A really good day

Strike it off the bucket list. I never dreamed I'd even get the chance to do what I did this past Saturday.

It all started Friday afternoon at 3:30 pm. I got a phone call from my dad. "Guess what I'm doing tomorrow?" I don't know but usually its something great for phone calls like this. "I'm going to the Duke Game, and my seat is behind the bench." I asked "how behind the bench?" He responded "two rows." Hmm. Its tomorrow you say? How long would it take me to drive, could I get there. What about a flight? I asked the question. What if I could get there? From the background I hear "If you come you can have my ticket." Dad said "That was your mother." God bless my mother. But now my mind is really spinning.

Next step is to call my wife. "Stacey, my dad has tickets for behind the bench at the Duke game tomorrow." She was already in Ohio visiting friends. "You have to go. Buy a plane ticket. I don't care what it costs." God bless my wife.

I called my dad back. "I'll call you back in an hour. I'm going to figure out transportation. I'm coming."

I get online and find a very reasonable AirTran flight to RDU. God Bless AirTran.

"Dad I'm flying up in the morning and flying back that night. Can you pick me up?" He replied yep, I suppose so, acting as if he wasn't excited I was going to join him for the game.

I jet setted my way into Durham the next morning and my parents swung by the airport and picked me up. We headed over to Cracker Barrel. God Bless country breakfasts. We then headed to the house and killed some time until it was go time. Oh yeah we also had an Iron Duke parking pass that put us about 30 feet from the front of the stadium. God Bless elite parking spots.

We went inside the fabled mecca known as Cameron Indoor Stadium as the doors opened. We walked into the lobby and handed our tickets to the usher. "You're behind the Duke bench!" Yeah baby. We walked onto the floor....yep that's right onto the floor of Cameron Indoor Stadium. Not happening, not happening. At this point I thought I was going to cry. This was getting surreal. We handed our tickets to the next usher. "You're right here." She pointed about three feet behind her. She pointed to row B. Row A is used by....the players. Holy player perspiration batman! We sat down and the team trainer sat a bag of gear...on my feet. I almost knocked over the water cooler. This is just getting ridiculous now.

Gametime approaches. Team comes out for warmups. I could reach out and touch them. This was going to be a new kind of game watching. The kind that made you keep on your toes because a player might end up in your lap. Kyle Singler had a cut on his arm at one point. He came over to the team doctor for treatment. I could have put on the bandaid.

So what did I learn? First, the guys are huge, fast, and ridiculously strong. When you go to the hoop in D1 college basketball you better go hard. Second, sitting in seats like that is a once in a lifetime experience. I'm glad I got my once. Third, keep a good relationship with your mother so that she will offer to let you go to a once in a lifetime experience. Fourth, I truly love Duke Basketball. I will never forget that day. Being there with my dad, taking in my favorite team from an unbelievable vantage point on a day when they tied a school record for three pointers...Its awesome with a capital A.

Finally, the chip for this entry goes to the guy sitting next to us who never showed up to sit in the seat. Are you kidding me. I would have to be in a hospital...check that Duke medical center isn't too far away, I 'm sure I could work something out.

A new powerhouse in college football

How do I know its a beautiful fall in Atlanta? The leaves have changed, the air is crisp, and Duke Football is in the hunt for a bowl game. Wait what was that? Its kind of fun to not say "I can't wait for basketball season." I of course still can't wait for basketball season, but there has been plenty to watch this football season.

Speaking of football, on Saturday I will be traveling to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to watch people drink an absurd amount of alcohol...and watch LSU take on Alabama in football. This will be the biggest football game I've ever attended in person. There are going to be five of us in our posse and its going to be a great time. We'll be sitting towards the bottom of one of the endzones if I remember correctly, so look for the 5 guys with no shirts, wigs, and BAMA! painted on their chests...that won't be us but it will be entertaining nonetheless.

Stacey is on a first year resident retreat this week. I was pretty impressed that they have the residents go and work on communication and team building. That is such a valuable exercise because good communication is most needed in high stress, fatigue situations. Good to know that at least some of the medical community is doing everything they can think of to be at their best in taking care of the rest of us.

I just found out that Ryan's church in Dalton signed on to host the Backyard Abolitionist Tour for Not For Sale, which fight modern day slavery in our world. We are hosting the same tour the next night. That means that the Cobb family is responsible for 2/3 of the tour dates in Georgia. Who says one family can't make a difference in a big issue facing our world. www.notforsalecampaign.org

I've been listening to a podcast put on by a public radio station in New York. Its called radio lab. Its a really creative audio show that investigates science, math and other critical thinking questions. What I really enjoy about it is that as they interview scientists, mostly academic types, the overwhelming theme is that we have just scratched the surface of understanding our world and that makes me appreciate even more our Creator.

Stacey and I are officially fans of the following shows: Community, Parks and Recreation, The Office, Glee, Lie to Me and Modern Family. Those get DVRed every week. I also record Mad Men, but she thinks its too depressing. I think its depressing too but enjoy the fact that its about an advertising firm. We've also determined that DVRs were made for married couples who don't want to go out on Friday night because there is nothing good on tv on Friday night. Perfect solution: great shows from earlier in the week.

The chip award for this post goes to:

I think its safe to say we don't want these people having children.

Duke Basketball Starting Up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izKfjwsm7LQ&feature=channel

Stapled Shut

It was a rough week. Starting with fact that I fell at work in a stairwell and gashed my head open requiring 5 staples. That hurt. The good thing about being married to a doctor is that Stacey gets to pull the staples out for me and I don't have to go back to the doctor.

So with that out of the way, here is what else happened. Stacey has finished her night rotation and starts in the neo-natal intensive care unit Monday. That should be interesting. Sick little babies. I can't think of anything more pitiful to see.

I have been asked to speak a number of times over the last month on the topic of human trafficking. I spoke on a panel of so called experts yesterday at the Emory University Law School. I even had an official bio posted on their event website. I am speaking to the Christian Medical and Dental Association next week at a church near Emory. Human Trafficking is a hot topic right now, and I'm getting a lot of opportunities to speak on behalf of the church and our coalition streetgrace (www.streegrace.org).

One of the blessings of our marriage is that we love the same kind of television. The current dramedies on tv are great fun to watch together. Thursday nights are our night. We typically tape them on our DVR and watch them back on the weekend. The Office, Community, Parks and Recreation and 30 Rock is a hot date night in our household.

We went to see U2 two weeks ago in concert. Unbelievable. Those guys know how to put on a show. And for those who don't know Bono, U2's lead singer, has done a lot of good with his celebrity platform for humanitarian causes in Africa.

Duke basketball kicked off their season this past Friday Night. I watched it online. Technology has taken my devotion to the Blue Devils to a whole new level. I have tickets for the December 15th game against Gardner-Webb, Merry Christmas.

The chip for this week goes out to the Heene dad. The balloon thing, and everything that has happened because of that has more than proven the point that he probably shouldn't be raising anymore children. Unbelievable.

Jesus and the Criminal Trespass Warning

Oh what a week it was. The headline for my week should read: I kicked Jesus Christ out of the church.

And now for the context...

On Sunday North Avenue Presbyterian, where I work, was visited by a homeless individual who had attended before. He was a big guy, and had a memorable look. He came into our first worship service and sat down. He just silently observed. The service ended and he approached a staff member at the back of the sanctuary. He stated that he would like to speak to a Pastor. The assistance pastor at NAPC is....me. That doesn't go over well with most of our assistance seekers because I don't have a guilt problem. If we can help, we do, if we can't I tell them that. On this occasion this gentlemen recognized me. He didn't want to speak to me, so I spoke to him. I informed him that he could go to a Sunday School class but if he wanted lunch he needed to go to our homeless worship service and get a lunch ticket. He told me that he had been invited to lunch by a pastor. False. I told him that he was making that up. He didn't like that. Then he said he was going to Sunday School. I said he could do that, but not to ask anyone for lunch money to eat in our normal lunch area. I alerted the team including the police officers. I had sounded the Philthy Cobb High Alert Status. That's defcon status people.
You know what that trucker did? He tried to go through the line and the usher turned him away and told him to go down to the homeless service. The guy then went around the corner and waited for the usher to walk away. He then went up a member and got them to pay for his lunch. Oh no he didn't. I got the call from the cashier, Philthy, we have a problem. I called the five-0 and headed to the crime scene. We pulled the gentleman out of dining area after he finished the meal and I asked him what he was doing? "These people invited me to lunch." False. I recounted the morning of deceit back to him. He listened intently and then asked me if I was finished. By all means my friend let me know how you're going to change my mind. He then stated "Do you know my name? My name is Jesus Christ and I died for all of these people. I sacrificed for everyone here. This is my church, I deserve to eat the food of the church. You're people owe me." Ohhhhhh, my bad, I had no idea. I stated back to him "I don't think you're the same Jesus we believe in." He shouted back at me "Yes I am!" I responded, "We're going to have to agree to disagree on that."
I then gave him a criminal trespass warning and the officers escorted him from the building. He stated to them that he would be coming back next week. One of the officers responded "If you step one foot on this property, I will handcuff you and arrest you." They've got my back.
So in summary, I won over several ushers who witnessed the whole deal, our business administrator, and both police officers complimented by handling of the situation. And this is my chip award winner for this week.

