Quit Dragging Your Feet, And Just Get Started

OK, I'll admit it; I am a superior procrastinator.  Deadlines help, even if they're self-imposed.  Don't believe me?  Well then, how about this - the grout in my bathroom has been waiting 14 months to be redone.

To that end, it's time.  Time to finally get off my worn-out, no-longer-comfortable, got-it-when-I-got-divorced office chair and make something happen that I've been dragging my feet about for about seven years.

Labor Day weekend, look for the launch of my podcast, Not Ready for FM.  What's it about?  Is there a theme?  What about guests?  Will there be swearing?  Tune in and find out.

There, I did it - deadline established.  And it should be at least decent - I've been doing show prep for almost a decade.

Morning Prayer

Thank you, Don Williams, for putting to music my prayer for today: youtu.be/nWR78buhHbI

— Brian Temple (@ReBachelor) August 1, 2012

Happier Times

A huge thank you to Mark Kelly at Lodge Cast Iron for finding this photo of Wanda and me at the outlet store in South Pittsburg, Tennessee, sometime in early December 2011. We were doing a little Christmas shopping at one of our favorite places.

Don't Wait...

Pray for comfort.Pray for peace.Pray for her family.If they're right, she'll be gone very soon.#StupidCancer

— Brian Temple (@ReBachelor) July 21, 2012

Fun with ClayYourself.com

The folks over at Hotels.com have an application on their website that lets you create a claymation version of yourself.  Just go to ClayYourself.com to play along.

A White Christmas in Huntsville, Alabama

Thoughts On A Wedding

This past weekend, my mother, my daughter and I had the honor of attending my cousin's wedding. After a simple service at the church (we are Baptists, after all), the entirety of both families made the trek of about five blocks to the reception, held at the restored train depot in downtown Opelika, Alabama. What follows are some of the thoughts that went through my mind at the reception:

• I never knew this train depot was even here. For that matter, I've never been to the downtown Opelika area. Reminds me of the small North Carolina town where my brother and his wife live.
• This looks like just about every family reunion I remember from my childhood - people talking, laughing, eating too much...
• Dance floor? Live band? And they're good! Things are looking up!
• Morgan (my daughter) looks bored - just like I did when I was her age, being dragged to weddings. Well, this is her first really big wedding to go to. Let's let the old people talk and we'll go exploring.
• No groom's cake, but five different kinds of pie in its place. All home-made.
• The groom's dad - my cousin by marriage - seems to be having a little more fun than everyone else. I know there's no bar at this reception, but I also know I've never seen him quite this animated. Wait - is there a bar? More exploring...
• My great uncle looks as fit as ever - hard to believe he'll be 90 this year. Also hard to believe he has a doctorate degree, was a college professor, and has published several books. He's a smart man, indeed, to have figured out how to remain a simple, God-fearing man in this world.
• Morgan seems relieved to not be pinned down at one table all the time, having to sit still and be quiet.  Same goes for me.
• My uncle - my dad's brother - looks more and more like my Granddad every day. My aunt hasn't changed at all.
• Wow, I never realized how much of my family's on Facebook. And wants to be "friends" with me. *shudder*
• All of these people I've known all my life don't seem all that old to me anymore. I'm on a first-name basis with most of them now. When did I stop being a little kid in this family?
• My family's never been too big on titles for people, outside of grandparents, aunts and uncles. We never could keep track of what kind of cousin everyone is, let alone how many times they're removed, whatever that is. We generously use the generic term "cousin."
• Morgan is relieved that we just call everyone "cousin," but still seems a little interested in knowing how we're all related.
• If I hear one more prostate cancer story...
• Still no bar. Found two ladies frying what appears to be about a half-ton of catfish, though.
• The bride was in a sorority. They have weird traditions for when one of them gets married, usually acted out in a big circle on the dance floor. Lots of singing, clapping, and laughing.
• Wow - you can actually sweat all the way through a three piece suit.
• Discovered something called "wickles" - dill pickles soaked in brine with hot peppers.  How did I not know about this?
• Morgan is tolerating all these people she's never met wanting to hug her and ask her about school. Maybe she's not that freaked out anymore, or maybe it's that Dad's credit card is loaded up to purchase her some authentic Auburn gear tomorrow morning.
• Family reunion / Uncle Joe's 90th Birthday - this fall. Evidently, I'm the expert on setting up event invitations on Facebook...
• First wedding I remember going to in the past three years where I wasn't the least bit bitter. Feels good, actually.