why send a valentine?

You can't help but smile while watching Hoops and Yoyo. Click here for some Valentine cheer.

(ugh! i can't believe i just typed that! that was SO lame.)

she's not your girlfriend ... what is she?

She’s not your girlfriend. But she is your friend.

She’s not your mom. But she is your sister in Christ.

She’s not a seat-filler. She’s got her own seat to fill.

She’s not your best friend. You’ve already got one.

She’s not your conscience. You’ve got one of those, too.

She’s not your day planner. Your aunt gave you one of those for Christmas.

She’s not your Jeannie in a Bottle. She’s a vulnerable human being who makes mistakes and likes to feel appreciated.

She’s not a damsel-in-distress. She’s a young woman who out of necessity has become independent.

… Yet she longs for someone to lead,

someone with a plan,

someone who desires her,

someone who appreciates her,

someone to run life’s race with,

someone to help as Eve was created to be the helper,

someone who’s not always right but she’d still abide by his decisions because he is her leader,

someone who will drive her crazy with his bad habits and she will drive him crazy with hers but they will be used of God to sanctify each other,

someone who will show her how the Church ought to relate to Christ by treating her like Christ treats the Church,

someone … she needs.

She’s not your girlfriend … What is she?

If she’s your friend, be honest.

If she’s your sister in Christ, be upright and don’t take her for granted.

If you use her to fill that empty spot in your life while waiting for that special someone to come along, it’s not fair to her.

If you’ve been treating her like a best friend, it’s not her place to fill.

If you’ve been depending on her to be your conscience, she can’t. She struggles with her own.

If you expect her to fill your schedule, it’s a waste of your time and hers.

If you have treated her like a Jeannie in a Bottle, she is tired and worn and you need to set her free.

If you expect her to play the damsel-in-distress, SLAY THE DRAGON AND SWEEP HER OFF HER FEET!!!

(picture from this weekend's Babble of the Sexes: Lorie, Michael, Hayley, Christine)

they've got it all wrong

click here .

funny. you think they'd know better. which one is which?

(ignore the last line of the video ... it's dumb.)

Super Bowl '06 commercials

watch www.stupidvideos.com for more funny Super Bowl '06 commercials.

ah, Juliet, there's more to it than you think

When Shakespeare wrote the scene in which Juliet leaned against her balcony and shouted to the moon "What's in a name?!!", her words falling instead upon the ears of a love-struck young man, he knew very little of what I found out only months ago: a name can bear much meaning.

I bring this up because Dr. Plummer invited our New Testament class to join him at The Sweet Tooth for some cake or pie this past Tuesday night. In order for everyone to get to know one another, he chose the topic of discussion to be the meaning of everyone's names. I wished so much that I could have been there!

Because my name is interesting.

The origin of my middle name's meaning is still unclear. Some have suggested that it means "a small booth on the side of the road in which newspapers and periodicals are sold." I have my doubts.

I've known for years and years that my first name means "follower of Christ."

But it gets better.

I've never met another Christine Hnat before. I hear there's one in Columbus, Ohio, who is a producer of an Actor's theater and makes art out of glass. hmm ... acting and art ... must run in the name. But when I lived in Prague this past summer, I felt as if I had arrived. These were my people, the land of my father's heritage. When I looked in the phone book under "Hnat", there were columns, instead of only one entry. One of my English students informed me that my name meant "shank bone" or "to drive" (as in a shepherd driving ... leading ... his flock out to pasture).

Gasp! How fitting! Christine Hnat ... one driven by Christ.

Oh, but it gets EVEN better.

A few months ago, I was piddling around and came across this meaning of the name Hnat .

the green goodness

People, before they meet me, have already named me.

hmm ... i think i'll keep that sentence the way it is and not say anything more. Those of you who know me have an idea of what i've been named. And those of you who don't ... well, let your imaginations run wild.

Anyway, I thought I'd tell you what I had to drink this morning. Bolthouse Farms has these great drinks found in the produce section just brimming with wholesome goodness. Naturally, I was intrigued by a beverage titled "green goodness". It helps not to look at it while you drink it, actually. And it sort of has the thickness of ... oil?