And just for the record, if any of you are wondering if I made a huge mistake and didn't recognize the second coming...I asked him "what is my wife's name?" He didn't know. I think the real Jesus would have known.

Its been a busy past week. Lots of meetings and events. As I write this I'm preparing to go to the Georgia Tech vs. North Carolina Football Game. My brother managed to get tickets as well, though we will be cheering for different teams and his tickets are much better because he got them from a corporate client. Between the tickets and the golf, I tell him regularly he'll never get another gig like this.

We celebrated Stacey's birthday this week. She had a good birthday. We ate some good food, spent most of the day together...spending time with me always guarantees a good day....and she got to do some clothes shopping.

This past week I gave my first professional invocation at a special event. I was invited to a banquet by one of the churches ministry partners. I channeled 28 years of being a pastor's son and flipped the preacher-pray-in-public switch. In my studies through the years there are a couple of keys to the public prayer:
1. Use words like everyone, community, all, children, world and together.
2. Bless as many people as possible.
3. Talk about the greatness of the past, and ask for greatness in the future.
4. Use terms like gracious, gentle, kind, love, beautiful, lovely and loving.
5. Avoid saying words that make people stop and process like "you are a swell God" or "Lord you are really cool"
6. Avoid corporate buzzwords such as "God we thank you for returning on our investment everytime!" or "God your brand is unmatched!"
7. Always acknowledge the current natural disaster.
8. Go long enough to sound like you're a professional but don't put anybody to sleep.
9. Remember to bless the food, that's the real reason you're there.
10. Most importantly remember to bless the organization. If you don't, you probably won't be asked back.
11. Oh yeah one more, make sure you turn off your ringtone, the last thing you need happening is for Jailhouse Rock to start playing in your prison ministry achievers banquet prayer.

Finally, as promised I've been scouring the news to find this weeks person who will receive the chip. If you remember from the previous post, the chip doesn't allow you to reproduce. This is a product our world needs as evidenced by:

Operation Wedding

Classy.

The Chip

If I were king of the world I would create a chip that gets inserted into every new baby. The purpose of the chip: you only procreate when you've been approved. The chip would not be permanent. Someone can get a chip inserted and then have it removed. But if they do something that would cause us to want to cut off their gene pool...they get a chip.

So along with the Cobb family update, you'll also get a chip insertion update.

We'll start with the baseline criteria: Nobody under the age of 21 gets their chip removed. I think we can all agree that 16 year olds having babies is a bad idea. Even 20 year olds having babies is less than ideal.

Next baseline: While you're serving time in prison you have a chip. Since the chip works on men and women, we can keep the incarcerated from making babies. Hard to argue with the chip isn't it!

Now is where we start to get a little gray. The rest of the chip insertions occur on a case by case basis: Britney Spears gets a chip, Paris Hilton gets a chip, the Octo-Mom should have had a chip and Michael Jackson would have had a permanent chip.

You get the idea. This will be my base platform for my 2024 Presidential Run. Make checks payable to Friends of Phil Cobb.

Red Bull and More

So as you can see in the below post, last Saturday was quite a human interest show. Atlanta was the sight of the Red Bull SoapBox Race. There have only been 7 in the United States up until now. So between the Mario Brothers and Alice in Wonderland it was a creative melting pot of pop culture ideas. There were about 40 teams total. It was pretty hot but pretty fun as well. It was also a chance to try Red Bull. I didn't need to, I already love the stuff. It works really well for me. I get really focused for like 4 hours and I don't crash afterwards. I just wish it wasn't so expensive.

With this weekend being Labor Day two things are occurring: College Football. I make no apologies for the all time spent in my recliner on Saturday. Monday, Stacey and I both have the day off and so we'll try to do something fun. The weather isn't supposed to be great but hopefully it will holdout for us to do something.

I saw a woman at the mall on Friday wearing a shirt that made me question her humanity. The t-shirt was designed to look like a name tag and it said "Hello, my name is b$%#%." Why would you ever where that? I totally don't understand what goes through people's heads sometimes. The worst part was that she was with another guy. That means that he let her go out in public with that t-shirt as well.

I have high hopes for Duke Football this year...if that doesn't pan out there is always basketball.

I am going to a National Conference on Human Trafficking in the San Diego area in October. I'm really looking forward to getting to hear from the countries experts on fighting this issue. Its being put on by the Not For Sale organization.

Stacey is asleep as I write this and its 6:53 pm on Saturday evening. That's kind of the way its been:) Until next week.

Red Bull SoapBox Race Pictures

Texting Goodnight

This has been quite the lonely week at the Cobb Household. Two ships passing through the night one could say. Stacey has been on night shift and I had many early morning and late evening meetings. Needless to say we've been texting our goodnights and good mornings. She is on oncology right now and has stated on several occasions that these are really sick kids. She will be glad to get done with this one.

I accomplished a pretty cool professional task this week. I was officially scheduled for a meeting with Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin in September at her office. I will be bringing several colleagues with me, but I was able to arrange for the meeting to occur. I obviously have them fooled. The only question now will be how do I describe that one day on the resume. Private consultation to Mayor Shirley Franklin on faith based social policy and action?

On Saturday Stacey, myself and some friends will be attending the Red Bull Soap Box Derby. This will be the seventh one ever held in the U.S., and the first in the southeast. Needless to say it should be fascinating. The commercials have been highly entertaining. Pictures to follow.

I watched the movie Frost/Nixon this week. Really interesting to learn more about the Watergate scandal, the characters involved and how they portray Richard Nixon. He seemed to be a really bright guy with some major internal flaws. Recently I heard David Gergen speak. He was an advisor to four Presidents including Nixon. He described Nixon as a brilliant man with demons he couldn't control. I guess the movie portrayal was pretty accurate.

My last thought is about something I observed yesterday. I was sitting on a volunteer orientation session at the Atlanta Children's Shelter which is located in one of the North Avenue Presbyterian buildings. Its a free daycare for the children of women coming out of homelessness. Really well run organization. There were 8 volunteers from Coca Cola, and 8 volunteers that had found the charity on their own. Of the 8 independent volunteers, 7 were currently unemployed. When asked why they wanted to volunteer, almost to a person, the statement of I'm trying to find out which direction in life to go or who I really am was said. The season we are in is ripe to point people in the direction of the Christian faith. Life transition and even crisis are everywhere and people are looking for meaning and hope. Somehow we have to take advantage and point people in the right direction. Just a thought.

Check back for the Red Bull pictures.

Out on The Farm

I decided that after a summer of honing my golf skills, that I was ready to take on The Farm. The Farm is where my brother Ryan has a complimentary membership on behalf of some generous church members. This is a competition ready, championship golf course.

Now Ryan had warned me that it can be...well...demoralizing. He said the rough is brutal. You lose your balls, you can't hardly hit it out, etc. This is a tough challenge. No problem I told him. I'm hitting the ball really well, there shouldn't be any reason why I'm hitting out of the rough. Right.

I show up to his house the night before and the next morning we drive into the course. Its beautiful. The houses surrounding the golf course are beautiful. Its clear where the carpet execs spend their time and money. We arrive at 8 am and we're the first out. Just to give you some indication of the kind of course this is: we were going to walk the course (big mistake) and they had already grabbed our bags from our car and put it on a cart, so basically everybody hops in a cart and drives it 30 yards to the driving range to warm up and then ditches it! As Ryan described it the ultimate in laziness.

We warmed up sufficiently or so we thought and launched out. This course is just beautiful. Its nestled among some small mountains and hills (did I mention we were walking!) First drive I hit, is perfect out in the fairway. Should have stopped right there. I managed to finish that hole in good shape, but oh how it changed from there. On the second hole God must have decided that my pride was out of check. He reached down and grabbed my golf club on the backswing and forced my ball into the rough. And there we go.

I feel like the rest of the day was spent hacking and chopping my way around the course. I would admire the landscape, the beautifully manicured creeks and waterfalls and then watch my shot disappear into them. Very depressing. We manage to make it through the first nine holes and walk to the halfway house. There I discover a new concept. The equivalent of the honor system. Its an unmanned snack shop. You take what you want. Gatorade, candy bars, snacks, crackers. Yes, Yes, Yes and Yes. I guess when you pay that kind of membership fee, the club can give you gatorade out on the course.

So we're re-energized and ready to rock on the back nine. I guess my pride was still out of check because God kept grabbing my golfclub and causing it to do unnatural things. Other than a beautiful shot on a par 3, it was not an ideal back nine either. It was so exhausting we actually teamed up to play best ball golf on the last three holes to try to beat the course. Couldn't do it. Par on 16, and not 17 or 18.

In the end, it was beautiful, really great to spend time with my brother, and now I know what to work on before I go back again. Oh yeah, the next time we're riding.

Stacey update: She is finishing up her general ward rotation, working 80 hours a week, and starts oncology next week for a month. We're making the most of our hour or so together at night:)

Linda Blairs Twin Brother

This week's update will start with Stacey's first really good residency story. She got to witness the next character for an exorcism movie. This little boy was admitted with seizures and various mental issues. He was violent in spurts and seethed profanities that would make a sailor blush. At one point he took his helmet off and chucked it at Stacey who was standing against the wall. Luckily, she had made eye contact and ducked, earning her props from the security guard standing next to her. The kid was moved to a psychiatric hospital the next day but had managed to freak out the whole staff. Where is a herd of pigs when you need one.

