new ministry project

So the other day I was sitting around and came up with a really great idea.  Well, I didnt exactly come up with the idea myself.  I kinda stole if from one of my favorite bands, Mae.  

If you arent familiar with what Mae has been doing recently, here is a brief overview:

Over the past year or so, Mae has been writing and recording songs just like they have been for the last decade or so.  There has been one thing different about this past year as opposed to the last nine.  This past year, they havent been keeping any of the profits from their music for themselves.  They have been donating 100% of the proceeds to charity. (Habitat for Humanity to be specific.) 

It kinda hit me all of a sudden that me and all of my super talented friends are capable of doing the same thing.  I already have a couple of people on board.  We have a place to record and everything.  The plan would be to release one song per month and sell it to you guys.  Instead of keeping the money for ourselves, we would give it all away in the name of Jesus.  The songs dont necessarily have to be “Christian” songs, and they certainly wont be limited to any particular genre.  One month might be pop-rock, then country, then metal.  Who knows. Haha!

I want to inform as many people as possible because I want everyone to be involved.  If you play any instrument, have recording space, do web/graphic design, or anything along those lines, we want your help.  (I dont know how to make a website with a link where people can donate money.  We just need a simple, yet cool looking page with a ‘donate’ then ‘download’ link on it.)  Also, if anyone has any ideas on what to call this project, we welcome your thoughts. (Something along the lines of “Advent Music Project.” I personally think thats cool.)

So yea, thats something that has been on my mind lately.  If anyone knows any information on how the legal process on all this would work, please tell me.  I imagine I will have to set up a non-profit or something.  

Thanks for being interested.  I will continue to update as this plan unfolds.  If you have any input RIGHT NOW, please comment here, or contact me directly.

-Kurtis

Lets keep this in mind about the Braves.  We would not be where we are at this point in the season if it weren’t for a couple of unlikely, yet key, players.

Infante:

Infante has always been one of the best bench players you could ever ask for. We always knew he was good, but did we expect him to be this good? When he finally got his chance to play every day he has done nothing but practically lead the league in average thanks to the fact that he is near impossible to get out. He certainly changed my opinion about him and I think its safe to say that we would not be as close to the playoffs as we are if it weren’t for how well he has stepped up.

Prado:

We first got a good look at Prado when he starting filling in for Kelly Johnson when he was struggling so bad. We thought Prado was the best player ever compared to Kelly due to the fact that Kelly couldn’t hit a baseball even if someone threatened to lock him in room for the rest of his life with nothing but a TV stuck on “So You Think You Can Dance” if he didn’t. It was practically a given that Prado would be our starting 2nd baseman this year.  But did we really expect him to be as good as he has been? Did we expect him to lead the league in hits for most of the year? Did he expect him to be right at the top of the batting average charts as well? No. We didn’t. No one predicted either of those things.

Venters:

Venters is a guy that no one had even really heard of before this season, but man was he awesome.  He was lights out every time he came in.  He has struggled a little bit more lately, which I would attribute to being overworked, but he still isnt bad.  And he is a rookie.  Can you really ask for much better out of a rookie pitcher?  He kept us in a countless number of games.  No one was saying, “Dude, we have Johnny Venters! We’re going to be awesome!” at the beginning of the season. 

Conrad:

Last, but certainly not least, I would like to talk about Brooks Conrad.  We all remember seeing him come up every now and then last year, but I don’t think many of us really paid him much attention.  This year he had a countless number of HUGE hits for us, including a walk off grand slam.  The games that he won for us have been huge, especially considering how close of a race we are in now.  He has gone from a AAA player to my number 1 pick to replace Chipper at 3rd base whenever he chooses to retire.  Will that happen?  Who knows.  I dont make that call. But wouldn’t it be perfect to have another switch hitting, conservative, tobacco sucking, good ole boy to replace Chipper? I think its his destiny. 

