i was able to collect $13.41 worth of cans. but when i was redeeming them, i ran into a group of men who apparently make their money by picking up cans. it led me to reflect on...
Leviticus 19:9-10 (New International Version)
9 " 'When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God.
so i decided to stop picking up cans, at least making specific can-picking up trips. i will pick up the occassional can along the side of the road or what not, but not go out of my way to collect them for income.
when i came home and told paige about this, she said that she has been thinking that i should consider stopping as well because of the time that it was taking me away from the home.
so God brought the idea to both of us, but seperately. through our communication, we discovered He had told us similar things. so no more can hunting.
God is good.
Showing posts with label todd's posts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label todd's posts. Show all posts
$14.95!
so this week my hy-vee total was $10.75 and thanks to my good friend "bounce" (who also happens to be a total rock band stud!) i got $4.20 in crushed cans and smashed bottles that normally would have either have been left on the side of the road or thrown away at hy-vee after the machine rejected for the fourteenth time. so that brings my year-to-date total to $60.30 in cans.
that's a free month of my health and dental insurance. so that's swiggidy sweet!
my wife is amazing. if i am, it's perhaps only in her eyes (and maybe my mom's). either way, it's nice to be something to somebody, even when you know you do not deserve it. i suppose that is what makes her love seem all the more a blessing from God. not hard to see why marriage was God's idea and His favorite metaphor for our relationship with Him.
that's a free month of my health and dental insurance. so that's swiggidy sweet!
my wife is amazing. if i am, it's perhaps only in her eyes (and maybe my mom's). either way, it's nice to be something to somebody, even when you know you do not deserve it. i suppose that is what makes her love seem all the more a blessing from God. not hard to see why marriage was God's idea and His favorite metaphor for our relationship with Him.
that hideous strength by c.s. lewis
finished it this week. such a good book. i think it may have been my favorite of the series. it is certainly bizarre, but i like it. i like the twists and peculiarities of it. my friend andrew vardeman deserves many prompts for letting me borrow the series for the months it has taken me to find time to get through them all. they were well worth the read. they may be among my favorite literature, but that may be a bit "prisoner-of-the-moment" of me. however, i will definitely want to re-read them again someday and look forward to owning them someday so that i can read them to atticus as he grows up, among others (i.e. the chronicles of narnia, lord of the rings, etc...)
i highly recommend them.
thanks again andrew for first suggesting them to me, and then lending them to me.
you're a good brother.
i highly recommend them.
thanks again andrew for first suggesting them to me, and then lending them to me.
you're a good brother.
$9 even
my weekly can-herding trip from last week yielded $9 this morning after i redeemed them at hy-vee. i am in the redemption business. helping cans to be reborn and made into new creations, reconciled to their creator. ok, i'm just a shmoe pickin' up cans, but it's not my fault they call it can redemption. has all the sound of a good tent revival, right? i can't be the only one.
*insert cricket chirp here*
i also received some good insider info regarding cans from our good friend, "bounce," at a rock band party at andy vw's on saturday night after church. he said you can take crushed cans back to the ames redemption center for 3 cents. so instead of passing up the less fortunate cans that have been run over and discarded on the side of the rode or tossing them into the trash after the mahcines at hy-vee reject them for the 15th time, i can make 3 cents on them and bring my sam's club, fareway, cub foods cans (which hy-vee's machine will not take) as well. awesomexcore! so we'll see what next week yields. year-to-date: $45,35 :) there's gold in dem dere ditches!
*insert cricket chirp here*
i also received some good insider info regarding cans from our good friend, "bounce," at a rock band party at andy vw's on saturday night after church. he said you can take crushed cans back to the ames redemption center for 3 cents. so instead of passing up the less fortunate cans that have been run over and discarded on the side of the rode or tossing them into the trash after the mahcines at hy-vee reject them for the 15th time, i can make 3 cents on them and bring my sam's club, fareway, cub foods cans (which hy-vee's machine will not take) as well. awesomexcore! so we'll see what next week yields. year-to-date: $45,35 :) there's gold in dem dere ditches!
and so it begins...