I was overjoyed last week to learn that Duke Basketball will have a surprise addition to its roster this season. A recruit scheduled to attend next year, was discovered to have already earned enough high school credits to graduate. So, thanks to some guys leaving the current Duke team, there was great incentive to complete the paperwork. I can't imagine what that would be like. You've been planning for one more year of high school and after some unforseen circumstances you are thrust into a situation where you will now attend college in a matter of weeks. Talk about speeding up life! I hope he adjusts well and by that I mean shoots the ball really well.

I have begun Twittering. Its actually pretty fun. I don't do it that often. Maybe a post or two per day, but you can follow me at @philcobb for those that tweet.

So now I'm blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting on Twitter, Emailing, Googling, Podcasting, Texting, and chatting. I feel like I'm living in a Dr. Seuss book.

I've been grilling a lot recently. I've discovered a little secret that really works well. Slapping a layer of olive oil on the outside really seals in the moisture and helps the meat not stick to the grill. Lemon Pepper is our current flavoring of choice. Its been really nice here in the evenings and it helps take the burden off of Stacey for me to grill the entree. She works with the side items (I don't do sides.)

One of the police officers who works security at the church is an avid paint ball player. He has a suped up paintball gun and all his own gear. He keeps trying to get me to go. First of all, anybody with all their own gear is dangerous to go with. Second, he's trained to shoot people for a job. If I go it clearly won't be one of my wiser decisions.

I got some Starbucks gift cards for my birthday. I went early one morning this week. The Starbucks workers are scary chipper in the morning. I don't see how you can be that upbeat and helpful serving so many people that having received their needed caffeine jolt yet.

This coming Saturday Night I will be going Karaoke singing with some friends from the church staff. The following blog will be eventful I'm sure.

No Joke

Residency is for real people. The first month...not bad. Ohhhhhh is it here now. 4:30 am the alarm goes off, I hear the door shut at 6 am, and the wife is getting back home about 8 pm on a good night. And then she is having to finish up entering notes.

Yes, Philthy Cobb is back to homemaker mode. Cleaning the house, putting away dishes, whatever. But I don't mind, because I'd rather have a wife who isn't more stressed out than she needs to be. The people that talk about Residency with fear and disdain...they're right. 2 years and 10 months to go.

At work I'm getting snowed under. Word has gotten out that I'm an employee of the church. Church members are starting to want to meet with me (how dare they) and people from all around the church world are calling wanting to find out about our urban ministry. I'm earned one honorarium so far. The book is next I think.

My most recent accomplishment is that the Mayor of Atlanta knows who I am. How do I know this? The last event I was at with her, I went up to her and said Hi Mayor Franklin we've met before and she interrupted me and said I know who you are.

On Thursday CNN is coming to North Avenue to do a story on the sex trafficking work we're a part of. I supposed to be interviewed and if it makes it on air, I'll let you know when you can watch it. However, that would make me second in line for the Cobb Family on being on CNN. Stacey was on several weeks ago on Black in America. They were filming at the Morehouse Graduation and she made the footage.

My grandparents just celebrated their 60th anniversary. If 50 years is Golden, what is 60? White Gold? Platinum? Titanium? Enough Already?

I've written before about my friend Monique. She is a sales associate at Bachrach men's clothing store. We have one at our local mall. She is a Christian and she has gotten to know Stacey and I through several trips to the store. She has also helped advise my wardrobe and helped me find many clearance deals. The funny thing that Bachrach primarily caters to Black Men. So they have some wild colors available for shirts and suits. The last time I was in I asked Monique about this one rack that had pink, purple and teal suits among others. I said who can pull this stuff off? She looked me up and down and said "Not You" Right.

I watch a lot of golf. Watching golf is starting to become really helpful if you play golf. They have this new slow motion camera technology that allows them to film these guys a super slow rates and then teach you what to do and what not to do. So for instance when Tiger Woods slices one into the woods they will slow down his swing and tell you what happened in his swing. Well I have the same problem as Tiger occasionally. During the round I was watching, they talked about how his hoops were moving laterally forward and it was causing a severe problem. A few days later I was out on the driving range with Tiger's problem. I attempted to correct the problem and it actually worked! It was the most amazing golf swing breakthrough I've ever had. We'll see if it sticks, but I've never had such instant improvement from making one simple change. Guess I need to keep watching more golf.

Am I really related to him?

After spending the afternoon at a meeting in Dalton, GA today at my brother Ryan's church I have come to two conclusions. The youth absolutely love him and he is also not right in the head.

Today was cool because I set up a meeting between First Presbyterian Church of Dalton and the Not For Sale organization which strives to end modern day slavery. It was fun to get to professionally cross paths with my brother. I then spent a few minutes hanging out in his office with some of his youth group kids. They are pretty funny and its all fueled by their fearless leader.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/video/video.php?v=508827879270&ref=mf

The link above will take you Redneck Golf. That's all you need to know.

In other happenings Stacey and I celebrated 6 years of marriage on Sunday. We don't qualify for any newly married Sunday School classes anymore. I think we're supposed to be able to give advice away to other couples now. At least one of us is respectable now. I'll let you decide on who.

We went to the Six Flags Water Park on Saturday. We have passes that come with our regular Six Flags passes that allow us to go for ten bucks. So we picked a nice hot day and made it happen. We had a great time. The lazy river is the single greatest man made amusement park creation ever. I could sit in that thing all day. On a slightly different note, I'm not sure what happens to some people when they decide on a bathing suit for the water park, but it isn't good. They're were some folks who tried to cram a whole lot of body into a little bit of material. That rarely turns out well.

Stacey started at the farther away hospital today. Its near Emory and about 40 minutes from the house. She worked 13 hours today. Pretty tiring. But she is really enjoying the work and is on normal ward duty now which is pretty close to what she ultimately wants to do.

Work for me has continued to go well. I continue to spend much of my time getting to know homeless guys that come to a weekly Bible Study. The more time I spend with the guys the more I conclude that they need encouragement, affirmation, and structure to get back on their feet. The structure part is really hard because they don't welcome that because its hard for them, yet its the only thing that will help them get back to being a contributing member of society. They will fight you every step of the way, but if you stick with them, they'll keep coming back because very few have had anyone really care for them in a long time.

If that video link above doesn't work, go to facebook and hit up Ryan's page. That is where the link is to. Its worth watching. My mom is going to be so proud of the son she raised. Classy.

Beach Stories

Oh how great it was to be at the beach once again. A whole week to play with family and old friends. We had many great things happen. We had an engagement occur, we had several great meals (my low country boil was a success), we had fun playing on the beach and we had a great time catching up as a family.

If you remember from my previous post I had stated that one of my goals was to demoralize my wife in putt-putt. Well, I defeated her both times we played but I certainly did not demoralize her. In fact in the second match it was clear that her time with me practicing putting at our local golf course driving range is beginning to pay dividends. I won by one stroke...and I shot even par. Who does that in putt-putt? That's the greatest round of putt-putt I've ever had and it took that to defeat her. She had three hole in ones in a row at one point. The moral of the story is that I still won.

I would be remiss if I didnt' recount the other part of the putt-putt happenings. Both times that we went were with my sister and brother in law Lindsey and Michael. The first night it was men vs. women and the men won. Our reward? Our spouses had to give us 20 minute back massages.
The second night night it was couple vs. couple. Cobbs vs. Houbres. The Cobbs destroyed the Houbres. No mercy. You can imagine the score when I shot even par and Stacey was 1 over. We won by 13 strokes. Our reward? The losing couple had to carry our stuff to the beach the next day. I let Lindsey off the hook and didn't ask her to carry my stuff. Stacey was not so generous and Michael had to lug it all to the beach. Sweet victory.

One of the craziest happenings of the week for me occurred the moment that I pulled up to the condo on Monday afternoon. When I had been at Asbury College I spent a significant amount of time with a guy named Mark Troyer. At the time he was in charge of Student Leadership Development. I would consider him one of my mentors. I even took a course credit class from him. Great guy. He's now the Dean of Students at Asbury. As I pulled into the parking spot, Dr. Mark Troyer walks by on the way to his condo! His family was staying the week as well. It was nuts. We had a great time catching up and talking about the college and life in general. It was such a funny occurrence.

I finished the week out by driving home and getting email notices of facebook birthday wishes all day long. It was fun to get well wishes from a gambit of people throughout the day.

Stacey is thankfully working day shifts all this week and so will be able to have our evenings together all week. I have come back from vacation totally refreshed and ready to rock. Atlantic Beach does it everytime!

Surf's Up

Its time to go to the beach! My brother Ryan drove down this afternoon from Dalton so that we could leave Monday morning around 6 am. 9 hour drive ahead of us. Plenty of time to catch up and solve a few of the worlds problems. Stacey is flying into New Bern on Tuesday night. Can you believe that to fly from Atlanta to New Bern, NC it was 150 bucks! I fell out of my chair when I saw that price. That saved us having two cars and her making a long drive by herself. Bet you didn't know that God works through U.S. Airways.

