tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-96306812012-02-10T19:21:31.240-07:00A blog by Chris CopelandChris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.comBlogger5391100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-15176337153943077152012-02-10T15:46:00.002-07:002012-02-10T15:47:11.536-07:00

Talking politics is dangerous territory. For some reason, stating what you believe about people's favorite potential candidate or their favorite current president causes people to react as if you are insulting their spouse or children. It's almost impossible to have an honest conversation about politics with someone of differing political views. For the most part, I stay out of it and refrain

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-77219012790512807532012-02-09T09:09:00.001-07:002012-02-09T09:09:57.101-07:00

I won't tell you what I was doing at the time that made me think of this. But, I wondered, scientifically, why a lit match is supposed to remove unpleasant bathroom smells. So, I decided to look into it. Curiosity killed the cat, you know. Anyway, here is what I found. The sense of smell is very subjective. What is offensive to one person's sniffer is not offensive to another. However, I think

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-4531390678635385342012-02-08T09:23:00.000-07:002012-02-08T09:23:12.195-07:00

I just wanted to give updates about a couple of previous blogs. First, "Ouch! My Face". Thanks for all of the helpful comments. I stopped using the Equate Medicated Apricot Face Scrub right away and started using just regular Dove for sensitive skin. Also, I started to moisturize my face with Cetaphil each night and morning. This helped right away and the irritation started to disappear. I spoke

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-43060601087397331612012-02-06T13:29:00.001-07:002012-02-06T13:29:13.070-07:00

I've been wanted to post some of the video of Garrison playing basketball this year, but life and work have been pretty crazy and I haven't had a chance to get it created. I was finally able to do it today. So, here is some video of Garrison playing basketball in his last game. He's working really hard and is showing lots of improvement. I am impressed with how he is taking constructive

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-38167533051985482652012-01-27T08:29:00.001-07:002012-01-27T08:29:39.224-07:00

My Mom is having a modified radical mastectomy today. She has been doing chemotherapy to fight her breast cancer since the early summer. Today, they plan to take the lump out along with most of her breast, lymph-nodes, and various other tissue. Please join me in prayer today. Her surgery starts at 11:30am and should take around 4 hours. Pray that they get all of the cancer out in one shot and

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-50020929807319041242012-01-25T10:19:00.000-07:002012-01-25T10:19:00.298-07:00

As part of my desire to revive a prayer life that I once had early in my Christian walk, I bought a book called "Prayer" by Richard Foster (the same author who wrote "The Celebration of Discipline", which is one of my all time favorite books). I was already reading a different book for my devotional time when this book arrived but I couldn't wait to dive into it, so I put the other book aside

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-45755330502521354082012-01-24T15:01:00.001-07:002012-01-24T15:01:27.346-07:00

There is a cologne pandemic spreading in the United States. I can smell it. There are times when I walk around the University where I work and there are men who are drenched in so much cologne, it makes my eyes water or stings when I take a breath. It's ridiculous. If I can smell these men at distances of 15-20 feet and it still repulses me, there is something wrong. I think we need to have a

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-80283875366720145712012-01-23T12:51:00.000-07:002012-01-23T12:51:10.007-07:00

I don't know what is going on, but my face hurts. I have these painful, dry, irritated spots on both sides of my face near the corner of my eyes. I'm not sure what they are from. I've had them off and on for while now (1-2 years). My best guess is either dryness (it tends to be dry here in Colorado) or being irritated from something I am putting on my face. I am not exactly sure. But, they hurt

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-72341333121627435152012-01-20T09:24:00.000-07:002012-01-20T09:24:01.676-07:00

I have many questions that I plan to ask God when I meet Him face to face. Here is a sampling. There are more...many, many more. But, here are a few. Why are there so many "Land Before Time" Cartoon movies and why do my kids like them so much? If exercise is supposed to make us feel better, why does it hurt so much? What was/is the best way to find Your will? What was the worst thing I ever

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-37758278260255469252012-01-18T13:22:00.000-07:002012-01-20T09:44:02.871-07:00

This is my history of the cell. Not the basic structural and functional unit of all known living organisms. Not that cell. I'm talking about the cell phone. I got my first cell phone somewhere in the mid-90's. It looked just like the picture featured here. It was large, heavy, and boxy. It certainly wasn't a sexy or suave gadget. I got it at a time when I certainly couldn't afford it, but I

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-63700560548939191962012-01-13T10:09:00.000-07:002012-01-13T10:09:36.385-07:00

All of my kids are now officially sick with the second bout of flu to hit our household in the past three weeks. The last one was a stomach flu. This one is a fever, a bad cough, runny nose, and aches. Because of this new bout of sickness, my boys and I will miss out on an event that we've been looking forward to for a few months. Tonight is the Camp-in/Camp-out at Modern Day Knights for Dads

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-75162258448906041732012-01-12T09:12:00.001-07:002012-01-12T09:12:51.420-07:00

My boys are fighting a sickness again. This is the second bout of flu in the last three weeks. The last bout caused us to have to cancel hosting Christmas. This time around, we might miss the Modern Day Knights Camp-Out/Camp-In where the boys and I were going to stay overnight at the church and make Pinewood Derby Cars, play volleyball, go on a scavenger hunt, eat and make food, and generally

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-41332580242691482002012-01-11T11:15:00.000-07:002012-01-11T11:18:59.150-07:00

