What a week!

This has been a delightful Christmas week so far. Sunday night Monique came over and cooked Indian food for Nana, Nathan, and me. It was a feast. I love Indian food, and Monique knows how to cook it.

Monday night, Jim and Phyllis Reklis dropped over with Christmas cookies and we chated for two hours. I so appreciate the two of them. Grace Church - we are blessed!

This afternoon Mark & Lisa Daley invited us to dinner at the Carolina Inn and the UNC game. Mark got awesome tickets (mid-court 8 rows up). Thanks to Wacovia Bank. :-) Carolina is looking awesome this year. People are walking tall and heads are lifted again in Chapel Hill. They crushed Vermont. Great fun. Here's a photo from the Treo.

'Tis the Season

I got an e-mail from Steve Schultz last night saying that he shot another deer on his property in Arkansas. So forget the counseling. I'm diving head-long into open, willing, and wholehearted jealousy.

We had a "Return of the King Extended Version Party" last night. As yesterday was the release of the extended version, we threw a little party and watched the whole thing. The boys stayed up with Arielle, Nathan, Nana, and me. The new scenes were really cool. The last release of new Lord of the Ring scenes. Now we can just hope for a production of The Hobbit.

'Tis the season for movies. Nana and I have a date night today. We're going for dinner and Ocean's Twelve.

Relationship Test

Steve Schultz sent me these two pictures of his hunting escapades this fall. I wrote him back and said that our frienship has been severely test. I am in counseling trying to overcome my jealousy and restore fellowship with him. We may need to go to see an arbitrator for conflict resolution.

Say it with me three times: " I am happy for Steve. I am happy for Steve. I am happy for Steve."


The Hunter!

Nana went on her first hunting trip with me. We sat together in a double tree stand. You can hear a live interview below. We didn't see any deer - first time that's happened this season. We got down about 15 minutes before dark. Nana shot my .45 Kimber. She's a great shot. She nailed three tight rounds on the target. My wife has a gift.

My favorite hunting story about Nana is the time I left a deer hanging in the garage. I shot a deer one evening at dusk. It took forever to haul the deer out of the woods. I was wiped out tired when I got home. The next morning I was teaching at a YWAM school. I got the deer hung and skinned in the garage. Nana and I agreed that we'd butcher it when I got back in the afternoon.

Nana's not one to let any meat hang long. You guessed it. Nana (while giving orders to the kids) butchered the deer all by herself! I came home and the venision was in the freezer - steaks, roasts, and ground. That's my wife. She can do it all. :-)

this is an audio post - click to play

Audioblogging Spreading

Nathan Fancher and Kendrick Jr. have gotten into the audioblogging, so I thought I'd add the technology to the site. Here's my goal. Get someone famous to do an audio blog for me. The challenge is on. Hmmm... who might it be?

My Trial Audio Blog - click to play

Free E-mail Fax Service

If you'd like a free e-mail fax service, check out www.efax.com.

It's a simple and FREE service. They give you a phone number as your personal fax number. People fax you at that number. Your fax arrives in your e-mail box.

Two small issues: The free service includes a non-local number. The person faxing you will pay a long distance fee - maybe a whopping 3-5 cents per minute. Secondly, you need to download a small software package for reading your incoming faxes. When they arrive, you just double-click on them.

You can get efax plus which includes a local number and the ability to fax out - not sure how much that costs as I don't have the need. Just a friendly free tip for you today.

Blogging from my Treo 600

I recently purchased a Treo 600. Long story about trying to find a PDA phone that I would like. Verizon makes purchasing a cool phone difficult.

Sprint carries the cool phones, but their coverage stinks in this area. I was determined to stay with Verizon due to their superior coverage.

I've been very pleased with the Treo. I download all my e-mails using normal minutes (no data package). Snapper Mail is a great little piece of software. I sync my calendar and contacts with my computer and Nana's. I've loaded all my favorite Palm apps.

Hey, I'm even writing this blog from my Treo!

Road Runner Users - READ below

I tried switching my high speed internet access from Road Runner to DSL to save a few bucks. Hah... That was not a good move. Bellsouth was a major pain in my neck. I had the hardest time with them. My connection was intermitent, and the customer service people were not able to solve my problems. Argh. I was on the 30 day trial - good-bye DSL.

When I went to cancel my Road Runner service with Time Warner, they offered me a lower monthly rate. I was paying $44.95 per month, and they dropped it to $29.95. End of story: back with Road Runner and paying $15 less per month.

Advice for Road Runners users: call up Time Warner and ask for the retention department. Tell them that you're considering switching to DSL. Ask what they'd offer you before you switch. You may save a few bucks per month.

Happy surfing. :-)

Great Vacation

Nana and I just got back from an Eastern Caribbean cruise with Jerry, Nan, Jerome, Kellie, and Josh. The weather was beautiful. We made stops in San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Marteen, and Nassau. It was a fun connect time with the Daley clan.

My dad watched the kids back here at the house. They had a fun time. We got reports on how Grandpa spoiled them. That's in the job description for grandparents.

Here's a link to a bunch more pictures:
Cruise Photos

Hmmm... Sushi taken to another level

Okay, this one killed me. Had to post it. Sushi Nemo (it even sounds Japanese). Credit goes to Josh Daley for sending it to me.

In other news, Sam Storms has launched his website. He has great resources on it.

Enjoying God Ministries

Aliesha's First Day Hunting!

Aliesha started asking me last year when she could go hunting with me. Today was her first day in the field. :-) Isn't she cute? We setup a target and took a shot to make sure that we're all sighted in correctly. Less than two inches high at 50 yards - we'll definitely take that.

