One of the really cool things about blogging on WordPress is the ability to see the search terms that lead other people to my blog - some of them tend to be rather strange. Here are just a few of them from the last week

Well the feeling is coming on again

How not to be afraid to show a man your

How to say easter bunny in Swahili

“leftover beans and rice”

Words of wisdom about mental retardation

sex humor “Charlie Brown”

“Smokey this isn’t Nam”

Parts 1, 2, and 3 of the series can be found here.

As we have seen over the past few weeks, the (mostly) white youth of generation X in the early 90’s faced the world about them with disillusion and discontent, struggling to find some sense of identity in a world that no longer made sense. It was a time of angst and anger that was reflected deeply in the music that we listened to.

Meanwhile, other musical movements were rising from the black community.

While rap music had been around for some time by the early 90’s, it really came to prominence during that time period – beginning on the East Coast. While white suburban youth longed for something more, some bit of metaphysical meaning in a plastic, disposable existence, black Americans were still standing face-to-face with the same problems they had been dealing with for generations – poverty, injustice, inequity, and the fulfillment of basic needs. Leaders had risen and fallen, but change was slow and laborious. The ghettos of the most prosperous nation on the earth were still filled with those who had been forced into their situation for no reason other than the color of their skin. So, with this sense of frustration in mind, many in the black community turned to music as a catalyst for change and nobody represented this more in the that time period than Public Enemy.

Around that same time, though, another force was brewing on the West Coast, in the ghettos of Compton, but this one would take a different track to infamy. Where Public Enemy and other socially active groups looked at the situation and demanded action, those from the other coast looked upon their circumstances with hopelessness, denying that change was even possible within the current paradigm. Eschewing any call to action as a failure, they instead adopted a nihilistic worldview, in which hedonistic gain became the greatest good and violence was not to be avoided, but rather embraced. In the wake of Rodney King and the subsequent acquittal of the officers involved (along with decades of inequity in the justice system), policemen and figures of authority became the utmost of enemies. It was from this environment of brutality and disorder that a new genre of rap music arose into the mainstream and it was led by four men from the streets of Compton who identified themselves as NWA. With a style that was brash and profane, Ice Cube (before he was doing kids’ movies), Dr. Dre, Easy-E, and MC Ren took the nation by storm for a few short years. I wanted to use the song Straight Outta Compton for this, but decided against it due to the language (this is a family blog!), so instead here is their rather tame video for Express Yourself. Go to YouTube and search for the aforementioned song if you really want to get an idea of what they were all about.

Last night several of our “Growth Groups” from church met together with some of the missionaries we support for a meal and a time of devotion/discussion. The topic at hand was one that is near (and constantly becoming nearer) to my heart, helping the poor and downtrodden, but I have to admit that I left a bit disappointed.

I regretfully stayed out of the discussion for the most part and just listened to the comments of my brothers and sisters:

“We can’t help everyone in the world.”

“We can’t all be Mother Theresa”

And my (regretfully) unspoken question is, “Why not?”

Since when is the cause of Christ defined by pragmatism and practicality? Sure, maybe radical idealism isn’t realistic, but does that mean we shouldn’t even try?

To be fair, my good friend and sparring partner Patrick also brought out the idea that our job is to help those in our immediate vicinity and then, after seeing Christ in us, will do the same, and on and on. Which is a great attitude to have, but, at the same time, I can’t help but ask why we should stop there.

Why don’t we try to change the world?

In the past week, John McCain was asked an uncomfortable question regarding the health insurance coverage of Viagra and birth control. While I could go off on another political soliloquy about gender inequities and all of that, there was another aspect of the video that concerned me even more. Watch what happens around the 30 second mark:

You notice his hand reaching up to his face, grasping his face and pulling at his skin, almost seemingly against his will. This could only mean one thing - not just an uncomfortable feeling for Senator McCain at having to discuss issues such as these, rather, I’m afraid it may be something much more sinister. John McCain’s hand has been possessed by an evil spirit. Senator McCain, please heed my warning now or else something like this may happen:

Maybe he and Mitt Romney would make a good team after all…

actually watch the 15 inning, nearly 5 hour MLB All-Star Extravaganza last night?

Me neither.

Is anybody else ready for football season to start?

Me too.

Being both a numbers nerd and a football fan, fantasy football has been an attention holder of mine for the past ten years or so. I am one of those strange sorts of persons who enjoys looking at page after page of statistical calculations and who actually uses some of the math that they sat through during their school years.
For the past two years, at no charge whatsoever, I have also been giving my own fantasy picks for the various positions utilized in a league of that sort. Last week, we looked at the quarterback position, so this week we will examine the position that is the most highly regarded among fantasy connoisseurs, running back.

