Moving

Saturday morning Bev and I went to a friend’s house to help her move.  We got to her new digs about 9:30 AM where we met her to help unpack the first truck load.  That went pretty quickly.

After lunch we went to a storage shed to empty it, and we picked up a few additional items at her old house.  The second truck load was just as full as the first—front to back.  There were just 5 of us to do the work.  And there were several feet between the truck ramp and the front door of the two-story house.  Lot’s of walking.

Connector

Our Chamber sponsors a monthly “connector” for our members.  These connectors are held at various City businesses which provide refreshments and a great opportunities for networking and visiting with business friends.

Today’s connector was held at our local Servicemaster.  A few months ago, Servicemaster moved to a new and much larger location, so this connector gave them an opportunity to showcase their new digs.

Time to get up…. Not!

At 5:00 in the morning I am beginning to emerge from deep sleep. I’m mildly aware of the world, but still not awake. And I most certainly don’t want to get up at that hour.

Which is why this morning’s alarm was particularly rude. It came about 5:00, way before the time I had selected to arise. But I’m also blind at that hour; my glasses are still on the dresser. The room is dark. Seeing is not an option.

“It’s the economy, stupid!”

During Bill Clinton’s campaign, his campaign strategist, James Carville, coined the phrase, “the economy, stupid,” as a way to refocus voters’ attention and to say that George H.W. Bush had not adequately addressed the economy.  The phrase was meant for an internal audience of campaign workers, but it became widely used.

All you have to do is drive around our City or any city in the U.S. and you get the immediate impression that “It’s the economy stupid” is current again.  The economy looms over us like a huge black cloud.  And it affects family after family.

Vote

I got to the polls at 6:45 AM; polls opened at 7:00 AM.  There were about four of us in line by the time the door opened.  I wanted to get this done before there were long lines to wait on.  The ballot had two sheets.  I inserted them both in the ballot box, and it kicked them out.  “Oh great!” I thought.  My vote doesn’t count.

The machine said something like, “The machine detects two pieces of paper.”  I separated them, inserted the first one, and in it went.  “Whew.”

Giving People a Chance

I’ve been reading a very intriguing book called Wikinomics.  The premise of the book is that the way business and creativity is practiced on the Internet is transforming brick and mortar business as well.

DNA

I was told by church-planter-trainers that it is important to be very intentional about setting the DNA of the new church.  Prior to that time I had never really thought about DNA and whether a church had it.  But I’ve decided they all do.  And once set, there is no changing the DNA.

Networks

Several months ago, maybe even a year, a guy e-mailed me and asked to have coffee.  He just wanted to find out more about LifeSpring.  The visit was pleasant.

We got together for coffee a couple more times, and then he moved back east.  It was a short relationship, although it has continued via e-mail and discussions about books and ideas.  All in all, it has been a brief relationship.

Second Sunday Social

Today was the date of our Second Sunday Social. LifeSpring has been scheduling these regular monthly get togethers for the past several months, and we only change the date when it interferes with the kind of social we want to schedule.

Advocating for the Jobless

Last Tuesday a group of about 20 took an all-day trip to Apple Valley, California to visit a Wal-mart Distribution Center. Touring this Center required about 12 hours of riding and flying, but that’s another story.