Guilt. Regret. It can strike at the strangest times. Some people feel guilt and regret for things they had no control over. For honest mistakes or misunderstandings. Some people feel guilt and regret for things they've done. To others. To themselves. To the one's they love most. Even people who are forgiven, by God or the person wronged, can continue to feel guilt and regret for the things

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-6684283407966434802012-01-10T08:53:00.002-07:002012-01-10T08:53:56.050-07:00

Lately, our family has become more busy. The sports, social, and church events for our kids are starting to stack up. Right now, Garrison is playing basketball with practice or games two nights a week. Gavin and Gage are in gymnastics with practice two nights a week. They all go to Modern Day Knights on Wednesday evenings. It's a crazy schedule. Because most of these events start before I get

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-34319449572115158222012-01-06T13:53:00.004-07:002012-01-06T13:53:39.164-07:00

After I first became a Christian, I had lots of marvelous, life changing times in prayer. I remember, as a senior in high school, going outside and spending an hour in prayer sitting on the sidewalk in front of my grandparents house watching the sunset. I remember feeling very close to God and molded by him after those personal times in prayer. Later, I remember working my first full time job

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-67193644448084915212012-01-03T18:34:00.000-07:002012-01-03T18:34:51.282-07:00

In 2008, I was obese. I weighed in at 240 pounds. Before we left California, I started Weight Watchers along with my wife to get back to a healthy weight. Shortly after moving to Colorado, I had dropped 43 pounds following the Weight Watchers plan. Unfortunately, once I got to my desired weight, I stopped following the rules and slowly slipped back into some unhealthy habits. I am now at 220

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-17757169993090097512011-12-23T08:45:00.001-07:002011-12-23T08:45:09.255-07:00

Without a doubt, the best gift I ever received was given to me on February 18th, 1990. That's when Jesus called me by name and saved me. He took me out of a life of darkness and put me on a path of life, redemption, and of a saving grace. I am forever thankful for that gift. Especially since it came at so great a cost. This Christmas, I am thankful for the gift that Jesus died to give me. The

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-57072821051586769642011-12-21T13:27:00.001-07:002011-12-21T13:27:53.355-07:00

To revel in the Christmas Spirit, here are a few of my favorite things about Christmas (past and present). The Magic of Christmas as a Child. I liked the magic of getting up the morning of Christmas when I was a child and seeing the tons of presents that had suddenly and magically appeared around the tree. Santa had come. Even the cookies had bites out of them. I was usually up early and had a

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-74447532227536484702011-12-20T13:57:00.001-07:002011-12-20T14:05:47.764-07:00

I got a lot of thoughts going through my head. I'm not sure I could iterate any of them into an entertaining blog post, so I thought I would post a Potpourri. No, this is not a blog about brain scented potpourri for zombies. It's a conglomeration of all of the little pieces in my head at this moment. David Stern, the NBA commissioner, made me (and lots of other people) angry when he ceased a

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-51440383844985116742011-12-16T09:55:00.002-07:002011-12-16T09:56:12.233-07:00

Ironically, I wrote my last post before I knew that Christopher Hitchens died. I read about his death in the news this morning as I was eating my breakfast. I was shocked to learn of the news, not even knowing that he was fighting cancer. Also, I was saddened. I've read some of Hitchens' books. Despite the fact that I disagreed vehemently with almost everything he had to say about Christianity,

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-50239145370277356742011-12-15T10:25:00.000-07:002011-12-15T18:21:00.600-07:00

I have always had an inner fire when it came to God. There were times when I would defend Him against people who had mistaken beliefs. Even before I became a born-again Christian, I would defend God. For instance, I got in trouble in grade school (probably 1st grade) because my teacher told the class that "To thine own self be true" was one of the 10 commandments. I didn't know Shakespeare enough

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-83009160721145308302011-12-08T09:28:00.001-07:002011-12-08T12:52:21.261-07:00

I was listening to my iPod this morning on the way to work and heard a string of geek related tunes and it got me thinking about what my top geek songs would be. Here's my list (in no particular order). They Might Be Giants - Particle Man You can get any geekier than They Might Be Giants. Their geek anthem is definitely Particle Man. A great song that includes nonsense verse with high

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-69723900061902339952011-12-06T08:58:00.001-07:002011-12-06T10:30:43.277-07:00

My wife's step-father passed away early in the morning on the day after Thanksgiving. My wife needed to be with her family and to attend the funeral. We couldn't afford to send the whole family, so we sent Joi alone. My work was gracious enough to let me work from home remotely for a week. My wife left on a Tuesday morning and returned on a Monday night. Six days...as a Stay-at-Home-Dad. Here

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-56135938192031868412011-11-25T10:59:00.001-07:002011-11-25T11:31:15.936-07:00

Last night, I suffered from what I am calling "Empty Bed Syndrome". My wife loves the Black Friday sales, so she and my boys spent the night at her sisters house so that they could go shopping together and so my boys could get some sleep. I had to work today, so I went home to sleep and prepare for my workday. Unfortunately, I didn't get much sleep. After arriving home, I straightened the house,

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-78219568146850617582011-11-23T11:34:00.001-07:002011-11-23T11:56:49.251-07:00

