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  • I am just now recovering from 96 hours of the TV series 24.  Our preacher started a series he calls 24/7 which looks at 7 days in the life of Jesus.  He has been using parallels from the series 24 and peaked our interest in what all the hype was about.  With lives as full as ours, we just completely missed the start of this series 5 years ago and it has not been anywhere near our radar screen.  Carl made such a fuss about the show and this guy named Jack Bower that the better half went out and rented the first few DVDs of what she thought was the first season.  We were on the third episode when we realized that we were watching the fourth season.  We went ahead and watched the rest of the fourth season and then went back and rented season one, two and three.  The show is one that stimulates every sensory end in your body, much like riding a roller coaster over and over and over and over without ever getting off.  I really don’t think the producers meant for them to be watched back to back to back to back.  There is a reason there are commercial breaks and an entire week between episodes.  I do not recommend that folks watch them back to back unless they have a friend to keep them sane.  With a friend watching with you, there are twice as many bathroom breaks and that gives your senses a chance to recover from the over stimulation. 

    At one point in the marathon over the past few weeks, I was threatening to start a cocaine habit to break myself from the 24 habit.  Since cocaine is illegal, and from what I have heard somewhat expensive, I decided against it.  Good thing because when we finished the third season which was the last of the four, I was done.  Cyndie rented the fourth season again to watch with our middle J and I have better things to do with my time.  I think this means I am ok until the fifth season comes out on DVD.

    I went out to lunch with Carl last week and was kidding him about how he turned us onto the crack cocaine called 24 and he just picked up on my dialogue and affirmed my addiction.  He mentioned how hard it was to just watch one episode and that it is a shame when it is 3 o-clock in the morning and you are trying to figure out where you can rent the next disk.  I can see it now, standing inside the blockbuster with a brick in your hand explaining, but officer, I was going to leave the money on the counter for disc 5 and 6, honest!!!

    The youngest J has been bugging me to buy a treadmill for the past couple of months and after getting assurances from Cyndie that it would be used, we went to Sports Authority on Memorial Day and bought one.  So far, so good because it is being used consistently by both boys and Cyn.  We put it upstairs in our study looking out a large window that has a view of the park.  I hope I can report back in a few months and say it is still in use.  Time will tell.

    Only 2 1/2 more weeks until our trip to see the oldest J and our favorite daughter in law.  I sure miss being around those guys but their lives are all the much better for fleeing the nest and going it on their own.  They have grown so much over the past 9 months and they are doing great in school and work.


  • Fifty word essay challenge below.  More on this subject to come.


     


    “Life begins on the edge of your comfort zone” he heard and believed it was true.  He dreamed of influence on an entire country and wrote down the dream.  He acted on the dream and wrote a plan.  He worked the plan and a legacy of contribution was secured.

  • Tubelocked

    Ever had a situation going on where you could not spill your guts on your blog?  I have had one like that for the last 8 weeks.

     

    It is still there.

     

    Last night we had a company meeting at Flemings which is an awesome steak house here in The Woodlands.  There were some employees that were recognized for their contribution to the company by receiving Rolex watches.

     

    I was one of the ones to receive said gift.

     

    I have not worn a watch for over 10 years.

     

    I now wear a watch.   It is pretty cool.

     

    I had a chance to get one 4 years ago when the owner of the company called me into his office to choose the Rolex that I wanted.  I told him that I did not wear a watch.  I asked if I could receive money instead of the watch so I could build a deck in my back yard.  He had bought the Rolexes on EBay so he gave me $400 to build the deck.  I bought Venetian blinds for the house instead.

     

    My Rolex came from a local jewelry store.  It is awesome.  I think I can get used to wearing a Rolex.  My youngest son said that he now hates me because I am wearing a watch that he wants.

     

    On other fronts, I went to a seminar Sunday morning on Christian Entrepenuearism.  One of the jewels that I came away with was the quote “Life begins at the edge of your comfort zone”.

     

    Most of us including me live our lives well within our comfort zones which is far from where life begins.  More on this soon.

  • Go Choir

    Awesome day.  After work I went to the UIL competition at a local High School to see TWHS Choir compete.  They were awesome.  After their performance of the competition music I watched them do their sight reading.  That was an experience to remember.  They are given a piece of music that no one in the room has ever seen and then perform it by singing the do ray me stuff.

