Dirkmonster

On Forgiveness

If you know me, you know that I have an awful lot of respect for my pastor, Dr. David Foster of Bellevue Community Church.  When it comes to Christianity, he's more concerned about relevance than religion. More into influence than arguments.  Favors inclusion over insensitivity. 

One of his messages this week made me say "wow" out loud.  This states so clearly how Jesus is relevant to our everyday life and happiness:

...I've been forgiven much. I need to forgive much. I've damaged other people. I've hurt other people - sometimes knowingly - most of the time without even knowing it - a careless word, a thoughtless deed, a call unmade, an e-mail unreturned. All of us do it. We need more grace. We need more forgiveness. We need more people who are full of love, who are lavish in their mercy. Not the people who ask for it and even those who deserve it, but for those of us who are suffocating because we live in such an angry, vindictive world...(Please read Foster's entire message on forgiveness)

I wholeheartedly recommend subscribing to the "The Dave Rave" at Fosteringhope.com.  Why not get at least one email every week that's guaranteed to contain a message of hope and affirmation that encourages you to live up to your God given potential? Well worth your time.

Going West with the Series Tied

The Predators might have been ready had the game been at the customary 7pm start time. As it was, game 2 of the series with the Sharks began at noon Sunday and the boys showed up like they were expecting the morning skate in front of 17,000+.  3-0? No, really, 3 to nothing???

The Predators might be tempted to blame the refs who really did give fans something to complain about.  Two of San Jose's goals came on 5 on three advantages given to them on lousy calls.  When's the last time you saw "kneeing" called? But the fact is that Nashville really did nothing well enough to win Sunday.  Kariya?  Nope. Keemo? Uh uh. Legwand? Wathced the game from the penalty box.  Mason? Mason? You can make a case that the guy hung tough.  Maybe one goal he could've done something about. But after the first period he shut 'em down.  The offense just wasn't there. Might have been at Tootsie's, I don't know.  There were flashes and flurreis - they picked it up as the game went along. But you never got the feeling they had a chance to recover.  The Shark known as Toskala really came to play - not to mention Cheecho and Thornton. Fins to the left, fins to the right...

So they go west to San Jose. Game 3 is Tuesday at 9:30 hockey-tonk time. I bet it's going to be worth staying up for.  Some of the more notable players were humbled in front of a sellout crowd ready to cheer for just about anything. They have too much pride and competitive drive.

I'm looking for them to take one out of 2 out there and come back to Nashville next Sunday on a clean slate.  The national media will dismiss our chances again.  That's the way I want it.  These guys will get it done.

Cleaning up the Desktop

I'm no clean freak, believe me. But a do subscribe to the maxim "work smarter, not harder".

To that end, I was please to find this post from AJ's Blog on cleaning up that Windows Desktop. It's worth it.  Thanks to Micropersuasion for including this in today's links.

Drop the Puck

Listen to the national media and you'll hear the talking heads pity the predators for their injuries and bad luck.  No way they can beat the Sharks who are coming into the playoffs with a head of steam.  Listen to the local media and you'll hear them write the club off becasue the games are not sold out heading into Friday.

Fine with me. Remember how far the '99 Titans took the "no respect" chip on their shoulder?  Right into the big dance.  So don't count these guys out before the first puck drops.

Vokoun got the Predators this far and now the rest of the team has to show it can finish the job.  Having won their last 6 of the regular season without Vokoun or Sullivan one might conclude they're capable of doing just that.  We'll see, starting Friday night in the big building on Broadway.

Memo to Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo: Best skate up ice knowing where Witt, Hordichuk, Tootoo and Walker are.  They might just teach you the meaning of respect.

Hey - so the cards are stacked against them. I know - no team from Nashville of all places can win the Stanley Cup. Please - we all know the playoffs separate the men from the boys.

No way this could happen - or could it?

"Cheecho" Sounds Like a Sneeze to Me

Jonathan Cheechoo, Joe Thornton and the rest of sharks swim into Smashville Friday night for a Stanley Cup quarter final playoff series with our hometown Predators.