I used to love McDonald's. When I was a kid, my Grandpa would take me for "sneak" visits to McDonald's. We'd get a couple burgers for a quarter each and a chocolate shake to share. I loved those moments. I loved the food. I'd crave it and beg for my parents or grandparents to take me there. As a child I never noticed how when you dropped a french fry under the car seat and found it several

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-13284645366186212992011-11-22T09:20:00.001-07:002011-11-22T09:38:50.849-07:00

I find some people very hard to love. If we're honest, we all do. There are some people who I just don't understand. They don't do things my way. They don't solve problems the same way I do. They do things that I detest. These people make it hard for me to "love thy neighbor". But, I realized something over the last couple of days. The bible tells us to "Love your neighbor" and "love your

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-5995968965643781182011-11-18T08:49:00.001-07:002011-11-18T08:55:14.558-07:00

I've been giving it a lot of thought and consideration. At the end of the day there were two names that I really liked and that were suggested by my readers. Those names were "Signatures of Divine" and "From Where I Am". After searching the web to make sure neither of them were taken, I actually found a blog called "Signatures of Divine". So, it looks like "From Where I Am" wins. I do like that

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-62710183827369448432011-11-15T12:36:00.001-07:002011-11-15T13:23:39.251-07:00

I was given some suggestions for a new blog title by three of my readers. I liked some of them, but they were either too long or already taken. I toyed with doing something with Renaissance Man in the title, but there are already too many blogs with that in the title. I found a synonym for that concept on Wikipedia, which was polymath. But, for anyone who knows me...anything with "math" in the

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-26621180770375598742011-11-10T08:41:00.001-07:002011-11-10T08:45:03.252-07:00

I want to rename my blog. I want to make it more marketable and widely searched. No one is searching for "Chris Copeland's Blog" unless they know me or stumbled across it by accident. I need something flashy. Something that describes who I am and what I do. Something clever and something that has a nice ring to it. Something that describes the kinds of things I write about or the types of things

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-68521035292687832672011-11-09T13:57:00.001-07:002011-11-09T13:57:59.336-07:00

I get angry and defensive when atheists say that they can't believe Christianity because science trumps religion. Supposedly, science is real. Just like the They Might Be Giants song on a recent children's album says "I like the stories about angels, unicorns and elves...Now I like those stories As much as anybody else... But when I'm seeking knowledge...Either simple or abstract...The facts are

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-91145552754172056282011-10-28T14:09:00.000-06:002011-10-28T14:09:52.108-06:00

I enjoy a good scary movie as much as the next guy. With Halloween being just around the corner, I thought I'd write a blog post about some of my favorite scary movies.   Poltergeist I was young when this movie came out but old enough to be left alone at home for extended periods of time. I remember being afraid of being alone, so I'd turn on the TV to help keep me company. There's something

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-30969334341536436962011-10-27T08:52:00.001-06:002011-10-27T08:53:29.619-06:00

As I was getting ready for bed I heard singing coming from my boys' room. I peeked around the corner and noticed that they were doing their own bedtime concert complete with lighting effects produced by multi-colored flashlights. They sang "Hard Days Night" and "Yellow Submarine" by the Beatles and "Dr. Heckyl and Mr. Jive" by Men At Work. I wasn't able to catch the Men At Work song on video but

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-34536516327980229182011-10-24T15:10:00.000-06:002011-10-24T15:10:46.886-06:00

My sons had to take a survey at their Friday school (a supplement to their home schooling) about bullying and whether they have ever experienced it. My oldest said that someone once cut in line in front of him at church. The boy who cut said that he deserved to be in front because he was taller. I'm not sure that was bullying as much as just an obnoxious kid who wanted to be first. My middle

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-15188314503043681402011-10-17T08:49:00.000-06:002011-10-18T09:10:19.696-06:00

Saturday was my youngest son's birthday. He turned seven years old. Where is the time going? I remember only yesterday bringing him home to our little abode in Rancho Cucamonga. Now, seven years later, he is a growing boy who brings laughter, joy, and fun to our family. He got Cinnamon rolls for breakfast and opened a couple gifts and then we were off to his football game. They lost by one goal,

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-26715842013440362892011-10-14T10:42:00.000-06:002011-10-14T10:42:06.155-06:00

The Wall Street Protests that have sprung up across the nation are also protesting in downtown Denver. As I ride the bus home, I've watched the tent city, called "Occupy Denver", start to evolve and grow over the last few weeks. The protesters signs said things like "Tax the Rich", "There is no more middle class", and "Jail the Wall Street Crooks". Other than enjoying the show as I rode past

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-62327760294578684772011-10-12T12:49:00.000-06:002011-10-12T12:49:17.389-06:00

We have been without television service (cable/satellite) for over a couple months now. To be quite honest, we are not missing a thing. We have found the following advantages to be true for us. First, we have more planned family time. We have been watching less television and playing more games together. We even had a couple reading nights, where we all pulled out a book and read for a while. We

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-20697157647585500782011-10-07T08:51:00.000-06:002011-10-07T08:51:43.923-06:00

The NBA Players and Owners cannot reach an agreement about how much to pay their players. The owners think they get too much money. The players think they need more money. As a result, the pre-season is gone and it's likely that some (if not all) of the regular season games are in jeopardy. Not that it matters much what I think, but I believe the players should back down. They are already

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-65031145543954971492011-10-06T09:09:00.001-06:002011-10-06T09:09:41.659-06:00