The beach to do list includes relax, read, catch up with family, and destroy Stacey in putt-putt. Recently Stacey has been going with me to the driving range and honing her skills with a 9 iron and then putting with me on the practice green. She is starting to get the hang of it. She already totally understands golf. She watches it on TV when I'm not even at home. I'm so blessed.

Another to do item at the beach is to do a low country boil for everyone. I've had the trial run at the house with my equipment. After some initial technical difficulties, we've worked out the kinks and we're fired up and ready to cook some food. We had some friends over to test the product. We got two thumbs up. I am fully aware that if I screw this up I will never hear the end of it. However, if I pull it off, it will become a family tradition. True leaders live for moments like these.

My birthday is next Sunday. I will driving 9 hours back to my house. Awesome present to myself. My birthday present is getting a week of vacation with Stacey at the North Carolina coast. I couldn't ask for a better gift. I'll be 28, which really doesn't feel much older than 27. However, its one step closer to 29 which is almost 30 and then holy crap you're 30. I can't handle that right now. Next topic.

All the hubbub about Michael Jackson is more than I can handle. Does anybody remember the last 15 years of this guys life? They were as jacked up as anybody we know of. Man do people have short memories.

That's enough for now, vacation has officially begun.

The rockets red glare

Stacey has started officially at the hospital. So far so good. We're starting to not see each other very much too. No good stories yet, but oh its just a matter of time.

I spent my fourth of july at two different parties. The first was a family barbeque that didn't involve any of my family. The staff chef at the church is a southern Georgia African American gentleman who has become one of my good friends. He invited me to his annual fourth celebration to partake in the chowing down of 60 pounds of ribs, another 20 pounds of burgers, dogs, and chicken. Yes, that's 80 pounds of meet. I also ate some macaroni and cheese. It was awesome.

So that was the afternoon. That night I went to one of local malls to visit some members of the church who own a production company that was in charge of the event. They let me come backstage to take in the live entertainment and watch the fireworks. The fireworks were about 15 minutes long to a fantastic patriotic soundtrack. It was awesome. 250,000 people descended on this particular party. That requires a lot of porta potties. I used one backstage. It was nice and clean. Its nice to know connected people. When I asked them what their highest profile gig was they responded with this: in the 90s we produced an event with Michael Jackson. Yeah, that'll work.

The beach countdown is on. Low country boil night has been set for Wednesday evening. The only thing I'm worried about is this growing trend of breaking elbows in preparation for the beach. I just don't get it. One would think that a broken elbow would not be ideal for the beach. But after two cousins have done it weeks apart, I'm wondering if I'm missing out on something. Even if I am, I'm going to just say no.

Boil On

It was quite a week! Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett die at about the same time, a Governor attempts to disappear for a week without anyone knowing and I got my low country boil pot. That's a lot going on.

I received by low country boiling pot on Friday. Its pretty awesome. I have already seasoned it with vegetable oil. I know you're impressed. This pot will get its first major use at the beach. I'm planning to feed the entire family in grand fashion. I have helped prepare a low country boil the last two years for our church young adult retreat and its been a smashing success. The last thing I'm waiting on shipping in is the propane burner. After that its game time!

Stacey starts her hospital rotations officially on Wednesday. And wow its quite a schedule. Shifts are like 5 pm to 3 am. Or 11 am to 9 pm. No thanks. Stacey and I will clearly have to be pretty intentional to see each other. Three years. Yee Haw.

I've kept myself busy on my weekends by continuing my secret shopping at the local golf course. One of the things I have to do as a part of my survey is to purchase beers from the cart girls to make sure they are checking ID. I don't drink the beers on the course because I quite frankly have enough trouble hitting the ball straight to even think about adding another variable to the mix. However, now thanks to my survey work the girls are checking for IDs everytime. They weren't before. I suppose getting yelled at by your boss would cause you to be a little more intentional. Just doing my part in the battle against underage drinking and drinking and golfing.

Its really hot here in Atlanta. The humidity is off the charts as well. It pretty much stinks to be outside anywhere. The shade doesn't feel much different than in the sun. At least in the sun you're getting a tan. That comment just made the dermatologists in the crowd cringe.

I've been grilling a lot recently. I listened to a podcast recently with a grilling expert and he gave some excellent tips, one of which was make sure you're grill surface is super clean and make sure your meat of choice has some oil on the outside to guard against sticking. Very helpful. Stacey has been a fan of the new trend. Stuff off the grill just tastes so good. The current favorite flavor for chicken is lemon pepper. I might right a book. Philthy Cooking. I have a lot to share with the world, and so little time to do it.

Residency Begins!

Its been a big week! Stacey started Residency Orientation at Emory in Pediatrics. Her new colleagues and supervisors seem to be very nice so far. I have gotten the chance to attend two social events with her. Its been quite a pleasant surprise so far because unlike her medical school days the conversation has the ability to branch beyond whatever they did that day in class. In other words I have a chance to actually understand and follow the conversation.

One of the most interesting things we discovered right away was how many residents in their program were commuting similar if not farther distances than Stacey. We had been wondering if Smyrna to Emory in East Atlanta was going to be realistic. Well, it is. One less headache to worry about. The part of town that Emory is in is very cool but very locked in and expensive. It has a really artsy feel, lots of places to walk to and hang out in. The neighborhoods are older and have a very distinct character. Just wasn't in our wheelhouse right now. Not an issue anymore.

On Friday Night we went to see the musical "Jersey Boys". I had heard that it was very good and when researching it, discovered it had won the 2006 Tony Award. I was looking for something fun to do with Stacey that was not a typical evening for us. It was playing at the Fox Theatre which is literally diagonal from North Avenue Presbyterian. Perfect. I surprised Stacey with the tickets a Wednesday Night and we had ourselves a date. The show is about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. The show is full of their hits and some other hits. Its full of energy, dancing, comedic lines, and really innovative visual elements. It was brilliant. I was engaged the entire show. The audience went wild all night. Everybody over the age of 40 in the room was singing along. Thanks to my long car trips growing up with Ray and Diane Cobb and their inability to listen to anything but oldies, Sandi Patti, Amy Grant, and Steve Green on those car trips, I was fully award of all the Four Seasons hits. If you get a chance to see it...Go!

My buddy Jeff and I recorded our first podcast this week. Its not published yet because well it needs some work. We are going to clean it up this week and then it will be available. I will put a link on the blog and on Facebook so that everyone that wants to spend thirty minutes laughing and or shaking your heads at what is going through our heads, you can subscribe in itunes and starting listening. Its free so it won't hurt you.

Finally, I have to give a shout out to one of the regular readers of this blog. Dr. Steve Hayner counts himself a reader, and he is a former President of Intervarsity Fellowship, he is on the Board of WorldVision, International Justice Mission, and was a professor at Columbia Theological Seminary. Was because he is now the President. That is awesome. They couldn't have picked a better guy for the job.

California Dreaming (or reality)

It was a great week in California. We saw the sights, visited family and did about as much as you can do in three full days. San Francisco, Sacramento, Folsom and Napa Valley. It was pretty sweet. This was the first time I've really driven through the wine country. Its beautiful. You don't have to drink wine to appreciate the landscape. Its breathtaking.

This was my first visit to California in a non winter month. What I discovered is that San Francisco doesn't feel much different weather wise, but it was much different in number of people around. It was fun to see Pier 39 in all its glory. Great people watching. Street performers on every block providing such visual stimulation, that you become distracted with every step and in danger of full on running into people. The Golden Gate city was pretty clear for us which made for great views and great photos. We also experienced a new spot. The Boudin Sourdough Bread Company opened up a new shop and Museum on the waterfront. The museum was full of history on San Francisco. It was fascinating. Five companies were the original economic engines of San Francisco: Del Monte, Levi Strauss, Boudin, Ghiradelli Chocolate, and Wells Fargo. San Francisco, because of the gold rush, from its beginning has been a high roller town. To this day its a high roller town. It also makes for a really interesting place to visit. There is a little bit of everything there including beautiful landscape, great food, and interesting places to walk and see. That doesn't even include just observing the people. Its kind of like going to a really classy, artsy state fair. The people watching is more sophisticated but just as entertaining.

In Sacramento we stayed with Stacey's brother Stu and his family. Stu is planting a church right now in Folsom. Yes, there is more to Folsom than just a prison. They will be starting to meet in historic downtown Folsom in a little storefront theatre. Pretty cool locale. While there we went their family to the zoo. Going to the zoo is fun. Going to the zoo with four little ones brings a whole new element of discovery, sometimes in really surprising ways. I had the third oldest Ryin with me for a moment and we were standing a foot and half away from a full grown Tiger. I could have watched it for hours, yet she looked for a minute and then somehow found the mini train driving by and wanted to do that. Kids are funny like that. The kids also figured correctly that where there is kid centered fun there also must be cotton candy. They were right of course and that guaranteed a successful day.