Honorable Mention:
Larry Johnson, KC – In 2005 and 2006, Johnson amassed over 3,500 yards rushing while scoring 40 touchdowns, but last year he fell flat, mainly due to injury. The big question is: how well can he return this season following a subpar year and behind a shaky offensive line? I don’t expect much, but he may be worth the gamble.

Maurice Jones-Drew, Jax – With an excellent ’06 rookie season behind him, expectations high, and his only real competition an aging, injury-prone Fred Taylor, Jones-Drew looked as though he could really break out in ’07. A resurgent Taylor, though, kept him from even matching the numbers of his rookie year. Sharing carries is never a good situation for a fantasy back, but, if Taylor goes down, you want to make sure you have Jones-Drew.

Selvin Young, Den – Young put up good numbers as a rookie last season while splitting carries with Tyrone Henry, who looks to be gone from the Bronco roster for ’08. Denver brought in aging veteran Michael Pittman, but Young should get the vast majority of the carries. Historically, the Broncos have been able to turn nearly anyone into a 1,000+ yard rusher (Olandis Gary, anyone?), so I expect Young to excel this season.

10. Frank Gore, SF – While Gore is definitely set for another productive season, his dip in production from ’06 (Over 2,100 total yards, 9 TDs) to ’06 (1,500 yards, 6 TDs) has me a bit concerned, as does the 49’ers poor line play. To complicate matters further, Frisco brought in DeShaun Foster as a backup and to push Gore a bit. I expect him to garner around 1,600 total yards and 8 TDs this season – a slight improvement over 2007.

9. Ryan Grant, GB – With Favre likely gone and Aaron Rodgers dealing with the new pressures of being the starting quarterback, the Pack will be leaning hard on second year runner Grant. Green Bay has one of the best O-lines in the league, so I expect him to run wild and greatly improve on his 2007 rookie season (956 yards and 8 TDs). I expect Grant to pick up around 1,400 rushing yards and double digit TDs.

8. Marshawn Lynch, Buf – After enduring three consecutive losing seasons and not winning more than 9 games since ’99, there hasn’t been much for Bills fans to cheer about as of late. But second year player Lynch may be the key to turning around their fortunes. After picking up 1,300 total yards and scoring 7 touchdowns in ’07, he seems poised for even bigger things this time around. I expect Lynch to have around 1,500 total yards and at least 10 touchdowns.

7. Marion Barber, Dal – Last season, with his powerful running, Barber pushed himself of the now-departed Julius Jones on the Cowboy depth chart, as the big, strong feature back for the team. This year he should get the majority of the carries (though he will certainly lose some to rookie speedster Felix Jones) and I would look for him to finally cross the 1,000 yard rushing plateau while again scoring double digit touchdowns.

6. Clinton Portis, Was – At the age of 27 and being immensely talented, Portis is primed for another big year for the Redskins. I’m a little concerned about his 3.9 yards per carry from ’07 ,but, in all, he’s a solid pick running behind a decent line. He should be good for around 1,700 total yards and 13 TDs in 2008.

5. Brian Westbrook, Phi – Westbrook has proven himself to be one of the best dual-purpose backs around, with over 2,100 total yards and 12 TDs in 2007. Even though he is now at the age of 29, when many backs begin slowing down, he has little wear when compared to others of his age and should again shine as the Eagles’ go-to man. I expect him to have 1,800 total yards and double digit touchdowns.

4. Joseph Addai, Ind – Entering into his third season with the highly potent Colts’ offense, Addai should vault into the upper tier of running backs this season. With over 1,400 total yards in each of his first two seasons and 15 touchdowns in 2007, look for big things from him. With the receiving corps aging, Addai will become an even bigger part of the offensive unit and I look for him to put up 1,800 total yards and 18 touchdowns this season.

3. Steven Jackson, StL – Like the rest of the Rams’ team, 2007 was a throwaway year for Jackson after his stellar campaign in 2006 (2,300 total yards and 17 TDs). With things in flux in the Rams organization, this could be another bumpy year for the team, but, if he stays healthy, Jackson will remain the go-to guy and should again put up great numbers. I expect him to return to his injury-free ’06 form and have 2,000 total yards with 15 touchdowns.

2. Ladanian Tomlinson, SD – So, here is your big surprise – Ladanian Tomlinson, the top back in the entire NFL for the past few years, is no longer number one (at least in my rankings). While Tomlinson will no doubt put up great stats again this season, I’m a bit worried about his age (29) and the fact that he has rushed the ball well over 300 times in each of the past seven seasons, with 2,365 carries overall for his career. That kind of beating from week to week takes quite a toll on a back and a slowdown is inevitable. His numbers took a dip in 2007 from his career high 2,300 total yards and 31 touchdowns and I expect them to drop a bit farther next season. Look for him to have 1,800 yards and 15 TDs this time around.