For those of you not on Facebook, I have posted a new video on Youtube of Gavin playing Flag Football in the Denver Youth Sports League. Enjoy! He's doing pretty well for never playing football before. The coach is still trying to figure out where each kid plays best, so he is moving them to different positions on each play. Gavin has been quarter back, center, defensive end, running back, and

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-27489951180840527882011-10-04T15:05:00.000-06:002011-10-04T15:05:21.217-06:00

In the process of consolidating, I realized that I am archaically holding on to old technology. The CD. Yes, in the world of digitizing everything and putting it on smaller and smaller iPod's, I still have actual CD's. But, it's funny. We don't even own a CD player anymore. Everyone in my family (including my kids) have some sort of iPod. We have two iPod playing boom-boxes in our home that

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-11069242089195027082011-09-29T13:44:00.000-06:002011-09-29T13:44:02.032-06:00

Denver is a very happening place. There's almost always some sort of event or festival going on somewhere in metro Denver. My family and I have been to a few of them and I am always surprised when the food doesn't match the event. For instance, a couple years ago on my birthday, we went to the Oktoberfest in downtown. We don't drink, so we certainly weren't there for the beer. I was looking

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-12148596740727552372011-09-27T11:14:00.000-06:002011-09-27T11:14:06.198-06:00

I've had pretty severe tendonitis since April of this year. Anti-inflamatory medication is the only thing that allowed me to get through the Cry for Mercy Reunion Concert. Before I took the medicine, I could only play guitar for about 5 minutes before I couldn't stand the pain any more. But, I couldn't explain how I got it. It's in my left elbow. I'm right handed. So, it's not a computer mouse

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-11928859217646060582011-09-26T08:39:00.000-06:002011-09-26T08:39:34.259-06:00

Saturday was my son Gage's birthday, so we spent the day celebrating him. We woke up that morning and Joi made cinnamon rolls upon Gage's request. We let him open a present from Grandma Jan. Then we got ready and went to Gavin's first football game (he had a 15 yard run as a running back...not too bad for his first game). We went home after the game and Gage opened the rest of his gifts from us

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-7399778880600159962011-09-23T16:11:00.001-06:002011-09-23T16:11:08.387-06:00

I've owned a Kindle for five days now. I'm loving it. I immediately charged it and started reading the electronic manual that comes pre-loaded. On the second day, I loaded it with a few free books from Amazon and a book that I've been wanting to read called "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs. Every day when I ride the bus I read a little more of that book. It's a good

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-21016803083087614642011-09-22T14:07:00.000-06:002011-09-22T14:07:05.128-06:00

Okay, so I am a recovering pack rat. I'm doing my best to downsize and consolidate. However, the biggest struggle I have is this; how do I get rid of nostalgic items? What do I mean by nostalgic items? I've got a HUGE storage bin full of mementos from my childhood. Some of it I saved. Some of it my Mom or Dad gave me after having saved it for many years. What do I do with this stuff? Will my kids

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-59155769838393245442011-09-21T10:02:00.000-06:002011-09-21T10:02:06.630-06:00

Hello. My name is Chris and I'm a pack rat. Since childhood, I've collected things. When I was younger, I collected stamps, exotic beer bottles, antique Coke and Dr. Pepper bottles, toys, relics from nature, vinyl records, and many, many other things. Occasionally, my Mom would go through my room when I was younger and consolidate while I was at school. I'd come home to a clean and organized

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-27774118358255122322011-09-20T12:38:00.001-06:002011-09-20T12:38:09.028-06:00

I had a very nice day with my family yesterday celebrating my birthday. I woke up at 7:15am. I was hoping to sleep in, but my adult body thinks that 7:15am is sleeping in. Oh well. My family immediately showered me with birthday wishes and presents. Joi had decorated the living room with black streamers (my request) and balloons. I got an Amazon Kindle and a case from my family, Mom, and Sister.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-82194954899721779772011-09-16T14:20:00.001-06:002011-09-16T14:20:36.887-06:00

Sorry, in advance, for the shameless plug. My birthday is on Monday. I will be turning 39. It's hard to believe. This will be the last year of my 30's. I remember when I was 15 and my Dad turned 33 years old. That was the last time I really paid attention to his age. In fact, he'll be happy to know that, mentally, for me, he's stuck at 33 years old. But, I remember thinking that he was old at

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-83382226032020542602011-09-13T13:55:00.001-06:002011-09-13T13:56:32.572-06:00

I made a prayer list sometime eight or nine years ago. I had it on my Palm Pilot and would periodically open the document and pray through the list for my wife, son (at the time there was only one), family members, non-christian family/friends, etc. Flash-forward to the present. Joi and I were talking the other day about praying more together and revamping our nightly prayer with our boys

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-48845805554798649552011-09-08T13:54:00.001-06:002011-09-08T13:54:26.697-06:00

I am big on scents. I enjoy them. I love particular scents like summer rain hitting hot pavement, Christmas baking, rose or flowery perfumes, play-doh, a new book, onions being sauteed, baby powder, the inside of a new guitar case, coffee, and cocoanut shampoo...just to name a few. But, what intrigues me is when a scent is closely tied in to a memory. For instance, today I washed out my

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-40938577356818756552011-09-07T13:26:00.001-06:002011-09-07T13:26:21.414-06:00

We left on Friday for a holiday-weekend trip to Durango to visit my Dad and Step-Mom. When we left it was hot, the pool in our complex was open, we ran the air conditioner on a daily basis, and it just felt like summer. We arrived back last night and it was noticeably cooler and it was raining. We opened the windows and didn't even have to turn on the air conditioner. This morning, it was raining

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-31257530219385511512011-09-01T15:53:00.003-06:002011-09-01T15:54:32.752-06:00

You know my boys are being raised right! Here they are performing "A Hard Days Night" by the Beatles. Enjoy!!