The next day was a joint family venture in Vallejo. Vallejo is sort of between San Francisco and Sacramento and home to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Stacey's other brother Scott and his clan had season passes as did Stacey and I (Six Flags season passes are good at any park in country) and between our two coupon books we were able to get Stu's family in for one admission. Pretty sweet deal. Discovery Kingdom is a great family park because it has rides and animals. We watched dolphins and tigers and birds and screamed on Tony Hawk's Big Spin roller coaster. Its also a great way to tire out eight kids so that they'll go to bed at their normal time at night. Stacey and I got a chance to ride some of the bigger roller coasters and still spend time with each kid at some point during the day. That night we headed to Santa Rosa to stay with Scott and his family.

Santa Rosa is about an hour North West of San Francisco and very close to the Napa Valley. Thursday we met Stacey's Dad for a day of exploring the wine country. It was beautiful in many ways. We learned about the wine making business and the history, ate some great food, had some great fellowship and did a little window shopping. It was a very relaxing day. Scott's family was with us as well and that made for some more quality time with them and their kids.

The last leg of the trip was Friday's drive back into San Fran to fly out. Stacey's mom had been graciously chauffering us all over the place for the week and so we made one last stop: The Golden Gate Bridge. You see when you come into the city, you go over the Bay Bridge to get to Sacramento and other cities north. To go to Santa Rosa and stay towards the coast you go on the Golden Gate. So we were coming from Santa Rosa, meaning we drove over the famous red landmark. It was a clear day and made for some great pictures. Its really is one of the most breathtaking cities in the country. You just can't compete with the combination of landmarks, landscapes, and originality.

Stacey's family were great hosts, we had a great time and it was the perfect last stand before this Tuesday when Stacey goes through orientation to the rest of her life. Residency will begin and a new era begins. Pretty cool. And don't you know the stories will continue!

Off to California

Going to California Monday through Friday. I'm very much looking forward to this trip because believe it or not I have never visited California in the summer. I really want to see San Francisco not in January. Stacey is really excited to be Aunt Stacey for the week. I'm anxious to see how much all the nieces and nephews have grown!

My exciting new cooking skill will be put on display at the beach at Pine Knoll Shores on Atlanta Beach. The low country boil will be in full effect for all partakers. Get excited.

We have a new roof. About a month ago, a major hail storm did some damage on our roof and the insurance company decided we needed a new one. We did not argue. Home Depot came and put on a new roof and it looks great. Hopefully it will work great as well.

I'm watching the NBA Finals. Jack Nicholson, Laker superfan, doesn't appear to age. Is he a real human being. Some of the roles he's played through the years support the notion that he may be from another planet. And J.J. Redick hits a three in the final two minutes? What's he even doing in the game? Unbelievable. That's why I can't help but watch.

I can't wait for the all the movies coming out. Transformers, G.I.Joe, wait I sound like an eight year old. Funny how hollywood takes kids toys and turns them into adult blockbusters.

See you in California.

Spittin' Seeds

A few weeks ago Stacey and I went out to dinner. We were on a date. We went to Applebees just down the street. Not an impressive date. But it was a date nonetheless. We are seated in our booth and the waitress took our drink order. Over Stacey's shoulder I notice a woman seated at one of the high stool tables they have Applebees. She was with two men. This woman was eating sunflower seeds at the table. She had a napkin in front of her and was actually eating a pack of frito-lay sunflower seeds in the restaurant. Now I love sunflower seeds as much as the next person, but I have to draw the line somewhere. I looked at Stacey and said "That in a nutshell sums up many of our society's problems." She laughed at the terrible pun, soaked in the scene and agreed.

There was a guy on this beach retreat we went on last weekend. He is single and getting into that age range where its clear there are some issues at play keeping him single. I find great value in the phrase "Single for a season and single for a reason." One particular conversation with him revealed part of the issue. He was explaining to me in a lengthy conversation that emotions were no way to make a decision and you have to be able to pull emotions out of the equation. Try that beautiful logic with an emotional woman. Enough said.

My wife just texted me a message...we're both in the house....I texted her back. How things have changed.

The last two evenings we've been invited to have dinner over at the houses of two church members. It was so much fun to talk about television shows, and kids, and how Stacey and I met, and the couples met, and all the things you talk about in a dinner gathering. You just can't put a pricetag on the community created out of the church.

Memorial Day

Last year we couldn't buy rain. This year it's raining everyday. I can't mow my yard if I want to. Weather patterns are so strange.

Speaking of rain, Stacey and I were supposed to see a ton of it this past Memorial Day Weekend at the beach. We went on a Young Adult Retreat with our church North Avenue Presbyterian. Turns out the weather was much better than expected. Very little rain and very pleasant temperatures. The bonus was that we just happened to luck into staying in a penthouse like bedroom for the weekend. We were staying at St. Simon's Island in Georgia and the condo we were in had an absurdly big master bedroom that included a covered porch, wet bar, spiral staircase, walk in tiled shower, whirlpool bath, his and her vanities, and a King Sized bed. Pretty Dang Awesome.

At the end of the weekend we even got to drive down to St. Mary's and visit my Uncle Chuck and Aunt Nancy, have lunch, and then see my cousin Amanda's new house. Really great house, with a really great layout. It was a great weekend.

So here I have a new form of entertainment for you to look forward to. I will be launching a podcast next month. My friend Jeff who is Young Adults Pastor at North Avenue and I will be creating this podcast. It will deal with a range of subjects but mainly it will be funny. We're still thinking of a name for it.

The organization that I work with on the issue of Sex Trafficking is called StreetGRACE. North Avenue is a founding church of this organization. The Executive Director of StreetGRACE is named Cheryl Deluca-Johnson. She is married to Ernie Johnson. He is the Emmy Award Winning Studio Host of the NBA on TNT where he keeps Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley under control. Tuesday Night on the Broadcast before the Magic Vs. Cavaliers playoff Game, Ernie announced that he had won their fantasy basketball competition and Auto-Trader was donating a check for $10,000 to his charity...StreetGRACE. That's right. Our local organization got plugged on National Television. Excellent work. Now that is some serious marketing help.

Graduation

Our business administrator at North Avenue gave me one of the strangest looks I've seen today when I asked if I could borrow a wheelchair for a few days. I told him it wasn't for me. That didn't seem to help. It's for Stacey's grandmother for this week. Funny in office moment though.

Graduation week is here. My sister in law Rachel (avid blog reader so here's your shoutout) graduated from Richmont with her Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy on Saturday. She graduated in the same class with Jeff Foxworthy's niece. Always funny to attend a normal event like that with a celebrity and watch him stand in line like everybody else.

Stacey graduates on Saturday from the Morehouse School of Medicine. As a part of the pre-grad festivities she has been participating in some class get togethers. Last night was bowling. Tonight is roller skating. I just love the fact that after getting six figures in debt in graduate education they decided to celebrate like rising 7th graders.

We had our house power washed this week. Looks like we painted it. Amazing the difference.

My parents are in the area this week. It's been quite a visit. My dad preached at the Homeless service I oversee on Sunday at North Avenue. The guys really enjoyed his sermon. I think he enjoyed the experience. I then took my parents over to the largest homeless shelter in the southeast in the afternoon. We then finished out the day with our contemporary service. It was a lot of church for one day...and mother's day at that.

On Monday we visited the World of Coke. I had received a suggestion from a friend to view the experience from the perspective of Coke as a religion they were selling. Really interesting thought to process. Don't get me wrong, I love coke, but when you really listen to what they are selling its a little scary and definitely emphasizes the need for people to look for "happiness" in faith and not a consumer product sold in an aluminum can or collectors glass bottle.

On a less serious note, my dad's favorite part was at the very end watching people sample the products from around the world. There is one particular product from Europe that was so bad it registered my gag reflex. It was quite funny to watch other patrons come across the same flavor. Remembering that flavor as I write this is giving me full body shivers.

My Dad also fixed a bunch of stuff in our house. A gate, a faucet, some drawers, and probably some things I have yet to discover. Handyman parents are awesome.

Finally, with all the focus on graduation this week I got to thinking about the path my family is headed down. In about 3 years I could get into a car wreck and be treated by my wife, use my brother in law Michael to sue the driver who hit me and then get trauma counseling from Rachel. I'd say my siblings and I have done a pretty good job of marrying into a complete continuum of care.

The Recap

I survived!

It really was not too bad a process. But it had some entertaining moments...

I arrived a checked in early at Northside Hospital, which is about 10 minutes from our house. It was about 10 am and they quickly processed me and sent me to pre-op where we were met by a very nice nurse who informed me that I would be removing all my clothing and piercings and jewelry and putting on a delightful gown. Oh boy.

Once situated on the bed under some warm blankets, she took some blood samples and asked me about 5 times if I'd had anything to eat or drink since midnight. Now this is a good moment to interject some key information. When making the arrangements for this surgery I was told not to eat anything after midnight but the reason was never fully explained. Being married to a doctor helps that. For those of you that know, humor me here, but for those of you that don't, understand that if you go under general anestesia with contents on your stomach they basically come back up and do permanent damage to your lungs. Not good. So after I had answered no, I informed the nurse that I knew the importance of this issue. She then told me how on a REGULAR basis people lie about eating or drinking something until at some point they understand the risks. If they've eaten they then get sent home. Unbelievable.

