I think I already know.PEACEDoug

This turned my frown upside down October 17

I just reread this...I apologize October 17
Today has been busy, hopefully things calm down next week. Although I doubt it. We hit a snag in the hoody production, and I hope it all works out but I'm not happy about it at all. That is why I'm venting to you guys. I hate when nothing you want to do is "possible". I'm told that constantly "that just isn't possible" well, if I believed that every time I heard it what would my life look like? I wouldn't be married because high school sweet hearts don't really work out. Kids at such a young age are out of the question because I have my whole life for that. I couldn't work at a church because it's not possible to make enough money to sustain a family while working at something you love, you have to get a real job. Don't even think of giving 10% of your income to the church because it isn't possible to survive like that, it is a neat idea, just not possible. Oh and don't even think of starting a crazy company with a friend, it'd be great to make some money doing something else you love, but (everyone together now!) "it just isn't possible.I realize I'm ranting, but I'm so proud of myself for going back to school while raising my son, growing closer to my wife, helping kids grow closer to Jesus, and having this business all while loving God first. It is possible to do what you were meant to. And I want my hoodyTHE WAY I WANT IT!PEACEDoug

free time filled October 16
I actually have a free 9 minutes before I have to go finish homework and get going to class. So I thought I'd write a quick blog for you guys. All this free time gave me just enough time to scan some fun reads online. I read another cool article in Business Week it's a top ten list for video game creators, here's a quick blurb, you can get the rest here."1. Never ask a player if they want to save their game...2. Always say "press any button" to start a game...3. Always let players remap controller buttons to suit their preferences."It is kind of nitpicky but I liked it because it makes me feel connected to the video game world I've lost touch with (I'm not really complaining). If any of you are Dane Cook fans, you've probably already seen this but my mother-in-law showed me this and I thought it was funny. enjoy
PEACEDoug

ScarbucksOctober 15
Looking more closely at the wound, it looks a bit like an "S". Apparently he's only going to have the stitches in until Friday. That is a really short amount of time, which makes me happy. Well I have a good 3 hours of homework to do today. So I've done my online reading early while Jaxon was watching the Doodle Bops. This is what I found that excited me, then made me sad, because I can't enjoy the perks. I can only be jealous of the innovative stuff starbucks and apple are doing. I wish I were innovative!
PEACEDoug

a day of adventuEROctober 14
Well, it has happened. I've had to take my son to the emergency room. I was sitting with him on my lap, and when he went to slide off the chair he did a nose dive into a corner of the wooden molding. It left a kind of hole just above his right eyebrow, I then went into panic mode. I'm not going to act like I was in control, but I think I handled it rather well. He didn't have a concussion or any brain trauma, he just had to have 4 stitches put in. The doctor said it was a star shaped wound ...yuck. Every 4-5 minutes I replay the whole thing in my mind and feel sick and guilty, but this is what boys are like ...I guess I have to get used to it. Because of my stressful day I did eat a few servings of ice cream on my mother's advice, to relieve my anxiety, so who knows what I'll weigh tomorrow probably 200lbs. I'll let you know.
PEACEDoug

TitleOctober 13
I'm sorry, we forgot to bring our camera, so I didn't get any candid shots from the shoot today, but we'll get the real stuff up here fairly soon so don't hate me (hate Matt if you want though). It was a lot of fun. We were suppose to be doing the shots on top of a building in down town Dport but, as we were leaving it started to rain so we just went to the studio and took pictures in there. It was done in a proffesional manner, but we got to have a hand in what we did and how, which was great! All in all, I think I you guys are going to love the results, especially those of you who participated in it. If you wanted to be involved but couldn't, don't lose heart we will surely do another one in the future, and hopefully it'll be just as productive!
PEACEDoug

Stop or I'll shootOctober 13
Oh my. For some reason I'm not jittery with excitement. I'm moderatley pumped, but mostly because I have something fun to do today. I know that once we get started and taking pictures I'll be elated. Then once I get the pictures I'll be insane with happiness. I'll post some candid shots from the shoot later today. So check back.
PEACEDoug

