campfire anthems____________________________burning away

traditions can be a big part of a family. yesterday, this guy wrote about his family’s christmas traditions and it got me thinking. as a relatively new married couple and first time home owners, emily and i don’t really have any christmas traditions. this is a big year for us. what we do this holiday season could impact the way we do things the rest of our lives. i mean, i know that things won’t be the same forever, because circumstances do change, but this year’s christmas is definitely laying down the groundwork for the mikemonts family christmas tradition.

from what we have already discussed, christmas will officially begin on friday. black friday. instead of fighting crowds in search for the deal of the year, we will decorating our house. lights, bins, candles, decor and other miscellaneous holiday accouterments are strewn across the dining room floor. emily’s job will be to tackle the inside, replacing the fall stuff that is currently placed about our home. my job, with the help from a borrowed ladder and my trusty staple gun, will be to hang the lights along the house and throughout the landscaping in the front of our house.

the only things we haven’t figured out is when we are going to get our tree and where the stockings will go - you have to have stockings. i think, if things go as planned, we are making some good waves for the start of a new tradition in our house. and if you can think of a clever place to hang the stockings, let me know.

…its been a while since we last talked. well, at least since there has been any 2-way communication. i seem to do a lot of the talking these day. i’m not a real good listener. life is really tough right now god, but you know that. i think its so easy to pray for the right things in life, because they are the right things in life. god bless this, god bless her, etc. i don’t want to do that today.

i struggle with so many things. i need your help. i ordered a new daily devotional and am going to start doing it so that maybe i can hear what you are trying to tell me. i hope i can hear you. i struggle with being content with where i am in life, but i really feel like you have helped me over the past month. thanks for putting great friends in my life who have made a difference.

god, as long as we are being honest with each other, i am having a hard time with this whole prayer thing. i’m not that good of a communicator, plus i really just don’t know what i want. so i’m going to do it this way. i just pray for your will to happen in my life. i know that you have something big in store for me, and i just pray that i can keep myself from getting in the way. i pray that you make me ready, because when you tell me what those plans are i want to have the courage to listen and follow through. i pray that you infect me with your love and make me see things differently again.

i hope to talk to you again soon. its good to have someone who listens as intently as you do. please help me learn to listen as well, so that i won’t miss anything along the way.

your child,
mike

“cautious, careful people, always casting out to preserve their reputation and social standing, never can bring about a reform.  those who are really in earnest must be willing to do anything or nothing in the world’s estimation, and publicly and privately, in season and out, avow their sympathy with despised and persecuted ideas and their advocates, and bear the consequences.”  - susan b. anthony

it took me a couple of times to read through that and actually comprehend, or at least in my mind, interpret what she says and take it to heart.  i want to be a leader.  i think have the charisma, the brains, and the ability to be a great leader.  but i lack something.

i think what susie (can i call her susie?) was talking about directly describes my greatest downfall as a christian leader.  let’s put it this way for all you church goers out there.  do you ever feel burdened to invite someone to church, or to talk to them about their religious beliefs but neglect to do so because you are worried about what that person, your peers, or even society will think of you?  i know i have done this and i have no excuse.  there are some huge things coming up this year, and the years to follow i’m sure, that i need to be a part of.

i need…

…to help lead people and join in on the responsibility of those around me.

…to quit being so lazy and just do the things i’m so passionate about.

…to invest in people and replace myself, a very hard concept if you let your ego get in the way, so that i can move up on the leadership “ladder” and help mold those around me.

…to quit saying, “someone should do (fill in the blank)” and start saying “i should do (fill in the blank).”

…to start listening to those wiser than me, especially god.

…to be brave without being foolish.

i need to quit worrying about my reputation and lead the way i know i should be.

is there anything you need to do?

“boxers or briefs”

i’m glad you asked justin.  this question has plagued man since the birth of the cotton gin - eli whitney didn’t know what he was starting.  i have compiled some medical documentation to present your way, and i think you’ll find that i’m being completely objective in this study.

boxers and briefs each have their pros and cons.  in order to select the correct undergament for you, you must first determine what you are trying to accomplish.  if you are doing vigorous activity, like playing soccor or, say, bullfighting, the north alabama soccer league says that briefs are the way to go.  they point out that it is important to keep you boys snug and secure.  according to emedicine.com, exercise can be a leading cause to testicular torsion, which sounds like a painful dilema.  so scenario one certainly points out that if you are going to be involved in athletics, stick with the briefs.

