I can't believe that it's almost September.

Label Time!

# 16 (3 way tie) Seven Word September.

Much of blogging, mine anyway, is reactive. You see a good movie (or a bad one) and you want to tell people about it. You have a cool thing that works for you and you want to share it. You have some neat pictures and you want to post them. Last year I discovered a cool meme Six Word Saturday at http://www.showmyface.com/. The basic idea is to share six words about what's going on in your life right now. Here is my first submission. Here is my most recent.

I liked the idea so much that I augmented the concept last September to have 7 word titles for all my September blog posts. This was my inaugural post. September 2010 is now just around the corner. I have decided to bring back seven word September for this year as well.

Next Time: 1 week until school starts

Plans for the last week of summer break...

It's Six Word Saturdoodle time once again. http://www.showmyface.com/ hosts the fun and frivolity each and every week.

My Six:

Joining the make a list foundation.

With little more than a week left until school starts around here, there are a few things I want to accomplish before things gets into full swing. Normally I take the aim at nothing and you'll hit it approach. But as Dr. Phil surely knows that isn't working for me. Here's what needs doing:

*Make Six Word Saturday post (check)
*Buy supplies for science and history classes
*Clean out garbage cans and garbage cabinet (w/son's help)
*Clean out garage (w/daughter's help)
* Work on blogging class for homeschool co-op.
* Complete this sentence: accesorize and the world accesorizes with you. (Blank) and you (Blank) alone.
*Buy more tennis balls so I can play tennis with my wife (w/wife)
*Speaking of my wife, I should probably buy her flowers more often (okay she wrote that one.)
*Clean out school shelves one last time
*Make history time line.
* Sell Paramount on film idea: Barack Obama's Day Off.
*Enjoy my last week of unscheduled time with the kiddos, bunny, and my wife (even though she's back at work already, her school starts on Monday the 16th)---possibly some more swimming will be involved, even though we swam non-stop during our recent week long vacation to Wisconsin Dells.
*Prepare myself mentally to see a few more White Sox games


So that 's it for me. What are your plans for the end of summer? Make sure you plan to click here and see the rest of Six Word Saturday.

A night at the races

And they're off!

The staging area

Too loud for his tastes

He gives it 2 thumbs up.

Just a fun night at the races.

Yep my Dad, Spiderdroid, my nephew and myself sure had fun at the Sycamore Speedway.
Thanks to my SIL for being the founder of the feast of fast. Next time need to bring mosquito spray and ear plugs. I think my MIL wants to go to the Demolition Derby next month.



Next Time: Things Fortnightly

In Praise of Allen Levi

Two weeks left until school starts.

Summer has many great traditions and events. From outdoor movies (which sadly we did not partake of this year) to weekend getaways, our summers are filled with some great activities. Some are relatively new, like home school baseball on Thursday nights and some have been going on for years, like my sister and her kids' annual visit from D.C. to the old homestead. Last year a new summer tradition started which starts again today. Allen Levi will release a new song on his blog today (http://www.allenlevi.wordpress.com/) and continue to release a new song each day until Sunday. Yep 7 songs in 7 days. You can also link to the blog from his web site http://www.allenlevi.com/.

Now wait just a minute, you might be saying who is Allen Levi and what kind of music does he perform?

This video may begin to answer those questions.

I am not sure if I have posted about Allen before. I know I have periodically put up links to his website and blog before. I met Allen about 15 years ago when I was living in South Carolina. He performed concerts at the church I was attending 2 years in a row. He was in the early years of his transition from full time lawyer to full time singer.

Allen quickly became of my favorite musicians. He is a prolific song writer/story teller who at both of those concerts sang songs he had written only hours earlier. Unlike Bebo Norman who is featured with Allen in the above video, Allen has not become a Contemporary Christian Music star. I am not sure this was his intention.

A good # of Allen's concerts are played at Young Life (A Christian parachurch youth ministry) camps and training events. He also plays churches like the concert I saw him at. He also has performed at many more intimate venues. He told me once he even plays at birthday parties. I found this out first hand in 2004 when Amy flew him from Georgia to Illinois for my surprise 40th birthday party.

I reviewed all of the songs Allen played last August in preparation for this week. I thought I would link one up here to give you an idea of his music. The problem is they were all awesome and I had hard time deciding which one to choose. You can find them all by clicking here.

If I had to choose one I would choose Proposal (A Love Song). I chose this one because a) I like the premise of a proposal song following the advice Elisabeth Elliot's father had for her brothers: Never tell a girl you love her until you are ready to propose. and b) because I once told a girl I loved her in a song and then proposed in the same song. (She said "sure" btw.)

The indecision in picking 1 song is understandable as I vacillate easily when trying to determine which of Allen's songs is my favorite. Yesterday it was A Frazier Fir in Florida from that album I bought 15 years ago. Today it's back to Love to Give Away, a beautiful song about his singleness. I am sure after this week I will (and hopefully you too) will have some new gems to choose from.

I could probably go on and on about Allen, but instead I will let his music speak for himself. Not only is he my featured blog this week, he is also listed in my blog roll. Give him a listen, and a read, as his song explanations are often as poignant as the songs themselves. Who knows? maybe he will play at your surprise birthday party as well.

Next Time: A night at the races.