They gave me some stuff to help me relax and that was really good because the morning schedule for surgery was behind. It was two hours behind. I actually slept for like an hour and fifteen minutes. Really critical point to mention here. Not enough credit goes to your caretaker. Obviously the patient is the one going through the pain and discomfort of the procedures, but your caretaker, sits the whole time, and has to keep track of everything for you. I had done this for Stacey and few months back when she had pneumonia, and its rough.

Then gametime arrived and I was wheeled back. That is a very surreal feeling. You're lying faceup, the smell of sanitary conditions wafting through the halls. People saying things about you which you can't really make out because their words are muffled by their masks. And being wheeled around on a hospital bed like that has a similar feel to a cheap state fair ride. You pay to go on it, and they you pay for it afterwards.

I entered the OR and actually thought to myself, "this is the last sight many people have on earth." Being observant has its drawbacks. Then everything faded away. Until I woke up with the urge to vomit, and I did luckily into a container earning me the nickname for the rest of the day "the puker". Nurses don't care what you hear. I discovered this week that I have something else in common with my grandmother besides loving sports, a very low tolerance for general anestesia. Pretty much if somebody asked me a question I wanted to vomit and for the most part I did.

A nurse would move my arm, and well you get the picture. It was a less than desirable 12 hours. It took four different medications and my wife's persistence to discover the correct formula for my peaceful resting. I then was able to sleep, until I began setting off the oxygen level alarm. Apparently I wasn't breathing particularly well. This began a series of events that my wife would just soon not repeat.

While I was out of it enough to not really pay attention to anything, my wife was busy advocating for a number of things to happen. She caught a lab technician taking the wrong test, a nurse forgetting to schedule a test, a nurse not responding to vital alerts, a nurse not responding to a need for more medication, and probably a few other things I'm not even aware of. She went into on call mode Monday night and really didn't sleep. She's a great wife. The interesting thing she said to me after the fact was how much it reminded her of the importance of an advocate for the patient. Had she not been on top of things, I might have been kept for a second billable admission day because of their scheduling mishaps around testing. My insurance company should thank my wife. She saved them thousands of dollars.

Once it came time for release the final great lasting memory occurred. Here I am an otherwise healthy 27 year old male being released from the hospital and I get to be wheeled out of the facility in a wheelchair by an 80 year old woman. It just felt wrong. She was a part of their volunteer program at the hospital which is wonderful. She did a great job getting me down to the front entrance where Stacey picked me up. Very humbling. Very good to get back out into fresh air and regular life.

I'll close with this. My dad has always stressed the importance of care for people as they experience these elements of life. "There is no such thing as a routine procedure" is a phrase he says a lot when referring to his value placed on pastoral care. It means the world to know people are praying for you. It means the world to have people come by to visit, even if they only get to see the person waiting for you (thanks Jessica, Scott, and Johnny). It means the world to have someone pop into the room just to say a few nice words and pray (thanks Frank). Stacey and i were joking at home this week about a comment I'd made just before going into surgery. I said "I don't even need any relaxation medication because I feel so peaceful." Of course, how could I not, knowing that probably several hundred people were literally praying for God's peace to be with me heading into the surgery. I didn't have a chance against that kind of intercession.

Gametime

It's the morning of the big day. I get to go under the knife in about 4 hours, but who is counting? One of the more fascinating things I've experienced leading up to this surgery is the following question. "Are you nervous?" No, but now I am! Anybody facing this type of thing is going to be uneasy. I think that is a safe assumption. I don't need to be reminded of it over and over again. Now the question "Are you ready?", that's totally different. Yes, I'm ready to get this done so that it isn't an issue anymore. I've learned from this that I'm going to say "It will go just fine, or I'm praying for you, or Is there anything I can do for you"?

This is supposed to leave me two scars. Two scars on the bottom of your neck aren't bad in my opinion. Face, not helpful, stomach, not helpful. But base of neck? I don't think anybody spends a long time looking at that area anyway and if they do you don't want to be their friend because they are probably pretty weird.

All donations in my honor can be sent to our home address. You shouldn't have:)

Leaks and Surgery

The big topic in our household right now is the pending "neck exploration" on Monday. I say neck exploration because that is what is listed on my pre-surgery form. Really comforting term. Very scientific and medical you know. It brings about mental images of cutting into my neck and rootin' around hoping to find something to fix. How nice.

We had this terrible thunderstorm last week and it brought some crazy hail with it. That night it rained like a Hurricane and we noticed a small leak in the roof. We called the insurance company and we were among hundreds reporting the same thing. Luckily for us it dripped onto the plywood ceiling in our second floor bedroom but didn't do bad damage and seep through. In fact we just happened to be laying in bed at the time and heard it drip. Otherwise we may have not noticed it. The adjuster has not visited the house yet. We're on the low priority list. Luckily it hasn't rained at all this week.

But then it started raining tonight and I had to crawl up into the attic because "we're now responsible for taking action to prevent further damage". Easier said than done. So far no issues, other than cramping legs from crouching in the attic on the studs. Falling through my ceiling would have most likely created some other surgical needs.

Any of you that friends with me on Facebook probably noticed this week that I got to meet Dr. J. Julius Erving, the master of the Slam Dunk was the guest speaker at a Salvation Army fundraising reception. I shook his hand and lost it in his. Let's just palming a basketball wouldn't be a problem for him. He was a very nice guy and we'll be in further conversation around partnering on some charity projects going forward. That will hopefully mean some strategic planning golf outings at the club he now owns in Atlanta.

That's all I can think of for now. Wait one more thing. If any of you thinks you might have TB, some of my homeless buddies that come to our Bible Study at the church said the best place to get tested and treated is in jail. Just wanted to pass that along. In the mean time wash your hands and you won't get Swine Flu. Thats from Dr. Cobb herself. In fact to get really specific, wash your hands and don't play with poop. That's solid prevention from a medical professional.

Blue Lamborghinis

First of all, I got some very helpful tips about what to do with my scattered note problem, thanks for those.

Young Jeezy is a rapper. He's from Atlanta. He raps about a blue lamborghini. I saw it last night driving by North Avenue Presbyterian down Peachtree Street. It was pretty hard to miss. It's one of those cars that when he drove by the question wasn't "is that somebody famous?" but the question was "Who is that?". The Police officer standing next to me who works security for us told me who is was and then proceeded to give me background on what neighborhood he is from and how we was tied to one of the largest crime syndicates in the country. Really upstanding citizen. Sweet car though.

Surgery is next Monday. I had my pre surgery phone appointment with the nurse today to make sure they don't give me an anesthesia that will kill me. I'm pretty easy. No allergies, drug issues, alcohol, other health problems, etc. Very nice nurse who said my surgeon is one of the best. Nice to know, going into a surgery he's doing.

I had a meeting today with an official legislative lobbyist. We are planning a meeting to talk about some advocacy issues around sex trafficking, and North Avenue Presbyterian is hosting the meeting. I had no idea how lobbying works. I mean I thought I knew, but I really didn't know. You talk about politics involved. The more you learn about our democracy you begin to realize its not really a democracy the way we think of it. Its actually sort of depressing. Yes you vote for representative but after their in, you can kiss your voice goodbye, that is unless you have a whole lot of money to throw around.

I watched a little bit of the NFL draft this weekend. I'd like for somebody to grade the analysts on their grading. These guys can totally miss on their opinion, rag a GM or a franchise all weekend and in print and then not be held accountable when they are dead wrong. Tom Brady, the quarterback for the New England Patriots, has won 3 Super Bowls. He was drafted in the 7th round. Somebody graded him as a 7th round draft pick. They shouldn't have any credibility left. But in reality its not about accountability for correct picks, its who is crazy enough to rate 250 college prospects and sound like a know it all.

Finally, I found this show called Exterminators. Its a reality show following a guy named Billy and his family pest control business in Louisiana. He's a very tv friendly guy, and seems very genuine. He's also pretty eccentric. This show is wild. He gets called in on some stuff you wouldn't believe. In one show he goes to a house with a roach investation. It was so bad the people couldn't live in the house anymore. The footage from inside left me with two thoughts. First, this guy is nuts, and second, not everyone is qualified to be a home owner. Take out your trash, clean your dishes, and don't have holes in your walls. That's a good start in not having roaches. Seems like common sense. The show is on A&E. Its pretty entertaining so be careful or you'll get sucked in for hours.

Busting Scum

Props to my wife for making our yard look 1000 times better. She has a motivation in the outdoors I can't conjure up at this point.

One of the best parts of my new job is having lunch together each day. We have a staff chef that prepares a simple meal that we all partake in at noon each weekday. If you're there on site the expectation is to be in the dining room at noon sharp or face the wrath of chef. Its great to gather as a staff so regularly to fellowship.

I have gotten permission from a local Atlanta police precinct to do ride-a-longs with the officers. Oh the stories I will glean from that. As my Uncle Randy says, we'll be out busting some scum. Though I believe that downtown Atlanta may be a little more intense than Winfield, WV.

I've found this troubling issue. When you sit down to do necessary correspondence via phone calls or email, it creates a lot more work. Its a lot easier to not talk to anyone because there aren't any messages to return. Also when you schedule meetings with people, I'm finding it creates a lot more work because you really should have some action steps coming from the meeting...unless you're Presbyterian and you meet for the sake of meeting, how convenient for me.