But get this ... get a load of the ingredients!

Apple juice from concentrate, pineapple juice from concentrate, mango puree from concentrate, banana puree, kiwi juice, natural flavor, spirulina, open cell chlorela, vitamin C, lime juice, zinc sulfate, BROCCOLI, green tea, SPINACH, BARLEY GRASS, WHEAT GRASS, BLUE GREEN ALGAE, echinacea purpurea extract, odorless GARLIC, tamarind puree, dragon fruit juice, lemon bioflavonoids, JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE and nova scotia dulce.

Yum!

A Day Late and a Dollar Short

Third Scenario: how would you respond?


I’m a guy and have a girl friend who lives in the same building as me, and we hang out a lot. She calls or IMs me every day and tells me everything about her day. It makes me feel really close to her. We’ve been hanging out, doing lunch, dinner, talking, etc., for about two years, and yesterday she told me that she had a date with this new guy that just moved in next door. I was totally shocked. I thought that our friendship was working toward something. Where did I go wrong? Why would she do this to me?

--A Day Late and a Dollar Short


Babble of the Sexes

A Public Rant About Desperate Dating Habits
and the Opposite Sex

February 10, 7 p.m.



Hosted by the witty (and bordering on irreverent) Hayley and Michael DiMarco, best-selling authors of the book "Marriable- Taking the Desperate Out of Dating"

Topics include-

-Shut Up and Be Mysterious
-Nice Guys Really Do Finish Last
-Desperate Lies Women Tell Themselves
-How Being 'Just Friends' Is a Waste of Time
-a lively (and anonymous) Q & A time

Share February 10th at 7 p.m. with your closest single friends and
let Hayley and Michael put you in a festive mood on Singles Awareness Day (S.A.D.).

Sponsored by Ninth and O Baptist Church and Hungry Planet
Location: Ninth and O Baptist Church, 4401 Breckenridge LN, Louisville, 40218
www.hungryplanet.net

Mistaken for a Girlfriend

Second Scenario: how would you respond?


I have my eye on a certain guy at the volunteer center. We both work on projects together and spend a lot of time planning events, dreaming up possibilities, and stuff like that. We go out to eat at least once a week. He tells me all that’s going on in his life. I mean, it’s like we are dating but without the commitment or the holding hands or flirting or anything. I feel like we’re dating, but the other day he said something about this girl he likes, and it threw me for a loop. Why does he spend so much time with me if he’s not into me? And why would he tell me about another girl when it’s so obvious I like him? Shall I tell him how it makes me feel? Or just wait for him to talk about it?

--Mistaken for a Girlfriend


Babble of the Sexes

A Public Rant About Desperate Dating Habits
and the Opposite Sex

February 10, 7 p.m.



Hosted by the witty (and bordering on irreverent) Hayley and Michael DiMarco, best-selling authors of the book "Marriable- Taking the Desperate Out of Dating"

Topics include-

-Shut Up and Be Mysterious
-Nice Guys Really Do Finish Last
-Desperate Lies Women Tell Themselves
-How Being 'Just Friends' Is a Waste of Time
-a lively (and anonymous) Q & A time

Share February 10th at 7 p.m. with your closest single friends and
let Hayley and Michael put you in a festive mood on Singles Awareness Day (S.A.D.).

Sponsored by Ninth and O Baptist Church and Hungry Planet
Location: Ninth and O Baptist Church, 4401 Breckenridge LN, Louisville, 40218
www.hungryplanet.net

The Dreaded Four Words

Here is the first excerpt from the chapter "How Being Just Friends Is a Waste of Time." How would you respond? The authors' response will be posted Tuesday morning.


