Hardware Store Find

Among other great findings at Ace Hardware, this was the one that stood out the most.

I can think of so many ways this can be useful

Projector

A few months ago we changed the bulb in our church projector. The quality and clarity was remarkable but only lasted about a week. Since projector bulbs are $400 + we decided to switch out projectors with one the youth has been using.


This is no easy task since the projector is mounted 20 +/- feet in the air. So, I used the largest A frame ladder in the world.

Three hours and two trips to ACE Hardware and the project is done!

DTV

I understand switching to Digital TV is a big deal to the 8 people who still use rabbit ears or antennas to get the Price is Right and 2 local news channels but come on, stop putting it off. There has been another delay in the switch, this time four months, that will only effect people who don't pay for their programs anyway. The fact that I do pay for TV monthly and have to watch the scrolling announcement every ten minutes makes me angry. Then to realize all of the advertising, hype, and promotion was all for nothing.

The estimated number of people still using an antenna is 20 million, mostly poor and or elderly. However, the main reason for the switch is to free up more signals for emergency management. The good seems to out weigh the bad on this one. Besides, the government is giving away $40 converter boxes, you just have to go get one. 2.5 million people are on a waiting list for coupons because the government ran out of the 1.3 billion dollars it set aside to help people... watch TV for free. When satellite radio became popular the government didn't buy my a receiver.

Maybe it is me but it seems like we could use a billion plus dollars for something else? I guess we can rejoice in the fact that the money is at least being spent on TV and not on overseas abortion clinics.

Youth Superbowl Party

We are throwing a Superbowl Party at Adam Driver's house this Sunday at 6pm. Invite all of your friends. If you plan on coming, bring a finger food or dessert.

Auto-Tune

The auto-tune has become widely popular among rappers like Kayne West, Lil Wayne, and T-pain. It allows talentless artists to sing without being trained or have the ability to sing. I am wondering when the Auto-Tune is going to make it to church worship.




Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio processor created by Antares Audio Technologies that uses a phase vocoder to correct pitch in vocal and instrumental performances. In addition to being used to subtly change pitch, with some settings it can be used as an effect to deliberately distort the human voice.

Auto-Tune is available as a plug-in for professional audio multi-tracking suites used in a studio setting and as a stand-alone, rackmount unit for live performance processing.[2] Auto-tune has become standard equipment in professional recording studios. -Wikipedia

example, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNSBK8QVVcA

Schedule

Every morning we wake unsure of what we will be forced to endure. We schedule our day as if we have some control over how it will go. We are reminded how helpless we are when something comes up and throws us into a tail spin. However, we forge onward, planning, plotting, and scheduling hoping that the day will go without a hitch.

Some people are completely thrown off when things do not go as planned. I use to be that guy, now I have learned to roll with the punches. Well, I am rarely that cavalier about it but I am learning. In reality it is tough to deal with the problems a day can bring.

Lately it feels as though a lot of Margie and My days are being thrown off. We find ourselves toe to toe with the unknown more frequently. This wouldn’t normally be a problem but back-to-back blows are tough to recover from. At some point you just wonder, “When the hits are going to stop coming my way.”

The Religious person would say, “The devil is out after you.” The super religious person would say, “You are in sin and God’s hand is not on your family.” The practical person says, “Such is life.” Margie and I, we are somewhere in the middle of it all. We know God is watching out for us and it is His strength in which we walk.

While at Vanderbilt’s Children’s ER I realized, we are blessed. That facility if packed full of children with disabilities and diseases we can not begin to understand. God has us in His sights and is watching out for us. Regardless of what comes our way, we remain faithful to Him.

Multi-Tool

For Christmas this year I received a Leatherman Multi-Tool. This $90 item has 17 tools built into this handy stainless steal body. When I opened the gift I thought of all the ways I could spend the money when I took the tool back. I thought I would never need to pack screwdirvers, scisors, wirepliers, knives and so on with me ever where I went but I could buy several PSP games.

When I was unable to return the item I figure I would keep it with me for a while to see if I even used it. I used it... In fact I use it almost daily. It has become the most handy thing since I upgraded my cell phone to a PDA phone.

I never thought I would be a "Leatherman guy" but I am. However, I refuse to attach it to my belt. I have to draw the line somewhere.

Date Night

I always enjoy spending time with my wife. Imagine that

Margie and I had a classic date night last night, dinner and a movie. I cannot remember the last time she and I went to the movies. Regardless, we went to see Seven Pounds which was a great film but not the most romantic movie. Something about watching someone die tends to effect the date in a negative way but we had fun regardless.

Good food, good company

Twitter

I am committing to Twitter.


Come follow me http://twitter.com/dchuff

Weekend Madness

It was a crazy but fun weekend at the Huff Home. Friday we hosted a parents drop by and hung out with some friends/youth staff until late. We watched as an SUV drove up and down our street looking for their lost puppy. We thought about helping but figured the reward wasn't high enough yet.

Saturday Margie's Dad and friend Sandy came down from Kentucky. Carol and I rearranged the living room and rerouted the satellite coax to the other side of the room. Thankfully Carol opted to get under the house and crawl through the space. The entire process took about 5 hours but it was worth it to have more space in our living room.

Sunday we had church and then hosted a youth 2:42 small group at our home. We ended up with 28 young people so our small group was kind of a large group.

Since we spent the weekend working and spending time with friends and family I found myself missing my wife. Tonight I have a baby sitter scheduled and Margie and I are going to dinner and a movie. We are between Benjamin Button and Seven Pounds. Either way, Septembers will be our choice for dinner.

Zoo... in December?

Yep, My wife, son and I visited the Grassmere Zoo in December.

I am so disappointed that we have not seen any significant snow. I realize we are in TN but we should at least have an inch or two each winter. Instead of snow we have had warm weather and rain.

I am still counting on some snow before the season has passed.

Killing the Old Man Video Shoot

To start off the new year I have planned to launch the Killing the Old Man sermon series. To kick it off, we will be showing a video I shot, directed, and edited with Alex Jackson writing and acting. It promises to be amazing. If one were so inclined, he/she could find said video on Vimeo.com

Below are some screen shots taken from the film.