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-69842531092533904082011-08-30T09:06:00.000-06:002011-08-30T09:06:43.564-06:00

Through the years, I have seen the words Yeah used when someone really meant Yay. I was confused, too, once upon a time about which one was appropriate and which word meant what. But at some point I looked them up in a dictionary and I found out the meanings so that I could begin to use the words correctly. Here's what I found. Yeah: – Adverb, Informal. Yes. Yay: -Interjection.  An exclamation

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-71721135327075636062011-08-29T12:57:00.000-06:002011-08-29T12:57:16.965-06:00

I grew up as an only child until I was 13. When my parents divorced and subsequently remarried, I gained a half-sister, a step-brother, and two step-sisters. My step-sisters were already grown and moved out of the house before I got to really be a sibling to know them on a sibling basis. When I was 13, I lived with my step-brother for two and a half years. We were only 2 years apart in age. We

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-10841469767881372522011-08-25T12:40:00.000-06:002011-08-25T12:40:03.072-06:00

Every day on the bus ride home from work, one of my fellow passengers reads a news paper. He's an older gentlemen and looks professional with a tie, white shirt, and business coat. Each day, he gets off the bus two stops ahead of me. Each day, he purposely leaves his newspaper on the bus seat when he gets off. At first, I thought it was by accident, but after watching him do it day after day, I

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-23962857450273454792011-08-23T14:13:00.000-06:002011-08-23T14:13:28.772-06:00

My wife had a frustrating day with our sons yesterday. She handled it well, but it was stressful nonetheless. This morning, as is my habit, I wrote a small note on the bathroom mirror with a dry-erase marker. I wrote "Today is a new day." After I wrote it, I reflected on the beauty of a new day. A clean slate. God's gift to us is a new day or a clean slate. He offered that new day when he sent

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-78640661625092692722011-08-19T12:47:00.000-06:002011-08-19T12:47:21.365-06:00

I am so proud of my wife. Her book, which was published last year by Comfort Publishing, is finally released. The official release date was September 1st, but everyone who pre-ordered the book on amazon.com are starting to receive their copies in the mail. So, I guess it's officially released. It's so cool to see the early buzz on Facebook from friends and family who received it in the mail and

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-65975376085268085862011-08-16T11:44:00.000-06:002011-08-16T11:44:53.553-06:00

Gage had two loose teeth on either side of his two front teeth. I've been checking them periodically and while they were loose, they didn't feel like they were loose enough to pull out. But, that all changed yesterday. As he was brushing his teeth yesterday morning, he spit, and surprisingly spit out one of the teeth. Unfortunately, the tooth promptly went down the drain and was lost forever.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-65385273789047421492011-08-12T11:25:00.000-06:002011-08-12T11:25:50.588-06:00

Tomorrow morning will mark one week of living without television in the Copeland household. Well, at least traditional television. We have internet ready Blu-Ray players attached to both televisions in our home. The main television has a Blu-Ray player that has access to Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon Instant Video, Pandora, and a few other internet apps. The one upstairs in our bedroom just has

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-83981176035456568462011-08-11T08:35:00.001-06:002011-08-11T08:39:15.414-06:00

My wife and I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides last night at the Elvis Cinema. We had a date last night because our kids stayed the night with Steffanne, Josiah, and Dylan (Russell is in Arizona with his Dad who is dying of cancer...please pray for them). We wanted to see the movie before our kids did, to make sure it was appropriate for our boys. After seeing the previews,

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-32079478570369772442011-08-10T13:46:00.001-06:002011-08-10T13:46:54.954-06:00

Yesterday, I finally went to have physical therapy performed on my tendonitis. My PT said that it was severe. I already knew this because of the searing pain and discomfort when I grip things, bend my elbow, or turn my arm certain ways. It's in my left arm, which is weird since I'm right handed. But, it hurts like the devil and wearing a strap and taking prescribed anti-inflammatory medications

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-2777188767964761892011-08-05T12:42:00.000-06:002011-08-05T12:42:34.323-06:00

When I was young, the key indicator of when you were getting old was when you said the phrase "I remember when candy was only _____". When my Grandparents reminisced about buying two candies for a penny and were appalled at candy then being a quarter, I rolled my young eyes and asked questions like "Did you ride a dinosaur to the store, too?" Flash forward to today. Friday is my day to eat lunch

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-69772815285593288272011-08-03T16:09:00.000-06:002011-08-03T16:09:14.032-06:00

While we were in California, a friend of ours gave me his old 32 GB iPhone 3G. We were hoping to change cell phone service and that I'd be able to set this phone up as my cell phone. However, all cell services that work with the iPhone are a little too expensive for our taste...especially since we are tightening the belt (see previous two blogs). But, I have been utilizing it with WiFi at home

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-37716007164876672032011-08-02T10:23:00.000-06:002011-08-02T10:23:33.133-06:00

