goal for 2010: utilize my planner.

as you can see, i'm holding my 2010 Monthly Planning Guide. it was issued to me from hillcrest (which, btw, has a newly revamped and live website). it was issued to hillcrest from the U.S. Diary Company, which i first read as "U.S. Dairy Company", and i found it odd that makers of milk and cheese also made planners. but i figured it out.

i've never been a true believer in a planner. i understand the point, and i understand that they are useful, but i also understand that i never remember to write in them.

back in middle and high school my mother would purchase me one of those school-issued planners every year, and every yearbook distribution day i would discover it hanging out with the empty Stewart's Key Lime Soda bottles at the bottom of my locker.

but now that i'm a big kid, i just might need a calendar. and since i don't have an iPhone (yet), i'm going to take my first strides with this sleek, burgandy, hard-copy monthly planning guide. call it a "resolution" if you want. but it really has nothing to do with New Year's...other than that it's a monthly calendar and the first day listed is January 1.

so a goal of mine for 2010 - utilize my planner.

-ap.

bought a new car.

many of you know i got in my first car wreck a couple weeks ago. i kind of wish i could claim that it was scary and my car flipped and caught on fair, and that i was a hero and saved people from the wreckage before the car exploded or something.* but i was going 15 mph and the woman that hit me was going 5 mph. hit the wheel. bent the axle. totalled.

so i got a fat insurance check for way more than my old car was worth. sixes.

so i upgraded to a '02 Mazda Protege5. it's a 5-speed which makes me feel like a man more than anything else in my life. you guys can have your No Shave November. i'm no longer ashamed of my lack of facial hair. real men drive sticks.

-ap.

* - this feeling could probably be transformed into a talk about how Christian kids who grow up in the church often feel lame for not having some awesome "i hit rock bottom" conversion experience.

oh dear. this is just awful news.

we all knew this day would come at some point, but it appears to suddenly be upon us.

the royals have signed veteren catcher jason kendall to a two-year deal.

this is disastrous news for royals fans. why? well, because JOHN BUCK MAY BE OUT OF A JOB IN KANSAS CITY.

i mean, sure, kendall is legit. he's got a career .290 batting average and a .369 career OBP. but WHY WOULD THEY DO THIS TO ME?!

General manager Dayton Moore said: "Obviously John Buck's been a big part of our catching corps the last few years and we'll have to make that decision, but it's safe to say Jason Kendall was brought in to be our everyday catcher and he's expected to catch 120 to 130-plus games."

what he REALLY means is...

"John Buck's been the emotional cornerstone of not only our catching corps, but of our entire team over - not only the last few years - but over Big John's entire five year career. Jason Kendall may end up catchin 120 to 130-plus games, but everyone knows that when JB feels the pressure, he suddenly puts up seriously scary numbers. Obviously."

it's a good thing Dayton Moore's daughter goes Hillcrest and comes to all of our middle school events. perhaps i could send some subtle hints for her to take home to the dinner table. i mean cmon, there is a reason Mr. Incredible has been in blue for the last 5 years! he's a fan favorite! he sells tickets! he's the anchor to a Royals team that would undoubtedly spin out of control without him.

it could be a very sad week to be a royals fan. it also could be my last week as a royals fan.

just a heads up for what's likely to come: there isn't a #14 on the yankees. jorge posada eat your heart out. JB's got you in the sights of his crossbow.

-ap.

and fyi: the facebook group is THRIVING.

i have a fiance...

...and this is where it all started. (click it for google streetview!)

...and put this in your iCal: 10.02.10

...and don't expect this to be the only post to land the "ap is engaged" label.

-ap.

star wars humor.

courtesy of docking bay 94.

-ap.

questions should lead us - dave gibbons.

"one of the axioms i've come to believe about life and ministry is that questions should lead us. questions, not answers. Jesus showed us this time and again."

"if Jesus doesn't answer a question with a question, he tells a story."

dave gibbons
the monkey and the fish: liquid leadership for a third-culture church

-ap.

empire state of mind II - alicia keys (sans jay-z).

woah.

okayplayer just posted this on their blog and i am speechless. just watch the above video.

all i can say is that alicia's new album is out on december 15 and i am buying it. or getting it for christmas. but if you're getting it for me for christmas, you might want to give it to me 10 days early otherwise i'll have 2 copies cause i'll already have bought it myself.

i'm listening to that again.

-ap.

REVIEW: battle studies - john mayer

first of all, i must tell you that i am not 100% comfortable putting a photo of this album artwork on my blog. john looks super GQ and super lame. however, the artwork actually ended up being a blessing - when i first saw the cover a few months before its release i thought, "seriously john? this album is gonna suck."

but it doesn't. not at all. and i will yet again claim that low expectations are a much healthier way of living than high expectations. high expectations can only be met or not met*. low expectations can be met or exceeded...and my expecations were exceeded.

* - obviously there are a few outlying exceptions here: kanye's graduation, my trip to st louis, harry potter and the deathly hallows, etc.

i told my buddy jon yesterday via a text, "this album has a heavier things feel to it." and i stand by that statement...kind of. the album as a whole gives that vibe, but there are a few tracks - who says, friends lovers or nothing, assassin - that don't necessarily fit the bill. did john mayer truly reinvent his sound on this album like he has with each of his albums in the past? not really. if anything he took a step backwards from continuum and revisited a sound he'd already dabbled in before.

that having been said - this is a terrific album. really terrific. especially if you can empathize with mayer's jilted-lover theme (which i cannot). literally every song on this album is about girl problems - the "Battle Studies" he alludes to in the name of this album makes complete sense - he takes a look at the different "battles" the heart faces in dealing with the opposite sex. it's a "love is war" theme. examples: "half of my heart" deals with the inability to commit, "heartbreak warfare" deals with what it feels like to be dumped, "perfectly lonely" is all about the freedom felt without a significant other, "friends lovers or nothing" is a great picture of the extremely common "more than friends?/lets have a DTR" situation of which i'm duly familiar with.

that last paragraph was so long that my coffee went cold. crap.

however, there are a couple songs that could've been omitted and i wouldn't've really missed them. i can hear you arguing, "but adam - that means there would only be 9 songs! that's not enough for a full album!" my rebuttal: Thriller.

"edge of desire" does nothing for me - i'm just bored/annoyed throughout. and "half of my heart" doesn't impress me either - but that's probably because i sit there for the first 2 minutes dreading the impending taylor swift on backup vocals. what a ploy to 1. sell more records 2. reach a slightly different genre 3. perhaps get invited to the country music awards next year. i just wish it wasn't her. anyone else...okay not anyone - i would also veto nelly furtado, lady gaga, fergie or sheryl crow. anyone else though.

that having been said, "friends lovers or nothing" is my favorite track on the album. it's on repeat as i type this blog. it is perfect - the first two piano chords hooked me and the rest of the song just continued to reel me in...that's a fishing analogy.

i love this album, but it's definitely not his best. in fact, it might be his worst. it's not as good as continuum. or room for squares even. but it's still john mayer. so it automatically lands in the "great" category. he's just a phenomenal musician. period.

i give it a 3/5.

-ap.

staff storehouse sale.

there's a sale going on this morning in the hillcrest storehouse for staff members. here's what happened to me:

dave gibbons - the monkey and the fish: liquid leadership for a third-culture church
jerram barrs - learning evangelism from jesus
john c. mcdowell - the gospel according to star wars: faith, hope, and the force
ed dobson - the year of living like jesus: my journey of discovering what jesus would really do

-ap.

more love.

-ap.