The Oasis Project: Dance

This is an exclsive pre-release post of The Oasis Project and any unauthorized use of material, all or in part, is strictly prohibited by the author.

For the past three or four weeks The Oasis band and choir has been slaving away in the reording studio to produce our latest worship album. Well, Barak and Randy have been slaving away. The rest of us just had fun!

I can only speak for the choir of course. The band laid down the music track a week earlier than the choir laid down vocals. The purpose of this was so that the choir would have some music to sing along with! Brilliant, I know. We had a rough start with the dreaded celebration song, but Barak loves that song so we all did our best. From then on it was smooth sailing. We had to sing each song (the choir part) twice because we will stack the vocals on the final cut. This will make us sound like a choir of 24 instead of only 12. (l-r: Barak, Jim, Dennis, Gary, Me;aka Monty)



We all agreed that the motto of the recording session was "hurry up and wait". It took a little time to get equipment set up and running smoothly. We took a couple of breaks and made it out of the studio after only three and a half hours. (Missy;aka Smitty, Karri)



Barak took the brunt of all the stress for us. His ideas often clashed with Randy's, whose studio we used. He did lead vocals on most of the songs.



I came into the studio the next day to record lead vocals on three of our songs. It was a lot of fun, but a little harder than I thought it would be. It is actually real work. I had to sing each song three or four times through until we had what we wanted.



Randy French owns the recording studio in Grand Haven and I really hope he doesn't sue me for posting his photo here. He is a very nice guy, but also very no-nonsense and can be a bit on the intimidating side. He said that he doesn't really need talent because his equipment does it all, which is fairly true because he applied auto tuning to most of our vocals to correct any off pitch notes. It is quite amazing what he can do.

We all worked very hard on this project, so I hope you will enjoy the CD when it is released (exclusively) in the next few weeks. I will be autographing any copies that you would like. I would also like to point out that Jeff did an amazing job on the trombone to contribute to the project. I'm sure he'll post some pics of the band recording session, and no doubt he'll autograph your CD as well. I know I want him to autograph my copy!

At the End

Your Famous Last Words Will Be:

"I dunno, press the button and find out."

What Will Your Famous Last Words Be?

Instant Hiccup Cure!

Yes ladies and gentlemen, this foolproof remedy for hiccups works every time! And in a matter of seconds!! This inexpensive, ordinary household staple is none other than (drumroll please...): PEANUT BUTTER! Yes folks its very simple. When you find yourself plagued by the annoying and sometimes painful hiccups (also knows as hiccoughs), simply scoop out a spoonful of creamy peanut butter and take a big bite. The concentration exerted by the brain to prevent choking on the thick, creamy peanut butter takes all the attention away from those pesky hiccups and they dissipate immediately. No more scaring the beejeebers out of yourself, holding your breath, drinking water upside down, or focusing on taking your hiccup out and putting it in your hand (a vain attempt to distract the brain from allowing hiccups). Once you try the peanut butter method you will never go back to the other methods again.

Warning: Please do not attempt this if you have even the remotest allergy to peanuts!

Endorsement: This remedy is wholeheartedly endorsed by the author of this blog.

Disclaimer: The author has not attempted this remedy using crunchy peanut butter and cannot vouch for its effectiveness or safety.

A State of Being

WARNING: The following post contains material that may be shocking to some readers, and may cause a shattering of the ideal or perfect "self" of the author. As for the author, she gladly steps down from her pedistal. If you feel that you cannot be exposed to such content without incurring mental and emotional damage, please do not read any further.

I am tired of being disappointed. No more, please stop. There is nothing I hate more in life than disappointment. My only defense is to not care, to not expect anything.

Everything I do seems pointless, leading to only God knows where. Nothing seems to work or help. One step forward, two steps back. All seems futile and meaningless.

I am being exsanguinated of hope: A long, slow blood-letting of the soul. I am almost empty, I feel the life ebbing from me. (someone please, please help me)

On independance day, I am still not free. Oh the irony.

DISCLAIMER: I realize this is only my perception, my state of being. Maybe even my season in life. A season of faith shaking. I was asked to trust, I have abandoned that effort for the present although I hope to work my way back into it, which will probably turn out to be a disappointing effort. It would probably be more advantageous to give up on any self-effort and...well...trust God to do it. I guess I am angry at losing what (I think) is so important to me. I could use your prayers in this. I so very rarely get the luxury to be weak and needy. I am always required to be "strong" and "spiritual" and, simply put, I am tired of that. I want to be a real human being.