Tightening the belt will probably mean trying to get out of our Verizon contract and going with a cheaper cell phone service. They are just too expensive for what we are getting. We play over $100 bucks for two phones with a shared 700 minutes and 250 texts. It just isn't working for us. So, we started looking around. Walmart has the Straight Talk pre-paid wireless program where you get unlimited

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-90556606307702489162011-08-01T14:26:00.001-06:002011-08-01T16:07:38.400-06:00

We really want to buy a home in Colorado. We are tired of living in rented home's and not having a backyard for the kids. We need space. Our boys are growing and our current home is getting smaller by the minute. We simplify. We get rid of stuff. We rearrange. Nothing seems to help the space issue. Plus, if people come to visit, they have to stay on the couch in the living room. We just need a

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-26436401227833448032011-07-29T08:54:00.000-06:002011-07-29T08:54:59.425-06:00

I am the lucky man who for the past 12 years and counting gets to call that sexy godess in the photo to the left my wife. On Sunday, July 31st, my beautiful wife and I get to celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary. I waited until I was almost 27 years old to get married because I wanted to choose wisely and make sure I was making a good decision. I have always told myself that divorce was not a

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-65669602315398561462011-07-28T11:58:00.000-06:002011-07-28T11:58:43.868-06:00

I discovered Pandora sometime in 2009. I wrote a couple of blogs about it. I loved it! It's a great way to find new artists and listen to song styles that you like. Unfortunately, shortly after discovering it, my place of employment blocked it on the network (probably because it eats up bandwidth). So, goodbye Pandora. I was bummed. But, while on my trip to California, a friend gave me an iPhone.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-89272867551876787332011-07-27T13:12:00.000-06:002011-07-27T13:12:01.825-06:00

Shortly following the aftermath of 9/11, a construction worker found a perfectly formed cross in the rubble at ground zero. The cross consisted of two intersecting steel beams that were sheared off perfectly in the shape of the Christian symbol. This cross, serving as a beacon of hope for thousands of relief workers, remained prominently displayed while relief workers went through the rubble

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-6716724928887421902011-07-25T14:05:00.000-06:002011-07-25T14:05:21.926-06:00

I love technology and new inventions. I wouldn't describe myself as a green person, but I do appreciate environmentally friendly innovations. During my trip to California, I found an invention that fuses technological geekdom with green awesomeness. It's called the Dyson Airblade. As a huge advocate of Dyson's vacuums, I'm not surprised that they've come up with this incredibly useful invention.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-30451480625190542202011-07-22T09:12:00.000-06:002011-07-22T09:12:08.213-06:00

To wrap up my Vacation Highlight series, I wanted to talk about something that we were looking forward to for a long time. Food! Food that you can't get in Colorado. Food like Vince's Spaghetti, In and Out, North Woods Inn, The Hat, etc. So, interwoven into our plans were small excursions to these delightfully tasty locations. On the way to California, we strategically planned our hotel stay in

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-45616440587186177962011-07-21T14:01:00.001-06:002011-07-21T17:37:19.495-06:00

When we made it known that we were going to California, we began to get lots of requests to spend time with people. Plus, we already had lots of activities that centered around Joi's family and the 90th birthday party of her grandparents. So, we did our best to accommodate everyone and make it to each event that we could. The bad side was that it made for a hectic and busy two weeks. The good

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-23813379579167818912011-07-20T09:21:00.001-06:002011-07-20T09:22:27.041-06:00

As a Christmas present, my mom gave us enough money to go to Disneyland while we were in California. On Wednesday, July 6th, we did just that. I was grateful that Mom was feeling well enough to go. With just starting chemo to fight her breast cancer, the whole day was up in the air. But, she was feeling good. I offered to push her around in a wheel chair all day, though, to make sure that she had

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-16958056305663012942011-07-19T10:22:00.001-06:002011-07-19T10:23:49.050-06:00

One of the highlights of the trip to California was the Cry for Mercy Reunion Concert. It took place in the same room where we started 20 years ago at Christ First Church of Covina. Although, the room was much nicer now with carpet and a full stage with lights and sound. The crowd that came was probably the biggest crowd CFM ever played for (not counting the two years playing the L.A. Marathon).

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-11314120138925182282011-07-18T10:58:00.000-06:002011-07-18T10:58:26.695-06:00

We are back from our vacation in California. It's good to be home. Life was way too crazy in California. We were up early in the mornings and up until late in the evenings, going from one event to the next. There was too much to do and too many people to see. While we got time with everyone we planned to see, we don't feel like we really got good quality time with anyone. It was a blur. But, we

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-91174720485635309072011-07-01T10:17:00.000-06:002011-07-01T10:17:26.041-06:00

Vacations are tough. There is so much to do. Planning, shopping, calling, scheduling, getting the car fixed, planning some more, and everything else required. It's just plain tiring. The hope is that once you get on vacation, you can rest and take it easy. Unfortunately, we have so much planned and so much going on, there will be very little rest and relaxation. It will be good to see everyone

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-28968270795030082892011-06-29T10:00:00.000-06:002011-06-29T10:00:21.724-06:00

I just wanted to give my wife some props. She is working tirelessly to get ready for our two week vacation in California. She pretty much planned our entire calendar of activities on her own. She made time with everyone who desires to spend time with us. Although our time will be pretty limited with everyone because we are only there for less than two weeks and there are a lot of people to see,