A guy with two Stanley Cup championships who also broadcasts Preds games, Terry Crisp says Nashville matches up well with San Jose.  Cheecho and Thornton, meet Kariya and Sullivan.  And the wagon train series back and forth between TN and SoCal favors the Predators who have home ice advantage which if nothing else means one less cross country flight for the good guys.  Inside sources say coaches were stayed until the wee hours of Wednesday morning after the Preds beat up the Red Wings Tuesday night.  They're watching hours of tape and will be preparing the players for game one faceoff Friday.

Don't know about you, but I'll be at every game in section 108.  Wave at me if you can see around Vinny who's casting a larger shadow these days.  If you want to go, check out these tickets on eBay. They can be had for a value given their location and the magnitude of the NHL playoffs. And keep checking out this space for a Preds Playoff blog like none other.

GO PREDS!

How do you spell B-L-O-G-O-S-P-H-E-R-E?

I've noted how blogs and the blogosphere have not quite reached the mainstream marketing universe. Blogs like Micropersuasion are trying to change that.

Along those lines, here's my nomination for "irony of the day":

Use "blog" or "blogosphere" in your post if you use typepad.  Run the spell check and it will give you suggestions for replacing blogosphere:

biosphere
lithosphere
heliosphere
blaspheme
bathysphere
blasphemer
blasphemy

In disbelief, I checked wikipedia for "blogosphere".

If typepad, one of the most popular blogging platforms, doesn't recognize the blogosphere I can't blame any company that is skeptical.

Cul de Sac Jump Shot

Bellevue's baddest skateboarder K-Man is also down with any old daredevil maneuver.  Here he is hurdling through space on his way to a somewhat perfect landing.  You get the feeling this guy is part Bart and part Johnny Knoxville.  Whether it's skating steep as hell Autumnwood or climbing a 70 foot tree ("You can see forver when you get above the house"),  this cat makes it look as easy as bagging groceries.  Rock on, dude.

Preds in Playoffs!

The Predators will pursue Lord Stanley's Cup in the NHL postseason by virtue of a decisive 2-1 shootout victory over Chicago.  Nashville's Saturday night victory at the Gaylord Entertainment Center clinched the team's 2nd consecutive playoff berth.

Battling constant adversity lately, the Predators looked as if they might give another game away to an overmatched opponent.  Despite dominating Chicago in scoring chances, the Blackhawk's goalie would not give up a goal until 16:02 of the third period.  Mark Eaton let fly a shot from just inside the blueline that finally beat Craig Anderson.  After a scoreless overtime, Erat and Kariya beat Anderson in the shootout while Chris Mason stoned the Blackhawk's two chances.

The home crowd was treated to a classic NHL battle.    Despite an injury depleted squad, the Predators cleary had an edge on Chicago which is just playing out the string. But even so, a hot goalie can win it on his own. It looked like Craig Anderson would do just that as he stopped 42 of 43 shots on goal while his teamates could only manage 24.

The crowd seemed to come alive as the third period ticked away with the home team still scoreless.  Fans groaned again and again as incredible scoring chances were turned away again and again.  But after Eaton scored, there was a sigh of relief and though the issue was still in doubt - it really wasn't.

The big cats will need destiny on their sides to go deep in the playoffs.  The end to the regular season has been a struggle due to injuries.  It doesn't seem like enough of the key ingredients will be in the mix soon enough.  Backup goalie Chris Mason is going to get his chance to prove himself - after two consecutive victories he just might be able to pull it off.

Bellevue spared 1st wave of Friday's Storms

The Bellevue community escaped the worst of the damage the first wave of a severe weather system brought to Middle Tennessee today.  I was told someone got a snapshot of a funnel cloud in the area.

Several tornadoes touched down in Tennessee Friday, one of them causing at least two deaths in Sumner County.

NewsChannel5 has been covering weather all afternoon - and it seems more storms are likely tonight.