In the category of weird habits, I've discovered that I like to make notes, but I have trouble making notes in one spot. I keep making notes on different pieces of paper and in different notebooks, and then I'm stuck with all these random pieces of paper on my desk and in my bags. I'm not trying to do this. Its a subconscious thing. Any suggestions?

Some thoughts

The surgery will be May 4th. Not looking forward to two elements. One intubation. Just not pleasant. Second, is the catheter. Even more not pleasant. I suppose those two things aren't big enough obstacles to not have the procedure.

I have the sweetest secret shopping job I can think of. A friend of mine is the president of a golf management company. He has be go out every week and play golf at his courses, then fill out a survey and reimburses me for all expense including food, drink, and cart. He told me the feedback I gave last year was really helpful. I took the job very seriously and really thought through my evaluations. Everybody wins.

My pleasure reading tends to be nonfiction leadership growth material. Books designed to give you help in taking things to the next level. My most recent read was Good to Great by Jim Collins. I tend to start quoting the books...a lot. I tend to quote them a lot at home. Stacey hates this. She would roll her eyes at every brilliant thought I would say. In life's great irony, she is taking a business in medicine elective rotation and it just so happens that her textbook is Good to Great. So far she is enjoying the read. I'm glad she is seeing the light.

Its a good thing I'm not in charge of the U.S. military because if I was I would have already wiped out every Somali pirate I could find. My idea is to take a cargo ship and turn it into a military fortress, but still having the look of a cargo ship. When that little speedboat approaches, boom no more pirate. I'd just drive that trucker up and down the coast taking them down one group of pirates at a time. Do you think they have parrots and eye patches?

I was talking to my Dad the other night about how from a professional standpoint, my brother is an unbelievable youth director. The events he's putting on combined with the online responses he gets from his kids point to a guy that is as good as it gets for youth ministry. I've worked with a number of youth directors at this point and he's better than all of them. If I was a Senior Pastor, I'd hire him tomorrow and pay him enough to keep him around.

I got a text message from my sister today telling me she did really well on a teaching exam. There was an education professor at her college that told her she wouldn't be a good fit for teaching. That professor is an idiot. If there is one thing my sister can do its connect with kids and educate them. The one big disadvantage with small colleges is if you have a moron professor, that can really ruin your major. I had two at my college who greatly influenced my Media choices. I chose not to finish my journalism minor because I knew I would kill somebody if I had to take the required courses from one of the journalism professors. The other moron professor caused me to shift away from performance to production. That professor is gone now.

Stacey's graduation is May 16th. That is coming up fast! I'll be married to a Doctor. Weird.

Finally, I don't get our need for celebrity news. Its so low brow. Seriously, it's not healthy for anybody, yet at 7:30 p.m. every network has a celebrity entertainment gossip show on and People magazine is alive and well. Seems like there is a lot of time, money, and effort people put into learning about celebrities that could be directed elsewhere.

An update...its about time!

You know your mother loves you when she ships you homemade chocolate fudge easter eggs. That was a pleasant surprise. They made it all the way to Atlanta fully intact.

For the record I called my brother and graciously congratulated him on the team that will remain nameless accomplishment. I felt like that showed just how mature I've become.

I've been really enjoying my new job. I've learned a lot about how difficult it is for people to get out of the margins of society once they've gotten in. The people that plan the system, don't necessarily live the system to think it through all the way. Its very eye-opening.

My job has also confirmed something I suspected...most politicians start with earnest intentions and then become callous idiots. Remember I said most. The good ones you know about deserve your praise.

I have confirmed the need to have surgery. I just have to get it scheduled. I'll let you know when that happens and where you can direct your gifts and money.

I have to admit that my wife was very right on something and I was very wrong. She wanted to accept a futon from a friend who was moving. I did not. Best piece of furniture we've gotten in a long time. I love sitting on it to read. Well done wife.

I noticed that AT&T is sponsoring commercials with Tom's Shoes during the Masters. That makes me happy to be an AT&T customer.

Sad Day

Duke lost. It was a nice season. ACC Tournament Championship. Visit to second weekend of the tournament. I'll stop there. Can't wait till next season!

Parathyroid update. My seems to be working overtime. That's what the lab tests say. I met with a surgeon this morning. He is running one more test that should give a precise set of data to make an exact decision. Prospects for surgery are rising. I can definitely tell I suffering from one of the symptoms of thyroid malfunction: fatigue. I could go to sleep at almost anytime during the day. I've too much to do to be worrying about this mess.

Its been raining in Atlanta over the last few days a lot. We desperately need the rain, but man does it junk of the flow of things in this city. Traffic is a nightmare and Atlanta is such a walking city downtown, it really makes things more complicated walking to various locations and trying to stay dry. My new job has me dealing with the homeless on a daily basis and it reminds me of how much harder life is when weather is an issue. The guys really have a hard time trying to survive inclement weather conditions.

It makes me thankful for my reliable car and house.

Funny product

I was looking through coupons in the Sunday Paper when I stumbled across a really funny product. Its the "Don't forget my Senior Discount!" ball cap. What a niche product!

Obviously it has a practical use for those looking to get senior discounts at fast food restaurants and other places offering such a deal. However, very quickly I began thinking of other uses for this product.

Such as giving it to anybody who turns 40, any woman, somebody who frequents really upscale places but still wants to cut a deal, anyone graying early, anyone balding early, your Senior Pastor (you could claim it encourages good stewardship), a teenager looking for something to complete their non-conformist outfit, a dad trying to embarass their kids, a husband trying embarass his wife, or your local AARP chapter leader because they seem to be angling for that type of thing all the time.

Basically, this is a terrible product with its only value being comedy or insult. Wait that makes it a great product.

Final note: Thanks for the support and congrats on Stacey getting her residency match. We're relieved and excited to be staying in Atlanta. We celebrated the happening this week by watching Duke get to the Sweet Sixteen, Go Blue Devils!

A Nice Dinner Party

Last night we had a few friends over for a dinner party themed around March Madness. Less dinner party and more bring food, laugh, and watch the games, it was a really enjoyable evening.

I wish we did more casual social gatherings. People bring something to share and then for the next few hours you just have fun enjoying each other. We like to bring a theme or activity into the mix just to give a little direction, but we're never tied to it.

It takes a little work on the front end (cleaning, preparing some food) but thanks to online technologies letting people know about the event and inviting them to come is a snap. Makes it really easy to plan a fun and memorable gathering in just minutes.

So here's to simple home based evenings of entertainment.

The Day

Its been 4 years in the making. Today Stacey found out where she will do her residency in pediactrics. The ceremony is still ongoing as I write this over at Morehouse, but Stacey has been up to speak already. Thank goodness

She had received positive feedback from every place she interviewed. Duke, Baylor, Cincinnati, Orlando, Emory in Atlanta. It appeared the choice would be hers. Steller candidate. Yet the computer made the ultimate decision. You just never know. We were hoping for Emory, especially seeing how I just took a new job at North Avenue Presbyterian Church.

Our pastor and my boss was hoping for Emory. Still though there was no definite way to be sure. The answer awaited in the envelope given to her. I prayed on my way over that we would be faithful to God no matter what the decision. That we were ready for whatever plans He had for us. Easy prayer to pray before you know!

The students marched in, and number four in the drawing was Stacey. She stepped up on stage, gave some very heartfelt thanks to me, her mother, her friends, and the faculty. I am so proud. She is amazing, and will be an amazing pediatrician. She opened up her letter and I knew from her expression.

"I will be completing my residency in Pediactrics at...Emory.
Thank the Lord. What a blessing. Thanks to everyone who prayed for the situation. God is good.

Coffee shops

I'm fascinated to this day about how people gravitate to coffee shops to have conversations. The people of Starbucks and Caribou were brilliant when they set up such an environment to have people always choose them to meet and talk.

In the past two weeks I've met 3 different people for coffee at Starbucks. Each visit I was there I noticed atleast 2 job interviews taking place. Coffee shops are conveniently located, have parking, and give a neutral environment for people to meet in.

Plus these places serve a very nice compliment to conversation. You can get a muffin, or coffee, or a soft drink, and the environment is designed to enhance your conversation not simply serve you a product. In a sense the product is a place for you to meet.

For people in ministry I think it takes away some of the fear of going to the church to meet with a Pastor. Obviously some things need to be discussed behind closed doors. But for the things that are not information sensitive I think there is a nice energy that occurs when we embrace experiencing our day to day rhythms and cultures.

Less than a week until match day. As if March needed any more madness.

Cobb Stimulus Package

Today the Cobb household put into action the Cobb Stimulus Package. It involved several weeks worth of planning and logistics to successfully carry out the day. And today was a success.

We had a yard sale. We made $260 bucks subtracting out expenses, and everything we sold was something we were willing to give or throw away. We were decluttering the house and decided to give the yard sale concept a try to lesson the clutter. It was way more successful than I anticipated.

We posted the event on Craig's List. That brought out the hardcore yardsalers. You can tell they are hardcore when they pull up to the house in a mini van with the seats taken out and get out of the vehicle, simply leaving it running. They know very quickly whether they will make anything happen. We had some modest luck with them. A few small items here and there.