lent officially began for me today. don't get me wrong, i've been celebrating it the past few weeks since it's official start on ash wednesday. i decided to give up sports for lent. no sportscenter, no looking at scores in the paper, no talking about them or tuning in to 1st and 10 to watch skip bayless argue out the facts, no state tourney talk, no nothing. so it was not too bad the first few weeks, but today the big dance began. paige and atticus are in mt. pleasant until tomorrow and i'm home alone. the perfect time to cuddle up with a good 8 games simultaneously!!! God is good though. i can wait until next year. self-control is good to promote in yourself. i took a long walk and picked up a bunch of cans. truth be told, i am wiped out. i will probably eat dinner and head to bed early. i hope the tourney is fun and full of buzzer-beaters and excitement for everyone who watches. i will get all caught up after Easter i suppose and look into the games that were. i did see a bracket in the paper with a contest through mid-iowa satellite. i filled out the bracket and turned it in this morning. so i guess i did think about sports a little, but i just thought it would be fun to see how well i do without thinking much about it or having seen how well teams have been playing the past 2 weeks. plus i could win a 26" plasma tv or $25,ooo if i win the national contest. unlikely, but you can't win if you don't play. which is normally reserved for the lottery i understand (and do not recommend), but this was free to enter.
paige says it good that i gave up something i care so much about for lent. she's a good wife. i pray you are all having success and finding the self-control to honor God with the promises made before Him for His glory.
ecclesiastes 5:4-6
4 when you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for He has no pleasure in fools. pay what you vow. 5 it is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. 6 let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake.
paige says it good that i gave up something i care so much about for lent. she's a good wife. i pray you are all having success and finding the self-control to honor God with the promises made before Him for His glory.
ecclesiastes 5:4-6
4 when you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for He has no pleasure in fools. pay what you vow. 5 it is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. 6 let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake.
perelandra by clive staples lewis
i finished this book last week, but failed to mention it. it was great! truth be told, i did not realize there was a space trilogy until about 4 years ago. before that, i always thought there was just a space book by c.s. lewis called perelandra which people often touted as being pretty good, but not as good as the chronicles of narnia. perhaps it is due to the novelty of them and discovering in fact that there are three space books, but i am really enjoying them. i can see why perelandra is elevated in most people's accounts. it is very good, very clear and concise in its allegorical approach to Jesus and the Gospel. i am about 100 pages into that hideous strength, the third and final book in the trilogy. it is very good thus. i will speak more to this when i am finished. thanks for reading.
$12.70
after redeeming the cans and bottles from last week's haul this morning, i was pleasantly surprised to see a total of $12.70. the first week i had $5.40 and the second week was $7. so i had more this third week than the first two combined. God just kept filling up my bag beyond measure. it was great! so that makes a year-to-date total of $25.10 for those of you playin' at home or throwin' your bottles on the interstate. that's like a date night, a tank of gas, 1/2 my health insurance for the month, or a really tricked out name tag. you go flo!
$7 second try
i picked up cans again this past tuesday and brought them back this morning for a whoppin' $7. it took me 2 hours, so if you know this song, sing-a-long, "that's like $3.50 an hour!!!" thank you nappy d for your brilliant quips.
anywho, it is a good walk and i enjoy cleaning up the ditches. seriously, mt. dew drinkers, keep your trash in your vehicles and your tobacco spit in your face! i went out again today and found a veritable bounty of canned goods. tune in next week to see what the magic number is! anybody got any guesses?
i will clue you in that my bags were as full, if not more full than this past week, yet i had one less bag than the first week.
it's like one of those mind puzzles where sally finished second, but before the boy in the green shirt. alfredo drinks pepsi, but still finished fourth. oh alfredo, caffeine is only good for short energy boosts with a debilitating crash. you should have tried 5 hour energy. then we could have all witnessed caffeini alfredo.
i know. that was lame. i'm not sorry.
anywho, it is a good walk and i enjoy cleaning up the ditches. seriously, mt. dew drinkers, keep your trash in your vehicles and your tobacco spit in your face! i went out again today and found a veritable bounty of canned goods. tune in next week to see what the magic number is! anybody got any guesses?
i will clue you in that my bags were as full, if not more full than this past week, yet i had one less bag than the first week.
it's like one of those mind puzzles where sally finished second, but before the boy in the green shirt. alfredo drinks pepsi, but still finished fourth. oh alfredo, caffeine is only good for short energy boosts with a debilitating crash. you should have tried 5 hour energy. then we could have all witnessed caffeini alfredo.
i know. that was lame. i'm not sorry.
out of the silent planet by clive staples lewis
i just got done reading "out of the silent planet" on saturday morning. it was awesome! i loved it. i have started on the second book in the c.s. lewis space trilogy called, "perelandra." i love good books. i love c.s. lewis. if you've read the chronicles of narnia and have adored them as stories, i would suggest the space trilogy to you as an unexamined treasure from mr. lewis as well. i know part of the excitement for me has been knowing the respect i had for the author going into it. the books have not disappointed.
hepatitis and $5.40
so i found a can on the road while walking to casey's to buy the sunday des moines register. then i saw another, and another. so i went back to our apartment and got a bag. i went out and filled it up rather quickly. much more quickly than i would have anticipated. i came back and got more bags. i ended up filling about 5 bags. some observations:
- people are messy and litter far too much
- people apparently like giving me their money
- things have not changed since high school: people who chew tobacoo still drink mt. dew (or mtndew as the cool kids say these days)
- i think high school students drink booze in the tree nursery along the bike path behind our place (bud light with mtndew chasers)
- i'm so glad i was wearing gloves (which my wife washed for me afterwards)
at the end of the day, i made $5.40 in bottles, cans, and plastics and cleaned up our neighborhood a little bit. not a bad day's work.