I recently went out with this girl from work. We just went for coffee first, the second time to a singles event. I called her up for something more date-ish like dinner and a movie, and she hit me with the “let’s just be friends” line. Does this mean it’s all over? Couldn’t she be just wanting to take it slow? I say this because she called me a few days later just to talk. She’s too hard to read if she has any interest in dating me. What am I allowed to do as “just friends"? How do I get to know this girl and she me without wasting my time? The few times I brought it up she just avoided the subject. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi, you’re my only hope!

Babble of the Sexes

A Public Rant About Desperate Dating Habits
and the Opposite Sex

February 10, 7 p.m.



Hosted by the witty (and bordering on irreverent) Hayley and Michael DiMarco, best-selling authors of the book "Marriable- Taking the Desperate Out of Dating"

Topics include-

-Shut Up and Be Mysterious
-Nice Guys Really Do Finish Last
-Desperate Lies Women Tell Themselves
-How Being 'Just Friends' Is a Waste of Time
-a lively (and anonymous) Q & A time

Share February 10th at 7 p.m. with your closest single friends and
let Hayley and Michael put you in a festive mood on Singles Awareness Day (S.A.D.).

Sponsored by Ninth and O Baptist Church and Hungry Planet
Location: Ninth and O Baptist Church, 4401 Breckenridge LN, Louisville, 40218
www.hungryplanet.net

over the next three days

Over the next three days, I am going to post excerpts from Hayley and Michael DiMarco's book Marriable in order to promote the upcoming event on February 10th at 7 p.m. Ninth and O Baptist Church and HungryPlanet are sponsoring a public forum in which the author's will give an overview of their book and then conduct an open Q&A with the audience.

The excerpts are from the chapter How Being Just Friends Is a Waste of Time which can be read in full on their website. They will be scenarios and questions that the authors have found common among singles.

Each day the scenario will be posted and I encourage readers to post how you would respond. The following morning, I will post the response of the authors in the comments box.

real futball

For a look at real futball, click here .

Oh ... and GO SEATTLE!!!

a hot cup of ...

Ah, just sitting by the window, bundled up, reading for class, watching the snow fall, and drinking tea.

Click here .

go white boy

I figure if Nikki could invite the New Kids on the Block to her birthday party, I'm going to ask this guy to come to mine. Now THAT would be a fun party.

Go White Boy Watch it now on StupidVideos!

walking in the clouds with my eyes on the earth

dreamt last night
beautiful horrible

living a fairytale
walking in the midst of enchanted forests
talking with giants and elves

a mere dream not real
figments of my imagination not real
not real

torn

revel in it abhor it
embrace it flee it

can't wake up still sleeping

beautiful horrible

no wonder people are scared of clowns!

Kung-Fu Clowns Watch it now on StupidVideos!

what's up with all the guys fainting?!!

Click here for a funny video. Okay, I said "funny" but I'm really concerned for these guys.

priceless

i know ... i know ... they have nothing to do with each other ...

One of a Kind Watch it now on StupidVideos!

the amazing regurgitator

Stevie Starr Watch it now on StupidVideos!

Dear Rabby ...

Before I could recommend him to my readers I decided to give his advice column a shot. Having heard that he has a peculiar stance when it comes to men and women being "just friends" ... I thought I'd stick it to the Honorable Earl. P. Rabbit (affectionately known as Rabby).

I posed as a woman with a common problem ... attraction to a guy who is "just a friend". I was satisfied with his candid response and feel obliged to refer all my readers to address their concerns to Rabby.

His manner of speech and writing may seem "unrefined" ... but he has a heart of gold and will tell you up front from his 33 years of life experience what he has learned when it comes to matters of the heart.

Here is a segment from his reply:

So yer sayin' you like bein' a pair of oranges with this boy but sometimes you'd ruther be a pair of bananas? An this boy likes bein' oranges but not bananas? If'n that's the case you need to make a decis, deci, dec -- you need to say "What will hurt me more, if'n we stay oranges an then he finds himself someone else to be a banana with, or if'n I say 'I don't want to be oranges with you no more becuz it hurts too much that I want to be a banana with you but you don't.' "

Please address your queries to Dear Rabby ...

Apple ... not the kind you eat ...

I love my Mac. Click here.