Conspiracy

Would you believe there is a conspiracy concerning the health of the average American! Believe it. Yesterday, in an attempt to be more healthy I chose to buy a gallon jug of tea to drink rather than a 2 liter of pop. Three cheers for me right? That's what I thought until today when I looked at the back of the jug to see what great and healthy ingredients I was literally pouring into my body and saw the three most dreaded words, which amounted to: High Fructose Corn Syrup. This ingredient is one of the worst for our bodies and is literally riddled into almost everything we eat! I think it's used to preserve food, but makes our poor pancreases work incredibly hard (if I can remember my nurse cousin's speech on the evils of High Fructose Corn Syrup).

Not only is this a problem, but I'm sure you've noticed that the real healthy food is so expensive only people with extra cash can afford it! Have you been in any health stores lately? They also make everything in a health store seem absolutely essential for your body. Who can afford to buy the whole store?! The details of vitamins, herbs, supplements, minerals, oils, acids and the like are also so numerous ( and dire) that one is left confused and hopeless.

I want to be healthy, I really do. I just get frusterated with all the details only to find out what I thought was healthy really isn't. This is the conspiracy: To make us think what we are eating and drinking is healthy when it isn't, and to charge lots of money for the stuff that is really healthy if you can first get past the confusion about what really is healthy.

If someone could make this really simple for me, I would give them a huge, and I mean huge, hug!

Maybe I should just invest in the health raquet.

Inspiration of the Day

After much persuasion, I took my own advice and visited the links in my sidebar. I must say Strange Signs is absolutely hilarious! I know why I added it. There is a new one on the main page there exposing the true face of feminism. Having done a shallow study of feminism I immediately saw the humor. :) Maybe you will too. I may be inspired to give a short discourse on feminism one day (Thank you…thank you for the applause…no really…sit down…please).

We can always use inspiration of our Faith as the road is very long and dusty sometimes. One of the ways I inspire myself is to read stories of other Christians serving God. I own a book called Jesus Freaks co-written by DC Talk and The Voice of the Martyrs. Richard Wurmbrand started this ministry after spending 14 years in a Communist prison camp for this faith we have claimed. In Jesus Freaks, he shares this story:

Jubilant Dance for Jesus

“Christianity has become dramatic with us,” wrote Pastor Richard Wurmbrand, a leader of the underground church to Communist Romania. “When Christians in free countries win a soul for Christ, the new believer may become a member of a quietly living church. But when those in captive nations win someone, we know that he may have to go to prison and that his children may become orphans. The joy of having brought someone to Christ is always mixed with this feeling that there is a price that must be paid.

“When I was still living behind the Iron Curtain, I had met a Russian Captain. He loved God, he longed after God, but he had never seen a Bible. He had never attended religious services. He had no religious education, but he loved God without the slightest knowledge of Him.

“I read to him the Sermon on the Mount and the parables of Jesus. After hearing them, he danced around the room in rapturous joy, proclaiming, ‘What a wonderful beauty! How could I live without knowing this Christ?’ It was the first time I saw someone jubilating in Christ.

“Then I made a mistake. I read to him the passion and crucifixion of Christ, without having prepared him for this. He had not expected it. When he heard how Christ was beaten, how He was crucified, and that in the end He died, he fell in an armchair and began to weep bitterly. He had believed in a Savior and now his Savior was dead!

“I looked at him and was ashamed that I had called myself a Christian and a pastor, a teacher of others. I had never shared the sufferings of Christ as this Russian officer now shared them. Looking at him was, for me, like seeing Mary Magdalene weeping at the foot of the cross or at the empty tomb.

“Then I read to him the story of the resurrection. When he heard this wonderful news, that the Savior arose from the tomb, he slapped is knees, and shouted for joy: ‘He is alive! He is alive!’ Again he danced around the room, overwhelmed with happiness!

“I said to him, ‘Let us pray!’

“He fell on his knees together with me. He did not know our holy phrases. His words of prayer were, ‘O God, what a fine chap You are! If I were You and You were me, I would never have forgiven You Your sins. But You are really a very nice chap! I love You with all my heart.’

“I think that all the angels in heaven stopped what they were doing to listen to this sublime prayer from this Russian officer. When this man received Christ, he knew he would immediately lose his position as an officer, that prison and perhaps death in jail would almost surely follow. He gladly paid the price. He was ready to lose everything.