- people are messy and litter far too much
- people apparently like giving me their money
- things have not changed since high school: people who chew tobacoo still drink mt. dew (or mtndew as the cool kids say these days)
- i think high school students drink booze in the tree nursery along the bike path behind our place (bud light with mtndew chasers)
- i'm so glad i was wearing gloves (which my wife washed for me afterwards)
at the end of the day, i made $5.40 in bottles, cans, and plastics and cleaned up our neighborhood a little bit. not a bad day's work.
the life, death, and resurrection of johnny cash
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7R10cHra1FA&feature=related
awesome.
also, check out the comment section of my last johnny cash blog under andrew v's comment. download the link he placed there. it is a Christian johnny cash comic outlining a more detailed account of the above video. also see, "walk the line" the movie with joaquin phoenix.
for more awesome stories of Christians who wrote beautiful songs that sprung from beautiful, Christ-inspired lives, search youtube.com using the words, "rebel's guide to joy" and you should find upwards of 10 different 4 minute stories from isaac watts, john newton, fanny crosby, horatio spafford, charles wesley, etc... they're great reminders of where we've come from and where we're going.
hebrews 12:1 "therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses...."
they're God's witnesses to us, echoing from the past to persevere, to keep on keeping on.
awesome.
also, check out the comment section of my last johnny cash blog under andrew v's comment. download the link he placed there. it is a Christian johnny cash comic outlining a more detailed account of the above video. also see, "walk the line" the movie with joaquin phoenix.
for more awesome stories of Christians who wrote beautiful songs that sprung from beautiful, Christ-inspired lives, search youtube.com using the words, "rebel's guide to joy" and you should find upwards of 10 different 4 minute stories from isaac watts, john newton, fanny crosby, horatio spafford, charles wesley, etc... they're great reminders of where we've come from and where we're going.
hebrews 12:1 "therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses...."
they're God's witnesses to us, echoing from the past to persevere, to keep on keeping on.
cashin' it in
my dad listened to johnny cash when i was a child. in an 8 year-old kind of way, i remember thinking, "this is kinda neat." don't know why, but it never took. until recently that is. i checked out johnny cash "IV: the man comes around" from the library. it was amazing. it is amazing. if you haven't bought into the man in black mystique, it's worth checking out. here is a sample, i love this old timey country Gospel-type stuff.
(this is not on "IV: when the man comes around")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54US-N1yU8c&feature=related
(this is not on "IV: when the man comes around")
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54US-N1yU8c&feature=related
tales from the precious (moments) side
so paige and i have been reading Bible stories to atticus at night from the precious moment stories from the Bible book her grandparents gave to her as a child. highlights thus far include...
... from the story entitled, "perfume for Jesus (john 12:1-8)"
"no sooner had she done this then judas, one of the guests who loved money, jumped to his feet and shouted, 'mary, how stupid of you! that perfume could have been sold for $48'".
awesome! i love how judas loves money so much, he has it calculated to the very american dollar's worth. nicely done precious moments. the artistic license is hilarious!
... from the story entitled, "a big surprise for a little man (luke 19:1-10)"
"wherever Jesus went there were such large crowds that it was very hard to push through to see Him. and, to make things even worse, zacchaeus was a very little man. he was almost like some of the midgets you may have seen."
awesome! do they mean, "like the midgets whom you may have seen if you've ever been to the circus," or "like the midgets who were just right there, that you probably didn't see, because they are so very tiny!"?
this book rocks!
atticus is going to love perfume and midgets.
that reminds me of a jack handy quote, check it out:
"If I ever get real rich, I hope I'm not real mean to poor people, like now."
... from the story entitled, "perfume for Jesus (john 12:1-8)"
"no sooner had she done this then judas, one of the guests who loved money, jumped to his feet and shouted, 'mary, how stupid of you! that perfume could have been sold for $48'".
awesome! i love how judas loves money so much, he has it calculated to the very american dollar's worth. nicely done precious moments. the artistic license is hilarious!