Parents are cluelessOctober 12
I stumbled across this website assuming I wouldn't appreciate it. But, I was pleasantly surprised. It lets parents and kids both share their secrets, their fears, and their feelings anonymously. I read it, and saw that some parents are selfish and mess up, and saw that some teens are thoughtful and on the right track. I saw hurt from parents that are shut out of their kids lives, and fear that they are making the same mistakes their parents did. I saw youth reaching out for someone to tell them they are loved. It is a neat and simple site. I think any family that is willing to go just look at the site together would benefit.
PEACEDoug

Don't throw plasma gernades at your teacher October 12
Sorry for not posting anything yesterday, I thought since I posted twice on Wednesday, and that the second was at 11:52 that it would count for Thursday's, I was wrong I'm sorry.Well thanks to Reed for giving his opinion on Halo 3 being used in churches. He brought the "killing aliens made of pixels" arguement, which I appreciate, he contrasted this idea with Grand Theft Auto, and how realistic it is unlike the fantasy space adventure of Halo. I feel pretty much the same way. If you see a Brute walking down the street you have my support in grabbing the nearest needler and busting a fantastical cap in his booty. But! I don't like that something rated for 17 year olds is available in churches for younger students. That is a little shady. I bet I could get just as many people to come to a video game tournament if I were offering Smash Bros, or Madden as the games. I'm a believer along with Reed, that Halo is great, and if I play it at home, I shouldn't be ashamed to play in church. I've heard the same violence arguements with mixed martial arts, but I've seen that work in crazy ways, where nothing else could. So to prove my point I've provided a video that has nothing to do with what I've been talking about. Enjoy.
PEACEDoug

I'll give you my opinion just quit emailing meOctober 10
Because of the huge response I got from my Halo 3 questions, I am going to give a quick run down of what I believe:1. I believe I did not recieve a single email about Halo 3 so I'm not even going to waste my finger strength on typing about it.2. I believe I'm tired (it is 11:52)3. I believe my dad is the only one who reads this blog (hi dad! Tell Haley I said happy birthday, since she doesn't have a phone I couldn't get a hold of her.)
PEACEDoug

Peace of Christ be with you October 10
The New York Times had an article that brought up some great points about churches using Halo, a very violent game rated M for 17 or older (I can hear my Composition Prof in the back of my mind, telling me that an author said this not the New York Times.) You can view the whole article by clicking here but here is a quick snippet of what I though was especially fun:"The alliance of popular culture and evangelism is challenging churches much as bingo games did in the 1960s. And the question fits into a rich debate about how far churches should go to reach young people.Far from being defensive, church leaders who support Halo — despite its “thou shalt kill” credo — celebrate it as a modern and sometimes singularly effective tool. It is crucial, they say, to reach the elusive audience of boys and young men." It demands an answer, that's why I like it. Is Halo evil? Is it ok at home but not in church? Why should it not be used? I'd like to here what you think. Contact me (click here) to let me know your thoughts and I'll tell you what I think tomorrow.
PEACEDoug

McDonalds Super Diet October 9
Matt's Blog rating:He has now done a blog without a video, or dumb picture, that's an improvement. Also he has added a title, I wonder why... However, "Alot" is not one word, so that takes a lot of points off for not using spell check. What a rookie mistake! I hope we can continue to be friends after this blog feud is over. In other news I'm at 188.5 lbs, so I'm going to try to get to 175 so I can maybe show a picture of me with a six pack to Jaxon so he will believe me when I say I used to have muscles. So, I went to McDonalds this morning before class, even though I'm trying to lose weight, I just can't resist the Monopoly game. It is the BEST marketing ever. I don't even like McDonalds but I go there just to play the stupid game. If eNGedi ever did anything that smart, marketing wise, we'd be millionaires in a year (It makes me sad, because I know it'll never happen.) Hopefully I'll just get a boardwalk piece and win the million that way...why not...
PEACEDoug

