General

I just happened to be watching television this morning at 5:40 or so and caught Tommy Lasorda on a morning show. It's been years since I've seen Tommy Lasorda on anything. To the uninformed, Lasorda was the longtime manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was being interviewed in regards to the World Baseball Classic. This man is a passionate patriot! He also has a strong opinion regarding those who use steriods -- needless to say, it's not a good opinion.

On Wednesday and Thursday I volunteered at the prayer labyrinth during the National Pastors Conference. It's a series of guided exercises that walks people through a spiritual journey. It was fun to serve and I enjoyed watching how people experienced the various stations in their own unique way. Spiritual formation is still a somewhat foggy concept to many in the evangelical church. Maybe not for long ...

Those who knew my mom, knew she was a cat lover. It all began when we befriended a stray cat that later became known only as "momma." She earned the title many times over. I must have been in late elementary when momma moved in and cats became another part of our family.My mom fed them, tried to bathe them, and bought a variety of cat pins that she wore with pride. I never questioned two things -- that my mom loved me and that she loved her cats almost as much as me.Well ... I'm blogging this from our living room chair, with Hope sitting on the couch. She's home sick from school and so I'm "doctoring" her back to health. We have two cats in our household and Smokey is sleeping on Hope's lap while Pokey tries to "help" me type this blog.My mom would be proud.

A friend of mine who knows my interest in U2's spiritual underpinnings sent me the following link. It's a video of Bono addressing the National Prayer Breakfast. Once he gets settled in, it gets pretty interesting.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH0JFbjfhy4

For several years I have had conflicting feelings: my love for coffee and my desire for free WiFi. This is where matters get complicated. Tonya and I have owned stock in Starbucks since 2000 and I love the company, how they do business, and their coffee. But they do not offer free WiFi access. Instead, they require you to have a t-mobile account.We already have broadband access at home and I'm too stubborn to pay for another ramp to internet access. So ... what I've been doing is going to independent coffee shops that offer free WiFi. Since I'm working out of the house, it's a great way to get out among people. But it also means that I'm not going to Starbucks.Hence, the conflict.Until now. The technical term is called "tethering." I'm actually typing this blog via a connection between my cell phone and laptop. Since my phone has…