     

    Our leader meeting tonight was very productive.  We have a retreat that starts this Thursday night and I am so looking forward to the 2 days that we spend as leaders charting the future of our church.

     

    Life is Good!!!

  • Future Eulogy

    During one of the many training classes I attended in the early 1990′s, we were challenged to write a eulogy for ourselves.  The point of the class was to go forward in our life to the day we were being planted in the ground and write down the things we would want people to say about us.  We literally had to picture the day we were in a coffin or urn in a room full of people that had known us and project the things we wanted them to be able to say about our lives.

     

    While looking through some of the training materials I had stored away, I came across the eulogy I wrote.  This document was written 16 years ago when I had been married 8 years and had 3 boys under the age of 7.  After reading the document, I was amazed at the power of writing down my wishes as to how I would be remembered.

     

    Although the document is very personal, here it is.  I am very tempted to edit it to clean up some of the grammar and spelling but will not do so.

     

    If you take the time to read it, make sure to read the statement at the end.

     

    Titled:  “How I would like the Euligy for Jack David Lowry to Be.”

     

    David was a man that always saw the silver lining when grey clouds were overhead.  He was committed to improving the esteem and lifestyles of everyone he came in contact with.

     

    If you needed something done, he would help you find someone to help you with it when because of time he couldn’t help you himself.

     

    He was a loving committed faithful husband and friend to Cyndie.

     

    He realized that the blessings he had were from the lord and used them that way to the glory of God.

     

    He had a vision of what Heaven would be and wanted to get as many people there with him as was possible with God’s help.

     

    He loved his children and set in front of them quantities of quality time to help them grow and to learn to love the Lord.

     

    He was dedicated to God’s work through showing God’s love to people that needed it.

     

    He didn’t know the meaning of can’t because he was on God’s team.

     

    There was never a doubt that he was God’s child.

     

    He helped many families in conflict by teaching them how to communicate effectively and to set goals so they could be focused on why they were there.

     

    He always had a smile to give you when you needed it the most.

     

    He could lead others to their problems when it was not clear to them what they were.

     

    He had God’s perspective on situations as much as was humanly possible because he walked with him daily.

     

    He was committed to his family and their well being when he was gone.

     

    David was a good listener and made time to listen to those that needed him.

     

    He was a good Father in law and was very supportive of his children in all of their activities as they grew up.

     

    He was a good role model in that he gave credit to God for all of his successes.

     

    That is the extent of what I came up with at that point in my life.  The cool thing is that most of these things could actually be said about me at my funeral.   Somewhat like writing down goals, writing this eulogy had me live out the things I hoped others could say about me.

     

    The coolest thing is that now I can write another one that includes things that are not yet true like what a good grandfather I was, and other things that have not happened yet. 

     

    Now the question is:  Would I be where I am today and be who I am if I had not written these things down that had not yet occurred?

  • The silence that has occurred on my site is not indicative of the noise that has been going on in my head.  Time and time again I have thought that things could not get more complicated and each time I am wrong.

     

    I am going to count my blessings instead of focusing on the things that are out of my control that have been affecting my well being.

     

    1. loving wife of 24 1/2 years

    2. 3 amazing sons that make me proud

    3. 1 awesome daughter in law with great parents

    4. 1 great mother in law ad 1 great father in law

    5. 2 sisters and 1 brother that would do anything for me

    6. 5 nieces and 5 nephews that I am glad to be a part of my family

    7. 3 brother in laws and 1 sister in law that take care of their families

    8. countless friends and extended family members

    9. extended church family

    10. “cave” in my back yard for chillin’ out

    11. decent paid for truck

    12. sporty sexy car for my wife

    13. dual sport motorcycle for stress relief

    14. good challenging job that pays pretty good

    15. big house for hosting and entertaining

    16. multiple entertainment toys (pool table, ping pong, motorcycle, etc…)

    17. quiet neighborhood

     

    This is the short list.  More to come.

  • What can I say?  I have been a very busy boy.  So much water under the bridge since my last post.

     

    Life is good and the Rodeo is on again.  I have already been twice and am planning on being there Monday night as well as Thursday of next week.  We have the same suite we had last year.  We have some of our largest customers in town for the Rodeo this weekend.

     

    I went to the Rodeo today and when I got home I found out that John had a spill on his motorcycle this afternoon.  Cyndie said that he came in and went straight to bed.  The only thing on the bike that I could see that was messed up was a turn signal.  The front fender was crooked as well.