The main success came from the local hispanic community. Our advantage with this group was Stacey's ability to converse with them in Spanish. She was able to make them feel very comfortable and thus buy more than they probably would. 3/4 of our business went to this group.

We had some action from a couple of happen to be in the neighborhood couples and families and that cleared out some of the random items. A few medical students responded to Stacey's school email and bought some of her old books to round out the business.

The most interesting part of the whole day for me was observing the types of people that came and what kinds of things they bought. Two hispanic males bought a whole bunch of things at one point including some red heart candles. We figured they were out doing some shopping for their ladies.

I can't believe that we sold as much stuff as we did with as few customers as we had. Probably 3/4 of the visitors bought something.

In the end the star of the show was Stacey. She got full price for almost everything. I guess our pricing was good, but I also think people felt like they were getting an honest deal. Either way, I was impressed. She doesn't proclaim to be a sales person, but today she knocked it out of the park.

Less than two weeks till match day. The madness is increasing!

March Madness

Now is truly the most wonderful time of the year. In Atlanta we even had a little snow to start the month, so its practically Christmas. Why is it the most wonderful time of the year? College Basketball.

Why do I get so excited about the end of the college basketball season? I'm Duke fan number one. We're always relevant this time of year. Second, its a people gatherer. Filling out the tournament bracket is something that bring offices, churches and friends together.

We talk about our strategies behind the picks, we pick an underdog to root for. Its an activity that an 11 year old can do with their 75 year old grandparent. And now because of everything being hosted online its so easy to do.

These days I'm fascinated by any cultural happening that still gathers a large following. Things have become so niche oriented that I love to pick apart the items that appeal to the masses. College basketball tournament season is one of those things.

Health Update: Had an ultrasound and nothing is conclusive yet. Now I have to meet with a surgeon for a consult to probably do some further testing. The parathyroid is apparently a trick little part of the body to figure out.

Long overdue

I apologize for not being more current, but life got in the way. Actually its helpful as a storyteller at times because it gives me plenty to write about.

First, the new job is going very well. I am being asked to shepherd a great tradition of service into a new model that is more focused and organized. Talk about potential. The key is moving at the right rhythm and pace. In the beginning I will be spending my time observing and celebrating what has happened and what is happening now.

Second, I've had some medical issues pop up. I would love your prayers. I am working with my doctor to figure out a parathyroid issue. We noticed high calcium levels in my bloodwork and thus began the hunt. I have an ultrasound next Friday, and after that we will know what the next course of action will be. I must say being married to an almost doctor can have its advantages and disadvantages. Advantage, I know exactly what I'm dealing with. Disadvantage I know exactly what I'm dealing with.

Finally, I attended a quick gathering of churches at Peachtree Presbyterian that featured thought around missional thinking for the church. It was really great. I met some cool new people and was given some great things to ponder going forward as a church staff member. In particular, acknowledging that we are simply a part of God's redemptive mission really changes the perspective of the church.

How about the thought that God is doing things in the world without our help? What, I thought we had to do the work or it wouldn't get done. Interesting concept to think that God is doing the work and we simply have the joy of being a part of the redemptive mission. That is something to much on for a while.

One last note. Its a month until Match day for Stacey. I'm having trouble being patient. I want to know. Life is incovenient like that more than I would prefer.

Some News

Greetings to all.
I apologize for the delay in a new post, but I've been awaiting on some news to become official. I am taking a new job in about a week. I will be the Urban Ministries Coordinator at North Avenue Presbyterian Church. North Avenue Presbyterian is a church located in downtown Atlanta just a short walk over the interstate from Georgia Tech.

In this position I will be connecting the church staff, leadership and membership with need in the local Atlanta community. Some of the major issues North Avenue deals with daily are homelessness and sex trafficking. These are two areas I've been working on for a while.

Stacey and I have been attending this church for over a year now and love the community. I am really excited about the new position. It will allow me to work on causes that I believe Jesus calls us to be actively engaged in. They aren't easy issues but the work we're called to in the Gospels is very challenging to carry out in our world. Challenges are good. I grow in my faith the most when I'm challenged.

I will also get to utilize my media background to help tell the stories of the work. That element is also very exciting to me. Many times the collective church does great things in Christ name, but nobody knows about it and thus it can't be celebrated.

My excitement over the new position allowed me to ease past the horrible occurrence that I witnessed from 9 pm to 11 pm Wednesday night. I just assume never witness something like that again. If you're wondering what I'm referring to, sometimes ignorance is bliss.

Over the Top

The last few days I've been catching moments of the Winter X-Games on ESPN. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, this is the extreme sports competition ESPN puts on every year for the crazy winter skiing athletes of the world. They compete in events like snow mobile racing, ski racing, snowboard racing, and various trick competitions with skis, snowboard, and snow mobiles.

This Winter X Games is nothing new but it always strikes me as funny for two reasons. First, the athletes aren't intense in the normal sense we think of athletes being. Post event interviews are dominated by "We didn't hustle and we lacked the execution we needed to get the win." No, instead they go something like "Dude, I didn't throw it down quite like I thought, man why, hmm...I'm so in my own head right now, I've got to just kick it this last time. Make it happen....whooooooo!"

It cracks me up every time.

Second funny thing is what these guys drink when they're done. Basketball and football players drink water or gatorade right? These guys do the craziest things ever, like flipping a snow mobile twenty feet in the air, or riding a vertical half pipe, twisting their bodies 18 feet above rock solid ice. I can only imagine the adrenaline flowing through their bodies. I know the adrenaline I've gotten jumping a foot off the ground on a blue square ski slope. And what do they drink at the bottom? A 20 oz. energy drink. Are you kidding me! You talk about wired. These are the last guys that need an energy drink.

Finally, I am placing a personal gag order on myself about Duke Basketball to avoid messing up the flow they are in right now.

One more thing. I watched We Are Marshall this weekend. If the part about Bobby Bowden is really true, that makes him one of the all time class acts in sports. I really enjoyed the movie, especially being so familiar with the setting. If you haven't seen it, I would recommend it. A great feel good sports story.

Cold weather

It seems that living in Atlanta in winter, comes with two choices. You can either deal with bitter cold temperatures in the morning with a bright sun, or you can deal with rain in more mild above freezing temperatures.

With the freezing temperatures I have to deal with driving a car that has close to know heating ability. I have gloves on and as my hands begin to hurt from the cold I alternate placing them underneath my legs.

The alternative of rain is probably a bigger pain in the neck. When it rains in Atlanta which has been less frequent in the last few years (hence the drought) people all of a sudden forget how to drive like normal citizens. Flashers are put on, brakes abused, and gridlock ensues.

Personally I'll take dealing with the cold and switching hands, but getting to work in a decent amount of time, all day.

Spring come quickly.

Why we do it

I wanted to give you an update on Stacey and I's personal mentoring project. As you might remember two brothers Joshua and D.J. have become our new friends. We've been helping with their bus fare to get them to and from their GED class. We had them over for a Holiday meal and have been able to create a growing relationship.

The brothers come by my office every other day or so after class to check in with Errol the guy who made all this happen. While they are in they come and visit with me for a little bit. We talk about sports mostly, but we also talk about class, and whatever random thoughts 16 and 17 year olds come up with.

On Friday the brothers stopped by and it was cold in Atlanta. In the morning it had been 11 degrees outside. D.J., the oldest and most driven towards the goal, said to me "Mr. Phil, when I walked outside this morning I turned right back around and went inside because it was so cold. But then I thought Mr. Phil is paying for me to go to school, so I bundled up a little more and went."

That probably doesn't seem like a big deal, but it meant the world to me. It meant that a 17 year old with drug charges, breaking and entering charges, and non-charged criminal activity in his past, has gotten to the mindset that he is going to be disciplined to recognize that he is getting a second chance and going to make the most of it. Errol has done an amazing job of becoming a father to these boys and Stacey and I are honored to become encouraging friends and supporters.

With all the things that I work on and experience that don't seem to make an impact, I'm grateful that God gives me experiences like this relationship to keep me motivated to care. I'll admit I'm not a strong enough person to persevere without some sense of reward. But God knows that and works through me despite my flaws. That's amazing grace.

Never gets old

Its the 8th season of American Idol. One would think its getting old. Could it possibly be interesting and entertaining yet again? I was asking that question before last night.

I flipped on the tv for a brief moment just to check in on the annual ridiculousness. An hour and half later and thoroughly entertained I turned off the tv and headed upstairs. It just never gets old. Bad singing and judges being brutally honest. I could watch it all day.

Its nothing to be proud of but its the truth. Where do these people come from? I know that some of them are acting like idiots to get on the show, but some of these people are genuine. Where is the friend or relative who will tell them that they are terrible? I've told Stacey countless times, that if I ever become that guy who isn't aware of how bad he is at something, save me the pain and tell me.

The funny thing about American Idol for me is that I won't watch it after the tryouts. I could care less about hearing the good people. I just tune in for the horrendous tryouts much like we slow down to look at car wrecks. Something in us pulls us towards the carnage of metal twisted on the side of the road and bad singers getting drilled by Simon and Randy.

So as some you will tune in for the next few weeks, you can smile knowing I'm laughing out loud at awkward men and women singing off beat and out of tune.