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-13378588219550267922011-06-28T13:02:00.000-06:002011-06-28T13:02:34.976-06:00

My Mom will be starting chemotherapy today to combat her breast cancer. She has a great and positive attitude. I am very impressed with how she is handling this whole thing. She's definitely a positive role model. My Mom is leaning heavily on her faith in God and God's power to see her through this. She is using all possible modern medical advancements to combat the cancer, but her faith is

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-39303016592301657312011-06-27T15:13:00.000-06:002011-06-27T15:13:50.497-06:00

We're getting closer and closer to our trip. This week we will be eating the last of our food, giving the neighbors the key to our place to "keep an eye out", buying snacks and groceries for the long drive and trip, printing out maps, calling hotels to make sure the reservation still stands, getting the brakes on the car looked at, changing the strings on my guitar, and so on. Most of this falls

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-15863664221682179252011-06-24T15:29:00.000-06:002011-06-24T15:29:24.539-06:00

I had my yearly physical today. I brought in my list of things I wanted to talk to the doctor about. I asked her about my tendonitis. She gave me some anti-inflammatory meds and told me to keep wearing the brace and icing it down when I need it. I just hope it doesn't hurt this bad by July 7th-8th. Not sure how well I'll be able to play guitar with a messed up elbow. Practicing for more than 40

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-27883160110375328032011-06-22T15:10:00.001-06:002011-06-22T15:21:55.039-06:00

In mythology, sirens were women or winged creatures that used to lure sailors to crash into the rocks by singing alluring songs. Basically, a temptress. In my life, technology is my siren. It drives my wife crazy because we can't afford to placate my addition to technology. I appreciate that she has the will and ability to do our finances and that she is strong enough to tell me no. If I had my

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-57055088991949453112011-06-21T09:46:00.001-06:002011-06-21T09:48:21.347-06:00

My oldest son, Garrison, wanted a Didgeridoo. Don't ask me why. He just really wanted one. One day while checking my usual round of websites, I found a Didgeridoo on goingtoday.com for $19.99. I did a quick search online to see if goingtoday.com was legit and didn't find anything immediately negative about the website, so I forwarded it on to my wife to show our son. Despite being very frugal

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-23641106613901012952011-06-20T10:13:00.000-06:002011-06-20T10:13:51.645-06:00

I had a great Father's Day this year. In the morning, Joi made me blueberry pancakes and eggs (with ham, green peppers, and cheese). Joi and the boys gave me cards. The boys' cards were homemade. Garrison's card had a drawing of he and I playing Wii. Gavin and Gage's card had drawings of them running to give me a hug. It was cute. Then we went to church. Unfortunately, it was a VBS Sunday...so

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-3206101348997861812011-06-17T15:13:00.002-06:002011-06-17T15:15:49.633-06:00

Lately, I've been turning on KROQ Roq of the 80's Online Channel while at work and listening to it throughout the day. I've been enjoying listening to 80's alternative music while I work. Sometimes it plays an 80's song that I totally forgot about. Other times, it plays the old favorites. The tried and true awesome 80's songs that I grew up loving. I've been enjoying my musical trip back to the

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-49145716267714257482011-06-16T09:42:00.001-06:002011-06-17T15:09:39.463-06:00

I saw an article that Disney raised their park admission prices...again. Effective June 12th, it's now $80 for a one day adult ticket (a $4 increase) and $74 for a one day child's ticket (a $6 increase). This is for a one park pass. If we get a park-hopper, it will be $105 for an adult (a $4 increase) and $99 for a child (a $7 increase). We plan to go to Disneyland when we vacation in California

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-17057023845050838392011-06-14T09:35:00.000-06:002011-06-14T09:35:44.353-06:00

On Sunday, as we were driving to church, we spotted two male (bull) Elk grazing in the greenbelt across the street from our home. I stopped and took a snapshot of them with my phone. You'll have to zoom in to see them. My phone camera doesn't take great pictures. They were maybe 50 yards away from us and they both looked up from grazing when we passed by to reveal their huge, beautiful racks.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-78761470146021651942011-06-13T08:31:00.000-06:002011-06-13T08:31:26.524-06:00

By no means and I am Dallas Mavericks fan. I like Jason Terry and I think Jose Barea has a lot of spunk. Also, Dirk is probably one of the best all time basketball players in the league. But, still....not a fan. But, I am a fan of anyone who can embarrass the cocky, media hungry, and arrogant Miami Heat. And the Mavs did it!! They beat the Heat in six games and in a decisive way with a ten point

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-64061300100784696312011-06-09T11:01:00.000-06:002011-06-09T11:01:06.904-06:00

I just received difficult news from someone I love very much. I won't share the details here because it's not my place. But, I did want to ask for prayer for this situation. I know that's a very generic request, but God already knows the details. He has got this entire situation in the palm of His hand and He will never leave nor forsake us. "Therefore we do not become discouraged (utterly

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-91175011217832968142011-06-08T13:56:00.001-06:002011-06-08T13:59:31.573-06:00

Well folks, the Cry for Mercy 20th Anniversary Reunion will take place exactly one month from today. The set list has been chosen. Words are being re-memorized. I am picking up my Strat today after $116 dollars worth of repairs (basically it needed all new electronics, some replacement springs inside, a sanded down nut, some adjustments to the neck and pickups, etc). Joe rented the venue and

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-28876816695959411102011-06-06T09:27:00.002-06:002011-06-06T09:28:50.905-06:00

This is pretty funny. Having been to a few churches in my time, this is mostly accurate. It was created by a church who are known for their church planting prowess, so it's fun to see that they have a sense of humor about themselves. Take a look!