We saw 5 deer tonight, but didnt' take a shot. No great opportunities and no big deer. We had a fun time. Aliesha ate string cheese and an apple. She did some drawing and lots of wiggling. We are up in a double ladder tree stand. Yet another Vinar initiated into the hunting club.

Gabriela is determined that she's ready to go too. She was so cute. As Aliesha was getting ready to go hunting Gabriela would say, "Look Dad, I can be soooo quiet" - as she'd sit still as possible. Hunting is definitely in the Vinar blood. Every one of my uncles and male cousins (on both sides) hunts.



Congratulations to Misael & Fiancee

My good friend Roberto's son is engaged. I just received this photo from Cuba. Roberto's son, Misael, is a great young man. He's a worship leader in La Liga Evangelica de Cuba in Havana. The maturity level of these young Christians is amazing. They live under difficulty, and they passionately love God.

The wedding date is set for December 25!

(For some reason this post didn't get published until 11/12/04. Hmm..)

One-Issue Politics, One-Issue Marriage, and the Humane Society

Today millions of Americans are heading to the poles to vote for candidates that best represents their values. I am concerned that Americans have lost their morale compass. There are many issues at stake when we vote for an official of our government. Certain issues hold more weight than others for each of us. We must decide what those issues are.

I encourage (yeah even urge) you to read the short article linked below. It is the most insightful and compelling issue-oriented article I've read in a long time.

One-Issue Politics, One-Issue Marriage, and the Humane Society by John Piper

Halloween on Franklin Street

Last night Nathan and I went out to checkout the excitement on Franklin Street. It was quite a scene. We were out there fairly early from 9 to 10 p.m. It's an amazing mix of people. Box Bomb was playing at 11:30 p.m. at a frat house, but we didn't stick around for that. Some people are just out having fun, but another part is a sad commentary of a culture in desperate need of God.

Much excitement as we're doing our Global Impact Celebration at Grace Church. May the Lord mightily put His presence upon our time together. We need Him!

Beginner's Luck or Natural Gifting?

Joseph and I took Jerry deer hunting for the first time in his life. He has permit to shoot a crossbow because of his shoulder injury. Five minutes into Jerry's deer hunting career, a six point buck comes along. The buck sees Jerry and jumps back. They then have a standoff for about 10 minutes. The buck is about 12 yards away behind a tree. Finally the buck moves, and Jerry takes a shot at about 7-8 yards.

Jerry got down out of the tree right away to tell me that he missed the deer. I told him that I thought he had gotten it because of the way it ran off. Well we found a significant blood trail and tracked it for an hour and a half. Eventually the blood trail dried up. We looked and looked and looked. Unfortunately, we never found it. Jerry got quite an introduction into deer hunting. Two lessons learned: always wait until you have a side shot. Wait 10-15 minutes before you get down out of the stand. We ended up pushing the deer, and it kept running. Deer hunters hate losing a deer. Unfortunately that happens some times (rarely but some times).

What a first time hunting. It's not always so easy. :-)

Despair.com

If you haven't checked out despair.com, you really need to do it. It's a hilarious twist on our positive mental attitude slogans. You know those motivational posters like "Endurance - Running the race to the end" or something like that. Well this site is dedicated to "Demotivators". Their slogans are so funny because they are just a bit too true.

I've put together a selection of some of my favorites. Go to their site and enjoy laughing at yourself. Sometimes we take ourselves and life too seriously. Remeber it's about His glory and your joy in God. :-)

Kendrick's Favorite Demotivators from Despair.com

To see despair.com, click here

Back to Blog

October and November are really busy months for us. Last weekend we were up in the mountains with Nana's mom. We had a great time considering the odds we were up against: sick kids and so-so weather. The leaves were beautiful. Kendrick Jr. and I had lunch with Jerry's Dad, Hugh. He's great. We were supposed to play golf with Hugh and his friend. Pretty good for an 82 year old.

This weekend Nana and I were at a beach retreat with some of the 20/40 folks from church. Here's link to some pictures.
Beach Retreat Photos

What A Cute Kid

I just received this picture of Chad & Stephany's new baby, Ethan. What a cute kid. As the doctor was delivering the baby she said, "You can definitely tell who the father is." Beautiful kid with his dad's nose. :-)

The stats: Born on Sept. 30, 2004 at 6 p.m. weighing 7 lbs. 12 oz. and 19 1/2 inches long.

Had to post this one... Congrats Chad & Stephany!

A Japanese Experience

The kids have been studying Japan in homeschool. Last night Nana put on quite a production. She had the kids help her make a Japanese dinner: sushi, sashimi, inari, nigirizushi, ginger salad, wasabi, soy sauce, pickled ginger, and green tea.

The girls really enjoyed getting all dressed up. Nana had their hair up. Gabriela had a very Japanese PBJ. Kendrick Jr., Joseph, and Aliesha all enjoy sushi.

Sunday night Joseph and I came home from an evening meeting at church and stopped by the sushi bar off Franklin Street. It's funny seeing an 8 year old get into sushi so enthusiastically. At the end of the meal, Joseph made a concoction. The water based drink included a large blob of wasabi, soy sauce, beer, salt, pepper, and rice. Joseph asked how much I'd pay him to drink some. I told him $1. He took a good drink.

Our waiter came by a minute later. Our waiter had watched Joseph make this err... drink. I thought we were in trouble. Joseph asked the waiter if he'd like a drink. The guy took a huge swig!! So yes, I left him a very large tip. He scored big points with Joseph. Not to be outdone by my son and the cool waiter, I took a big gulp. I guess boys never grow up.