Empire Strikes Back?

Apple and the evil AT&T Empire appear to be striking back at lowly users of the iphone...

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/08/rebel-iphone-us.html

I can hear .justin seething from here....

this makes me smile...

Hold Music and lots of posts...

During my whole career in the Computing Industry I have had to make so many phone calls for tech support. Actually I consider it the bane of my existance... why you might ask? HOLD MUSIC. I have had to listen to some elevator music until I was ready to just end it all, and as soon as you don't think you can handle another second someone answers the phone. Oh the joy of no more music, well its quickly dashed when they place back in another queue. So that brings me back to the fact I have been posting a ton today. Its because I am testing our hold system due to an equipment failure.

Out of respect for people I have done my best to pull together a reasonable playlist of music. The hold music used to be on a CD jukebox with whatever CDs were dumped in there. I appologize profusely to anyone that had to listen to that music, I am sure it violated your consitituional rights in some fashion. Well I just modernized our system significantly and took all the CDs out of the juke box and ripped em with iTunes onto a machine. I think to and got someone to run mic wire from the phone closest to the server room and have been able to take the builtin sound card and drive our hold music from itunes. I can now build playlists and filter through the hours/days of horrible horrible blue grass music and pull out some acceptable music for all to hear. While its not the ideal mix its a start. Here it is:

• Jam In The Pocket - Phil Keaggy
• All Right Here - Sara Groves
• Our Love Is Loud - David Crowder Band
• Majesty (Here I Am) - Delirious?
• Satisfied - Crystal Lewis
• Everything - Delirious?
• Smellin' Coffee - Chris Rice
• Spanish Fantasy - Phil Keaggy
• Every Minute - Sara Groves
• All Creatures Of Our God & King - David Crowder Band
• Above All - Paul Baloche
• Flood (Live) - Jars Of Clay
• Nothing To Say - Andrew Peterson
• My Glorious - Delirious?
• Thought Menagerie - Sixpence None The Richer
• The Cross Has Said It All - Matt Redman
• Love Song For A Savior - Jars Of Clay
• God You Are My God - Delirious?
• Love, Salvation, The Fear Of Death - Sixpence None The Richer
• Healing Rain - Michael W. Smith
• Come On Back To Me - Third Day
• Did You Feel The Mountians Tremble? - Matt Redman
• Epilogue/Amazing Grace - Phil Keaggy
• Praise Adonai - Paul Baloche
• One Of Those Days - Chris Rice
• Thirsty - Chris Rice
• Thrive - Newsboys
• Amazing Grace - Jars Of Clay
• You Are Mine - Third Day
• Inside Outside - Delirious?

I love iTunes (yeah I said something positive about a Mac product I know justin) its been stable and has don a great job of just running. The only thing I would ask in the next version is if they would give me a 31band EQ to work with instead of a 10band EQ. I could really use the extra control since telephone service is such a limited bandwidth.

Oh one question? Does anyone know how to make an EQ the default EQ so that iTunes always loads it?

Young Adults Ministry

Hey so I have been asked to prepare a plan for a young Adults ministry for Family Life Christian Center. I love my church, I love the heart and the effects of my church on the local community. I am hoping to build a ministry that builds up the church, that is safe for the un-churched, that is challenging for the churched, that is relevant for people. So here are my questions:

• What events do you host? Specifically, what types of events are going to reach out to the young women. Let me clarify this point, I am looking for ideas to develop a balanced ministry (roughly a 50% split on gender lines) and have tons of ideas about how to get guys in but very few ideas for bringing in the ladies.

• What events do you travel to for training, for education, and to build up the believers? Are there any other groups similar to ThoughtLife Northwest or the Resurgence?

• What are great ways to develop an active and visible role in the community?
  ie Building Teams to play in the Community Sport Leagues, Hosting Concerts, plays, comedians

Any help, thoughts or ideas would be really appreciated. If you are interested I will also send out the plan that is in development, it would come with only one string you MUST give feedback. I need/desire everyones in put, if we are to build a church group that is not church centric but Christ centered and one that shows the light of Christ to the world around us I NEED HUGE AMOUNTS OF HELP!..

thanks

Seahawks: 1-0, Hilltop Hitman: 0-1

Well the first part of this post is great news. The Seahawks are 1-0 and I think they are going to be a good team. We have a divisional game next week which will be important to come out and crush the Cardinals. Am I the only one tired of hearing about how they (and the 49ers) are supposed to be this up and comming team? I remember how the 49ers scared me last year but I think we were looking at a drastically different Hawks team.

Ok so now on to the not so good news, I got destroyed. Absolutely, entirely inhaliated in my opening week of Fantasy football. The Hilltop Hitman (my homeage to the area I live) were destroyed 95-143 because Tony Freakin Romo through for a million yards, at least a dozen touchdowns and ran for a couple more just for kicks. Freakin Giants Defense, where were you guys? Seriously? Ok so the stat line may be exagerated but Romo and Owens combined for 59 points!!! Thats over half my what my whole team got. Lame!!!

Back to the drawing board....

Go Hawks!!!

Midgets?

Ok so I was driving across town yesterday to pickup a battery for an old voice announcement device in our phone system listening to KISW (99.9FM) and the Men's Room Show was on. I usually enjoy listening to the men's room cause there real guys, not the wussy guy type. Well yesterday they were talking about how Tommy Lee and Kid Rock got into a scuffle and there question for the day came from that. It was "Have you ever got punched in the face and what did you do to deserve it?" Well I can honestly say that I never have been punched in the face but one of the ladies that called show told a story of how her 6'6" 300lb boss got slapped by a drunken midget he was trying to talk some sense into. This caused a bunch of hysterical comments and questions but the one I keep coming back to is: Is it ok to punch a midget?

Seriously, its not ok to hit women or kids and its always been like women and kids get taken care of first in an emergency but where does a midget fit into that scheme? I just don't see how you punch a midget. According to the wiki Midgets are under 4'10" and thats a tall midget. So back to the question, would you ever hit a midget? And if you wouldn't, how many midgets would have to attack you before you fought back?