... from the story entitled, "a big surprise for a little man (luke 19:1-10)"
"wherever Jesus went there were such large crowds that it was very hard to push through to see Him. and, to make things even worse, zacchaeus was a very little man. he was almost like some of the midgets you may have seen."
awesome! do they mean, "like the midgets whom you may have seen if you've ever been to the circus," or "like the midgets who were just right there, that you probably didn't see, because they are so very tiny!"?
this book rocks!
atticus is going to love perfume and midgets.
that reminds me of a jack handy quote, check it out:
"If I ever get real rich, I hope I'm not real mean to poor people, like now."
if it were milk, you'd have a few days before you'd have to toss it
paige is officially one day overdue!
i will keep y'all posted as to new developments.
as for now, pray that atticus makes his grand entrance soon and safely.
also, if you noticed, the countdown is complete too.
i guess the countdown didn't get the memo.
in other news, if you have never seen "nacho libre" check it out.
it is a lot of fun.
if you liked napoleon dynamite and even liked it enough to refer to it as "nappy d," then nacho libre is certainly for you.
have fun.
i will keep y'all posted as to new developments.
as for now, pray that atticus makes his grand entrance soon and safely.
also, if you noticed, the countdown is complete too.
i guess the countdown didn't get the memo.
in other news, if you have never seen "nacho libre" check it out.
it is a lot of fun.
if you liked napoleon dynamite and even liked it enough to refer to it as "nappy d," then nacho libre is certainly for you.
have fun.
fortified with 11 essential vitamins and minerals
paige and i receive fan mail all the time.
check out this satisfied reader:
many props to our friend ted for checking in on us.
check out this satisfied reader:
many props to our friend ted for checking in on us.
more music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSO4TUQZPNY&feature=related
it is called "vide cor meum" and is based on a dante alighieri's "la vita nuova"
for my info, check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vide_Cor_Meum
http://hannibal.hannotations.com/vide.html
anyone else have any pieces of classical music that stir their souls?
it is called "vide cor meum" and is based on a dante alighieri's "la vita nuova"
for my info, check out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vide_Cor_Meum
http://hannibal.hannotations.com/vide.html
anyone else have any pieces of classical music that stir their souls?
dinner with the dewhursts and the depths of my soul
we just got back from dinner at the dewhursts. it was a great time. max and i stared at each other for a while and maddy and i gave each other high-fives until she wore this ol' boy out. other highlights were a fart to the chest, chocolate chip smiles, the endless, nonstop, round-n-round plastic slide-a-thon, and Wii-tastic time for the gents. the dewhursts also contributed a good deal to team atticus by donating some baby boy duds. very nice!
in other news, i found a piece of music which i loved immediately when i first heard it as part of the score to "meet joe black" some years ago. being as how i did not want to buy the entire soundtrack for one piece of music and itunes did not have it available, i had availed myself to trying merely to remember it. thank you mister youtube for your many unusual gifts.
if you want to take a listen,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4huZYzOD8Q&feature=related
if you haven't seen the movie, perhaps it isn't as impactful. i don't know. i have never known them seperately, although i must admit, even now i do not remember the specific scene in which this piece is played. it is moving though. i love stuff like this which stirs one's soul. it is good to be moved deeply from time to time. i am thankful to God for music. He uses it to touch me often.
in other news, i found a piece of music which i loved immediately when i first heard it as part of the score to "meet joe black" some years ago. being as how i did not want to buy the entire soundtrack for one piece of music and itunes did not have it available, i had availed myself to trying merely to remember it. thank you mister youtube for your many unusual gifts.
if you want to take a listen,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4huZYzOD8Q&feature=related
if you haven't seen the movie, perhaps it isn't as impactful. i don't know. i have never known them seperately, although i must admit, even now i do not remember the specific scene in which this piece is played. it is moving though. i love stuff like this which stirs one's soul. it is good to be moved deeply from time to time. i am thankful to God for music. He uses it to touch me often.
two unrelated, but current thoughts
first, i recently saw apocalypto. awesome! if you have not seen it, rent it from the library for free or netflick it or redbox it or whatever it is you do. it is great. a little graphic in the arena of violence, but an amazing story.
http://video.movies.go.com/apocalypto/
second, i have had, nothing but the blood in my head the past few days. just the refrain:
Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
phil wickham did this refrain during his concert. i have it stuck in my mind. what a great tune. what a great Truth!
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/n/b/nbtblood.htm
i've had a couple of good days as it turns out :)
goodnight iowa.
http://video.movies.go.com/apocalypto/
second, i have had, nothing but the blood in my head the past few days. just the refrain:
Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
phil wickham did this refrain during his concert. i have it stuck in my mind. what a great tune. what a great Truth!
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/n/b/nbtblood.htm
i've had a couple of good days as it turns out :)
goodnight iowa.
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