1. Adrian Peterson, Min – I debated with myself quite a bit over the top two running backs heading into 2008, but finally came to the conclusion that this 23 year old, second year player from Minnesota had climbed to the top of the pile this season. As a rookie in 2007, Peterson had over 1,600 total yards and 13 TDs while sharing time with former 1,000 yard rusher Chester Taylor (who will be little more than a backup this season). Even though QB Tavarius Jackson should be somewhat improved from last year, Peterson will still be the feature of the offense. The Viking line is strong and should help propel him to 1,800 total yards and 17 TDs this season.

So, what do you think? Who did I leave off?

Another Monday, another blog entry. I hope everyone is having a great day…

- You may think this is strange or obsessive, but I find myself thinking about our garden a lot when I’m a work. Out the window the sun is shining, a breeze is blowing, and I feel trapped in this cubicle with this computer as my captor. Does anybody know where I can find a job as a community gardener?

- I’m really looking forward to seeing The Dark Knight when we get a chance. We received Batman Begins in the mail a few days ago as a refresher before watching the second of Christopher Nolan’s dark reimagining of the caped crusader.

- I’ve been a huge Beck fan since my teenage years when “Loser” became a breakaway hit and his latest release is another winner. Though Modern Guilt is a tad short at just over 30 minutes, it is definitely worth grabbing.

- Some friends of mine asked me yesterday morning if I would teach a Sunday school class that revolves around Shane Claiborne’s “The Irresistible Revolution.” I had been planning on teaching a class this year anyway on postmodern thought, but have had to postpone it due to my busy schedule. I think that teaching out of one book, though, should be a little easier and may make the preparations for my pomo class a little better. I guess I never thought I would be in a Church of Christ where members clamored for a class on social justice.

- There have been several new readers stop by the ol’ blog lately, so you may have noticed that I changed the “About” section to now read, “Who is this Wisdom guy anyway?” I know some of you may find my eshewing of the Lebowski reference disheartening, but I figured that new readers unfamiliar with this great philosophical work may be confused.

The second Harvest Day for our community garden has come and gone and I must say that it was an incredible success. We began around 9:00 Saturday morning, bagging the vegetables that we gathered throughout the week and setting up a table upon which to place our giveaway selections. At Ryan’s (one of our ministers) suggestion, we placed our table near the bus stop beside our church building at the corner of Holmes Road and Elvis Presley. This also placed us directly across from the local Wal-Mart Supercenter which, I must admit, gave me a certain bit of satisfaction that we may, somehow in some small way, be “sticking it to the man.” The picture below is of our first load of vegetables, but we added at least that much more over the next few hours.

Several church members were out of town, so attendance was a bit sparse, but those who did show worked hard to get as much accomplished as we could.

We gave away nearly everything that had been picked to people either at the bus stop or to those driving through the intersection who stopped to visit and take a bag home. One of the most rewarding moments of the day was when I and a few others (including one man from the neighborhood who just wanted to help out) were met by a lady who profusely thanked us over and over for the work we were doing. Just knowing that our work is helping others makes all the sunburn and sweat and dirt caked clothes worth it.

Friday night Diana was out of town, so, after finishing my work day, I picked the girls up and took them for an evening meal at the restaurant of their choice, Pizza Hut. Now, this was the first time I’d eaten at a Pizza Hut in some time, so I was a bit taken aback by the pools of grease on each deep dish slice, but, anyway, it went well and we were soon heading back to the house.

On the trip home, I was in the mood for some mellow tunes, so I surfed my Ipod over to some Josh Ritter an settled back in the driver’s seat for the jaunt across town. My five year old daughter, Rachel, was not in the same music mood as I was.

Rachel: Daddy, what’s this stuff?

Me: It’s Josh Ritter, honey. Isn’t this nice and soothing.

Rachel: But, Daddy, I want to rock!

With a quick smile at her, I began scanning through my 5,000 song Ipod collection, until I came upon an album that I had not listened to in some time, but which had been a staple over the summer following my senior year of high school - the Dazed and Confused soundtrack. A quick look through the songs on that album gave me one of the easiest and perhaps most obvious choices - Kiss’s “Rock and Roll All Night.”

Soon Peter Criss’s opening drum beat boomed through the car speakers, followed by Ace Frehely’s most well-known guitar lick and the girls were dancing (as well as they could while strapped in car booter seats) right along with it.

Rachel: Yeah! That’s what I’m talkin’ about, baby!

Sometimes kids say the darndest things.

One of the really cool things about blogging on WordPress is the ability to see the search terms that lead other people to my blog - some of them tend to be rather strange. Here are just a few of them from the last week.

Satan girls

wiki Wilford Brimley

funeral music Tony Bennett

dysfunctional family holidays

Rudolph the red nose reindeer karl marx

Is ZZ Top really not allowing black ppl