     

    We went to a wedding last weekend for Cyndie’s niece.  Cyndie sang a song and her sister signed the song.  They did great.  The wedding went off without a hitch and the reception was a blast.

     

    The weekend before that we went to Florida to see a surprise Eagle Court of Honor for Jason.  We flew to Jacksonville and visited the church where our former song leader works and spent some time with his family Saturday night.  We got up Sunday morning and drove to Jason and Valerie’s apartment.  They live in the married dorms at Florida Christian College.  The campus is directly across the street from the Astro’s training camp.  It was so good to see the kids.

     

    I took a ride on my motorcycle today and got so muddy.  It was exhilarating to get so dirty.  I had to go to the car wash just to wash the mud off my boots.

     

    Our house will be different this week because of Spring break.  The middle J is home and Cyndie has a week off.  I get to work.

  • Weekend Update

    It is so good to have the better half back home.  She went to TMEA (Texas Music Educators Association) convention in San Antonio last Tuesday and returned last night.  Our middle J was there with his college choir.  They were the talk of the convention.  I got to hear them a couple of weeks ago at their pre-TMEA concert.  While we were at that concert the better half whispered in my ear that she saw the two year old face of Jacob when she looked up on the stage.  I glanced at him and totally lost it.  She realized that when she said what she said that she could not look at me because then she would lose it.  They grow up so fast.

     

    While Cyndie was in San Antonio, I got to be Mr. Mom.  I got to wake up every day at 5:30 to take Jay to school and do all of the other things that a good working wife does.  In addition to these fun things, I got to host a birthday sleep over last Friday night.  Jay’s birthday is this coming Saturday but we are headed to Florida that day and he wanted to have some of his closest friends over for some fun.  One of his friends cooked red beans and rice and the other one brought cheese cake and cinnamon rolls.  They had a blast until 2 pm on Saturday when I took the friends home.

     

    Our 75,000 square foot church building situated on 15.5 acres of land was officially sold to the buyer that has been delaying the closing for almost 10 months.  We are now renting from the owners and can stay in our current location for 12 months while we build our new building on the 92 acres we bought 4 years ago.  The buyer was delaying so they could get all of the approvals from the city of Houston for the water they are going to need.  They have bought properties all over the United States building their huge retail centers and have never bought a property without all of the permits and approvals in place until now.  They still lack an approval for the water they need but bought the property hoping they would get what they need.

     

    Work is going amazing.  The account management group we are creating is shaping up just swell.  We completed the first stage of training last week and the folks that went through it are catching on to their new duties quickly.  We have more training going on this week for the folks that will start proactive account management.  I am so pumped at how things are falling into place.  Every day something else occurs to reinforce the efforts we are taking to improve the experience for our customers.

     

    As for the walking by faith thing, it works.  Try it, you will like it.

  • Walkin’ By Faith

    Whenever you do something time and time again, you get to a point where it is second nature and the effort needed to do said thing is significantly reduced.  The first time I rode a bicycle, I can still remember my Dad running along behind me telling me to pedal and look ahead.  The bicycle was a big bike for a kid in the 2nd grade but I was big enough to reach the pedals even though I had to stand on something to get started.  I sure wanted one of the 20 inch bikes with a banana seat but a big bike was what I got.

     

    In time, I could just jump on the bike and off I went to wherever my hearts content with ne’er a thought about keeping my balance or pedaling.

     