The point of this article was to point out a few of the unlikely players that I think have really kept us in the game.  At the beginning of the year, we were counting on players like Chipper (of course), McCann, Hudson, Lowe, Jurrjens, and the newly acquired “big bat” of Troy Glaus, as well as a couple others.  Aside from those guys, there were a lot of uncertainties at the beginning of the year. Everyone knew that Heyward was going to be a star eventually, but there wasn’t any guarantee on how well he would perform this season.

I think our recent shift into New York Met style baseball can be explained by the simple fact that the team is tired.  The players who have carried us all year are running out of gas. The players I mentioned above really aren’t used to playing this many games, so it is natural that they would run out of steam this late in the game.  

All these things considered, we put together a pretty good year. We are still the favorites to win the Wild Card.

So the other day, these morons walked out in front of me on Peachtree when I had the green light.  No, this wasn’t a situation where they had the right of way.  They had a red hand, and I had a green light.  I wasn’t turning, just cruising through.  

So as soon as they walk out, I have to slam on my brakes in order to spare there lives. (Turns out, according to the cop, thats not what I should have done.  Just for your safety, DO NOT walk out in front of me on Peachtree Street.  You will die. I wont make the same mistake twice.)

Anyways, while im stopped, I’m staring at them like “Wow. All five of you almost died. That was so stupid of you.” They all realized the error of their ways and retreated back to the sidewalk and waited for the green man on the sign to tell them they could finally continue on in their endeavors. I continued on my way. No harm done.

Well of course, after all that, a cop pulls me over. I didn’t understand why since those other people were the ones who broke the law.  The cop informed me that while I was looking at them like, ”Wow, All five of you almost died, That was so stupid of you,” the light had turned red. So of course, I get busted for running a red light. 

I asked the cop why the other people didn’t get a ticket too.  I told him I didn’t want to sound like a child, but, they started it. He didn’t give me a straight answer. He told me I should have stopped at the red light, which he was right about, but I was just a little bit distracted and I admittedly made a mistake. But if we all broke the law, shouldn’t we at least ALL get a ticket? HE TOLD ME THEY BROKE THE LAW!!! I COULD HAVE KILLED THEM BECAUSE OF THEIR IGNORANCE!!! 

But now I’m stuck with a $200 ticket, while those other people are probably somewhere laughing at me right now.

There. Thats my rant. Don’t feel sorry for me. It’s cool.

CHAMP OF THE WEEK:

I’m sure most of us sports fans have run into this guy once or twice before. This happened to me a few weeks ago.  I was discussing baseball, specifically the Braves, with some friends via Facebook comments.  All of a sudden, a guy I don’t even know that well decided it was appropriate to chime in with some very worthless comments about how the Braves didn’t have that much of a chance to win the National League east.  (Note: Turns out he was right, but it was DEFINITELY NOT because he knew more than me about baseball.  This discussion happened before Chipper’s injury, as well as a few other things that have caused the Braves’ recent downfall. He was just trying to show everyone how much he thought he knew.)

I responded with a question that went something like this: But “Champ,” aren’t you from Atlanta?  Why are you hating on the Braves like this? Who is your favorite team anyway?”

Champ responded with “I’m not a Braves fan, and I don’t really have a favorite team. I’m just simply a baseball fan.”

What???

That is one of my least favorite things to hear someone say when discussing baseball. You HAVE to have a favorite team.  People like this probably determine who their favorite team is when the playoffs begin each year.  One year it could be the Yankees, the next year it could be the Red Sox.  Or, it could be the Braves one year, and the Phillies the next.  It just depends.  He probably really is a Red Sox fan, but he knows how I feel about Red Sox “fans” who have never even been to Boston.  (Same goes for Yankee “fans” who have never been to New York, Cubs “fans” who have never been to Chicago, and more recently, Phillies “fans” who have never been to Philly.)

If you are this guy, just quit.  Or at least don’t disrupt my intelligent discussions related to sports with your nonsense.  Pick a team, preferably one that is based near you, or at least one that you have some sort of ties with.  Stick with them through the good and the bad. Then, you might earn some respect and credibility when engaging in dialogue related to this topic.  Thanks.