boxers, however, are what you want to wear if you are trying to birth a human child.  web m.d. discusses that men who want a higher sperm count should stick to boxers. the science behind this is that its all about temperature.  to have a healthy sperm count, the “testes,” as they are so medically refered, are located outside the body for a reason.  if the temperature down there reaches even a couple of degrees above the body’s core temperature, production of said life giving substance is dramatically decreased.

so i know what you are thinking.  you want to know what i wear.  in my earlier, inexperienced years i was a boxer man, over the past several years i have taken the best of both worlds and become a staunch boxer-brief believer.  by giving you the comfort and support that every man needs, boxer-briefs should be in every guy’s drawers (no pun intended). i hope this has helped you make an educated decision for the next time you go to the local wal-mart in search for some new threads, however, if you still can’t decide you could always go commando.

upon review of my 6 day business trip, i have compiled a list of the top 10 points of interest.  this list is in no particular order of importance, i just feel like they should be shared. let’s get started.

1 - i spent a total of 50 hours riding in a luxury bus over the course of 6 days.  that’s 1/3 of the entire trip!
2 - it is possible to lose a trailer even when the hitch pin and lock are still attached.  still can’t figure that one out.
3 - you never know what you will find while sorting items in a person’s closet
4 - my wife ran over my lawnmower in her friend’s car and then took it apart to find the broken piece to order.
5 - it is hard to pee going 75 miles an hour down a highway on a 40,000 pound bus
6 - 5 and a half hours of straight card playing can pass the time
7 - eating dinner at 9:30 pm at a truck stop diner is sometimes the only option.  hope you packed your iron stomach.
8 - when your hotel is located next to the loudspeaker of a ford dealership, there is no reason to order a wakeup call.
9 - no matter what they tell you, working back to back 14 hour days does not build character.
10 - watching the bus driver stand up and walk away while traveling so that another person can take his place is scary.

so i hope you learned some things for the next time you travel.  to recap, its best to pick a good hotel, use the restroom before you hit the road, and always store your lawnmower in a safe location.  i can say its good to be back, and i hope i’m here for a while.

today at 5:30 pm i will conclude my first year in the advertising industry.  looking back i can’t even remember all the things i’ve learned or cool stuff that i got to do.  i can say, however, that my first year was a really successful time.  over the last year for work i got to travel across the country, i’ve designed ads for major print publications (local and national), i’ve had work featured in a very well-known international magazine — and by accomplishing these things i was able to buy a house and really start my life.  below is my favorite piece i’ve done over the year.  its a two-page spread in dupont registry of fine homes.

so now i look toward tomorrow.  what will year two bring?  what is in store for me?  i’d like to think that my future is limitless, but i guess that’s really up to no one but me.

how long have you been with your job?  what’s your favorite thing about it?  is there anything you can’t stand about it?

man did i ever have an eventful weekend.  here’s the rundown.  friday night we got to eat dinner and hang out with some good friends we don’t get to see very much anymore.  we went to abuelo’s, which is always a fan favorite.  saturday morning i woke up and prepared to lay down some flooring in our bedroom.  this guy came over and helped get the base boards off, because he’s done it a few times.  then this guy came over and helped me put them down.  a few hours later, and only a little blood, the floors were done and they looked sweet.

lucky for me my neighbor used to be a contractor, so he has every tool you’d ever need.  after paying him a visit, i soon has an air compressor and nail gun in my possession and was able to get the base boards back up in the master bedroom and the piano room.  that’s a big win right there.  after a quick shower i ran over to guitar center and got a great deal on some new earbuds for my in-ear monitoring system.

sunday morning rocked at rpc.  the music was really good (i may just be partial to it) and timm really gave message. my buddy was finally back from texas, which i know was exciting to many people, mainly his family.  after the second service, a bunch of us went to bd’s mongolian grill to celebrate jamison’s birthday.  i got back home and took a nice nap before going back to lakeland to have dinner with my mom.  then it was time for rook night.

all in all, it was a great weekend.  how was your’s?

september has some big this to offer my friends, this year especially.  i like to think of september as the gateway to the fun season.  here are a few things that will be of highlight to me:

• ) i get to take a weeks vacation with my wife and get away from everthing

• ) the first day of fall begins

• ) the season premier of the office

• ) i will be wrapping up my first year at my new job - october begins year two

and as i said, being the gateway to the fun season means that halloween is right around the corner.  i better start planning on how i can scare little children.  halloween leads to thanksgiving, which leads to christmas.  its a triple threat of holiday bliss.  with september here, is there anything that you are looking forward to?