    There are so many things that this process applies to that I take for granted.  Simple tasks such as tying your shoes, buttoning buttons, combing hair (at least from what I can remember), brushing teeth, flossing, driving a car (truck in my case), riding a motorcycle, typing, using a mouse, browsing the Internet, mowing the lawn, washing the car, trimming hedges, cutting a board with a circular saw, using a saber saw to cut out cool patterns in 2x12s or plywood, using a block plane, hammering a nail, using a drill to insert screws, drilling a hole with a brace and bit, driving stakes with a sledge hammer, chopping a tree down with an axe, changing a tire on a car, changing batteries in an electronic device, adding RAM to a computer, swapping out a hard drive/CD ROM/DVD burner etc… in a computer,  cleaning up a hard drive to reclaim space, burning a CD, blowing your nose, using a fork to eat, putting drops in your eye, putting a band aid on a cut, zipping up your pants, fastening a belt around your waist, cleaning your glasses, washing and drying dishes in a sink, grilling a steak on a charcoal pit, preparing meals on campouts, putting a new mantle on a coleman lantern, changing the globe on a coleman lantern, shooting a gun, focusing a telescope, pitching a tent, hooking up a trailer to your truck, wiring the lights on a trailer, building shelves in a trailer, painting a wall, painting a door, putting a lock on a door, installing a TV antenna, programming a VCR, programming a remote control, building a pinewood derby car, installing wood flooring, installing ceramic flooring, calking a bath tub, building cabinets, installing a light fixture, hanging a storm door, hanging sheetrock, installing paneling, installing a sink, installing a faucet, installing a garbage disposal, installing a dish washer, hooking up an ice maker on the refrigerator, installing laminated flooring, ripping up laminated flooring, installing carpet, finishing concrete, building forms for a house, framing a house, wiring a house, plumbing a house, decking a house, roofing a house, hanging windows for a house, hanging doors for a house, installing a toilet, repairing the flapper and flow valve in a toilet, installing electrical outlets, installing switches for lights, installing 3-way switches for lights, installing electrical breaker boxes, installing a meter can, repairing most anything electronic and mechanical, starting a lawn mower, hooking up a gas powered generator to the house, installing a water heater, tearing down brick, adding a second story to a house, building a condominium project, building custom homes, selling most anything that I believe in, selling the value of Scouting, doing my taxes, balancing the checkbook, living as if this world is not my home.

     

    I could go on and on and on about the things I do that take virtually no thought and would not remember most of them because it takes too many gray cells to recall each and every one.

     

    Now, to my point, when I come across something new, there is hesitation at first because of the sheer newness of the thing.  This whole walking by faith thing is something that we are taught to shun.  Our entire American culture is designed around what we see and know.  Variables are risky at best and anything you can do to limit them is counted as wisdom.

     

    Walking by faith has unlimited variables.  ( I am reminded of the Indiana Jones movie where Harrison Ford comes to the great casm he must cross and takes the “step of faith” only to find an “invisible” stone bridge when he gains the courage to step out into “thin air”.)  Not calculating each and every way a situation can go has such freedom but feels risky at first.  The primary point is the “at first” part.  After practicing the art of not calculating each and every possible outcome I can think of, the sky becomes the limit of what I can experience.  This freedom I speak of is addictive.  The more of it I experience, the more of it I want. 

    The trick to this equation is where the faith is directed.  Rather than having faith in my own “intelligence”, I find God trustworthy of my faith.  He actually shows me how little I have each time I turn it over to him.  It takes stretching but he has promised to not stretch me beyond what I can stand.

     

  • Took the better half out for dinner last night to the Aquarium downtown.  We took a couple from church that we are going to miss when they move to Lubbock TX.  This joint has a few sizeable fish tanks that are visible from each table.  There are all sorts of fish swimming around while people eat their relatives.

     

    We were seated immediately when we arrived which is pretty special for a Friday night since they do not take reservations.  We had been in our seats for a few minutes when a lady at the table sitting next to us who had been staring at us spoke up.  It was a friend of ours from over 20 years ago.  We had not seen her in at least 20 years.  She lives in Austin TX and has remained single by choice.  We exchanged hugs and pleasantries before going back to our meals.

     

    They arrived just before we did and we all finished at approximately the same time.  As we were getting ready to leave, we talked some more.  She is a head hunter specializing in :Lawyers and HR placements.

     

    Cyndie and I rode the Ferris wheel while our friends looked at the fish.  The ride gives you a great view of downtown Houston.  After going up twice, the attendant stopped the ride.  We paid $3.99 each to go up twice.  We will not do that again.

     

    Today has been a blast.  I was woken up early by the Cyn telling me that the car that we just sold John would not start.  He was heading out to get his girls to go to the Zoo.  I got up and checked it out.  The car is almost 3 years old with only 28,000 miles.  The battery terminals were corroded so I took the battery out and went to Wally World to buy new one.  They had exactly what we needed.  I bought one with a 6 year warranty.  It fit perfectly and the car started immediately.

     

    He just got back from the Zoo and is totally exhausted.  His first words to me were “don’t call me daddy”.  He had a blast chasing his two girls around the zoo but the crowds, sun and wind were too much for him.  He took them out to eat pizza and then gave them back to their mother.

     

    I am grilling some steaks for supper tonight.  The charcoal is almost ready so I am done for now.