Retro Mondays October 8
Well it looks like Matt finally figured out what a blog is. I can only assume someone emailed him and told him that it wasn't just posting stupid videos from the internet, but instead saying things...like what you're thinking and what's going on. Or maybe he just figured it out all by himself after finally running out of funny links from ebaumsworld.com that he could steal. But besides making fun of my motivation to lose weight and get into better shape, he has at least caught onto a great sitcom...so good for you Matt.But enough about Matt being a turd, I was sitting here setting up my new webcam so I can have video calls with Simon who's in Colorado Springs, and Liz just went over to the wii and started playing old school Super Mario Bros. from the original NES. I don't know why, but I just thought, even though she can't get to the 4th world, and she dies at EVERY hammer brother she comes to...that's pretty hott that she is playing the game that started my video game adventure.
PEACEDoug
PS: I like that Matt, saying PEACE at the end of your articles in all caps. I should start doing that...

This week in footballOctober 7
Iowa lost, KC lost...but I got to watch a lot of football, so that's good. I also went bowling today, not something I do that often in the real world, but I do bowl a lot on my wii. Bowling in real life isn't nearly as much fun, and I'm much worse when I have to throw a real ball that weighs more than my head...it hurts my muscles (they don't get used very often.)I think I'm going to start working out and letting everyone see my results each week on here, so I have some accountability. If I start gaining weight back or not working out, then you guys have every right to email me and tell me what a lazy bum I am.Reed since you're the only one that I know of that actually reads this stuff, it's all up to you my friend...BE MY ROCK! Then when I am cut and in awesome shape I'll give you all the credit.
PEACEDoug

mess with me IKEA your car October 6
Today is that day that you dream of after a long week at work, Saturday! A day where sitting around and doing nothing is celebrated with college football and a cold Diet Dr. Pepper. But, just when you thought Saturday couldn't get any better, the IKEA magazine comes and you get to look through it while you wait for the Iowa game to be on the Big Ten Network. Now if Iowa wins this will be the second greatest Saturday of my life. (the first greatest was the Saturday that I got a car for my birthday, along with Mortal Kombat III for my Sega, had mashed potatoes for dinner and watched the "Saved by the Bell" movie, where Kelly and Zack get married in Vegas. I love that one)
PEACEDoug
PS: REEDIZZLE

checking out competitors October 5
I like to go around to different websites and see what is new with them and what cool new ideas they are coming up with. Sometimes when I do that, I find stuff that isn't the best idea too. Here is an example of something I would not try, especially if I were planning on taking a plane ride anytime soon. I think that's funny. Got my grapes my pear, and of course my handgun next to my salad dressing.On another note, I've been researching cancer lately. Not for any serious reason, just because I think I'm going to do a sermon series on it sometime soon. Cancer is a crazy thing, but there are some things we can learn from it, if you can get beyond the ugly side of the metaphor(death). So, that has been VERY interesting. Cancer is a crazy thing. I'll let you guys know the cool things I come up with as it happens.
PEACEDoug

first blog ever! October 4
Alright, this is my first ever blog attempt, I figured since I give updates to business stuff on the news page I'll try to keep that and this seperate. So, this will be more about me and less about eNGedi, but don't be super surprised if it overlaps a little. All I know is my side is better than Matt's, and since I run the website, I get to read his blog before it goes on the site. So, I will be stealing his thoughts before anyone knows they are his thoughts...and claiming full credit for neat videos and things he wants to show people. HAHA good luck finding out what is mine and what I just took from him.
But I did run across a really cool video that made me immediately think of eNGedi and my responsibility as a person in the clothing industry (even in the smallest capacity). Just a neat video that makes you think about fashion and what we listen to as far as marketing goes. Makes you think, hope you like it.
PEACEDoug