"it's only a happy turkey day if you eat steak" - matt

hola bloggers, i've got a relatively short post this week but in my defense i do have to say it was a holiday weekend, so i had my brain turned off for a while. whatever, here we go.

fantasy league.
quote of the year goes to mi amigo a-list who had this gem for me as we were watching the chargers beat down the broncos last week. there we all were watching sunday afternoon football, me in my chargers jersey like a super-fan, all of us downing pepsis and salsa... anyways, every break there was a commercial for eragon, some movie about a dragonslayer. i kept complaining about all the dungeons and dragons type stuff that was coming out in recent years and how much i can't stand stuff about wizards and dragons and all that. fortunately the conversation moved on to fantasy football which prompted this genius quote, "fantasy football is just dungeons and dragons for cool kids. look, you're even dressed up!" busted. and i was laughing too hard to get a comeback together. good stuff.

youthfest.
this past weekend was pepperdine youthfest. it hasn't been an event that i've really been behind the past few years because i've been out of town for thanksgiving weekend, and all the stories i've heard are pretty bland. but this year i was pretty impressed actually being able to go to the event. it's not that it was this groundbreaking spiritual event, it was just a good weekend mix of praise, discussion and fun. now if it were only on a weekend where half of my kids weren't traveling...

thanksgiving.
this year i spent thanksgiving with the cuz and our friends in camarillo. it was a good mellow thanksgiving which is exactly what i needed. we skipped turkey and grilled two of the biggest tri-tip steaks i've ever seen. throw in some mashed potatoes, grilled corn and (because it's us) some homemade salsa and it made for a great meal. cap it all off with an office marathon and call it a good day. and it prompted me to get together a:

TOP TEN THINGS I'M THANKFUL FOR THIS YEAR
10. my longboard. i rode my board more this year than i ever have before. there's something kinda fun about being able to say 'sometimes is skate to work'.

9. hdtv/dvr. i love being able to watch what i want to watch whenever i want to watch it. i find myself actually watching less tv now that we have a better system, and i only really watch the few shows that i'm interested in like the office, heroes, and lost. oh yeah, it's great for football season too.

8. myspace/facebook. this might sound really lame, but i love being able to check in and see what's going on with my friends. i'm not the greatest about calling people up or keeping in touch so being able to get a quick glimpse and leave a quick comment helps me stay in touch better.

7. the end of the year. i love the change that comes with knowing that it is a new year. 06 hasn't been my favorite year, but i have grown a lot so i guess that's a positive thing. let's just say i'm looking forward to being able to enjoy 07.

6. cross country driving. i spent a lot of time driving this year, which is a really expensive thing to do, but it was worth the cost, esp the two cross country trips i took to texas and seattle. there's something about hitting the road that inspires me and clears my head.

5. my kiddos. i have awesome kids in my youth group. they constantly make me laugh, push me to be a better christian, a better leader, and are a great example of patience and grace.

4. friendships. over the past year i've made a few new friends, and really developed some old friendships that have been a huge blessing to me. there's my old faithful friends that have proved themselves to be more solid than ever, and a couple new ones that have made my life so much better. that, and i think this year i'm just more appreciative of friendship in general.

3. grace. the more i receive it, the more i realize i need it.

2. peace. our family is at peace. mi hermana is an amazing young lady who has come into her own and may be the next big thing out of ACU. mi madre has made some great wise decisions on buying property and moving on, and she is able to start a new life for herself. being the man of the family now is a lot easier knowing that everyone else is capable on their own.

1. dad is at rest. no more struggle, no more pain. as the song says, "we will rest in the fair and happy land by and by, just across on the evergreen shore. sing the song of moses and the lamb by and by , and dwell with Jesus ever more".

well, that's all i've got for today. things have picked up enough here lately that i should prob go ahead and cut my lunch short and tackle my to-do list. one love, one heart.