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-61908596722338731602011-06-01T13:41:00.002-06:002011-06-01T13:49:22.502-06:00

My wife's first book which was published earlier this year is finally available for pre-order on Amazon. Joi emailed me today and told me that someone had already ordered it and I immediately went to Amazon.com and looked it up. Sure enough, there she is! How cool to see it available like this. I know all of the hard work, blood, sweat, and tears that she put into this book, so to finally see it

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-13967335981782574642011-06-01T10:44:00.000-06:002011-06-01T10:44:28.186-06:00

This past weekend was a nice weekend. I took Friday off in order to attend Gavin's kindergarten graduation and Gage's school play. Both were fun and I am proud of my boys! We got license plates for our new mini-van. I got a date with my beautiful wife. We did some swimming with the kiddos (the pool opened on Friday). We tried to take it easy, which was nice. On Monday, we drove up to Kittridge in

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-15646869733109093452011-05-25T13:17:00.000-06:002011-05-25T13:17:17.125-06:00

I have a "Daddy Board" at work. When the boys hand me artwork that they created or little notes, I like to take them to work and post them on my "Daddy Board". I've got a nature scene by Garrison complete with trees and clouds. I've got a nature scene by Gage with mountains and a sunset. I've got a dragon created by Gavin. I've got a couple of "Coat of Arms" created by Garrison and Gavin. I've

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-48268376508783027532011-05-24T09:33:00.000-06:002011-05-24T09:33:56.874-06:00

So, Harold Camping was wrong. Like most properly grounded Christians believed, the day came and went without any rapture, tribulation, or devastating earthquake. Nothing happened. Proving that God is right when he says "No one will know the day or the hour." With egg on his face, Harold Camping took a couple of days off to deal with this devastating blow and promised a statement on Monday. This

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-43793092272175842152011-05-23T16:53:00.001-06:002011-05-24T08:38:50.198-06:00

Everyone has heard of the Lord's commandment to keep holy the sabbath and to set it aside as a day of rest. God knows us all so well (after all...He created us) that He knows that we need a day off. A day for rest and relaxation. So, what does that look like in this crazy, busy world we live in? Here's what our Sunday looked like this week. I was up at 7am to get ready for our churches first

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-81702766169288183082011-05-20T15:43:00.000-06:002011-05-20T15:43:08.443-06:00

I don't have anything to say today, so I thought I'd post a picture of my bright smiling face while I worked. No one cares, but hey...I'm amused. I was playing with my laptop's webcam and clicked this picture while sitting in my office. Check out my cool giant white board!! Jealous?

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-66273563959554873182011-05-19T10:21:00.000-06:002011-05-19T10:21:32.083-06:00

According to news reports and billboards all over the place, Judgement Day will be on May 21st. This date has been made public by a pastor from either New York or California (I've heard conflicting reports). This same pastor, also, thought the end of the world was going to be in 1994. He recalculated the date using "newly found bible evidence" and came up with the date of May 21st at 6pm to be

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-11734733103674347362011-05-18T09:47:00.001-06:002011-05-19T09:13:01.315-06:00

I'm working from home today. I was typing on my laptop while the boys and Joi do school. Gavin suddenly says in a sing-song voice..."Why do my nostrils whisper to me?" Yep, chip off the old block!

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-86319846620308739922011-05-13T11:31:00.000-06:002011-05-13T11:31:56.607-06:00

I was utterly disgusted last night when American Idol revealed that James Durbin was voted out and that Haley was voted into the top three. Are you freaking kidding me?!?!?!? I was sure that James would win the entire thing. He's never had a bad performance and was never in the bottom three. He's got a great back story. He was an amazing singer and artist. I am shocked, dismayed, and utterly

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-73771442612106897462011-05-10T09:47:00.000-06:002011-05-10T09:47:52.976-06:00

It's taken me a couple of days to process the devastating and embarrassing sweep that the Lakers endured by the hands of the Dallas Mavericks. I knew going into the finals this year that the Lakers just didn't have the heart (or the "eye of the tiger") to win it all this year. But, to be swept. That's something entirely different. The Lakers didn't even try. Or at least it didn't seem like it.

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-61260157312124960572011-05-06T13:20:00.000-06:002011-05-06T13:20:14.100-06:00

I've been busy lately...so I haven't had time to post. But, I wanted to share this video that I saw earlier this week. It just cracks me up!!!

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9630681.post-51634560875258974622011-05-02T09:41:00.000-06:002011-05-02T09:41:16.080-06:00

I found the resurgence of Doctor Who on Netflix, so I started watching them. Right now, I am watching the episodes with a regenerated Doctor played by Christopher Eccleston (who, by the way, is freaking hilarious as the Doctor). On Saturday, I thought I'd introduce my wife and boys to Doctor Who. We watched the first couple of episodes. When we went to bed that night, Gavin stated that he liked

Chris Copelandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17508802929698437921noreply@blogger.com1