*Jesus Freaks, DC Talk and Voice of the Martyrs. Jubilant Dance for Jesus. Albury Publishing. Tulsa, Oklahoma. 1999. p 202

Cyber Life

We all enjoy our little cyber circle. It enhances our lives and friendships. It keeps us connected when life busyness or distance keeps us apart. I sometimes joke that I have a better cyber life than I do a real life! Some people take their cyber lives very seriously.

These are people who have given up on pursuing much of a real life all together. Maybe they have discovered that they can be an entirely new and better person (or perceived as such) in cyber space. Maybe they have discovered that communication is so much easier and less of a personal risk online. Whatever the reason, almost 200,000 people world-wide have gotten a second life: A cyber life. You too can create a new (cyber) life for yourself by going to Secondlife.com. There you can create a digital image of yourself and meet the digital representations of other users for free. If you like it you can, for a small fee, buy property and build a house, start a business, go to clubs, restaurants, and other recreational places. Second Life has its own economy in place using the Linden dollar. Whatever you create there you retain IP rights to and can sell for real US dollars. Yes, you read that right. Lindex is the official currency exchange from Linden $ to US$. There are also in-world ATM machines to make transactions easier.

There is now a cyber life for children at Millsberry.com. It is a much tamer version of Second Life, but just as enticing. Children can create their digital selves and interact in-world all for free. They earn millsbucks by playing games at the arcade. I can see how they can learn about economy and saving “money” in such a world, but if they don’t get on every day to collect their interest bonus points from the bank, they lose that interest. Do I hear the word addiction?

This is Sim City gone insane. With a cyber life like that, why bother with real life stuff anymore? It is a society within a society, turned in on itself. We don’t need to interact with real people anymore. It’s much more fun to create and live in our very own cyber world.

Mulder and Scully

A happy event has occurred in my little world. I discovered seasons 4-9 of the x-files for sale at a store near me. I, of course, bought all six seasons available. While the local Hollywood video rental has so graciously rented seasons 1 & 2 twice to me (humoring me with a sad half smile upon each of my frequent visits), I have yet to see season 3 in its entirety. I shall continue my search and so complete my collection.

Last year I began a ritual that became a great comfort to me. I had discovered for the first time that Hollywood rented seasons 1 & 2 of the x-files (which I had grown to love as a young girl). I was off – semester for the spring and I looked forward each week to indulging in the world of Mulder and Scully. I had also discovered the pleasure of Dove chocolates and logically combined the two delicacies to create several hours of bliss.

Mulder and Scully became like dear friends to me in those hours. I lived vicariously through them. They brought me joy and happiness, and satisfied my craving for the twisted and unexplained mystery with a (sort-of) solution. Again this spring I savored my way through the first and second season only to once again find myself at the end (cliff-hung in fact). I was strangely depressed and restless at the void this left. Imagine my excitement then when I discovered that I could enjoy 129 NEW episodes, and OWN them!

You cannot blame me, or judge me. It is my escape.

I’m willing to bet you have an escape of your own.

A Three Pipe Problem

Mysteries of life are not easily explained. One day, at the end of time, I hope that they will unravel themselves. I love mysteries, but only ones that can be solved. I like to know the ending of a good mystery. I’m not a big fan of Unsolved Mysteries. I shall pose a problem, which I am sure many of you have experienced and wondered at the mysteriousness of the phenomenon.

Have you ever shopped endlessly for clothing or gifts to no avail, but one unexpected day, favor shines down upon you, and you find the perfect things for incredible deals?

Have you ever lived weeks in boring nothingness, when suddenly four events converge on the same weekend forcing you to choose one or maybe two of the events only?

Why do things always happen this way: Feast or Famine?

When it rains, it pours!

It feels as if this is beyond one’s control. The Bible says that there are seasons and times for everything. Would that word refer to this phenomenon? We can exhaust ourselves trying to make things happen out of season. There is also something to be said about being perseverant.

I’m not much of a shopper, but I can compare this phenomenon to shopping. There are days when I go out looking for something, I go to several places, I find nothing, my feet hurt, my back hurts, I’m frustrated, and I feel like I have just completely wasted my time. It’s as if some unseen force has been against me. Other times I go out and every place I go I find exactly what I want, quickly, and in my price range.

I also have experienced the loss of realizing if I just would have looked a little longer and harder I would have found something really cool. I have experienced this while shopping with friends and they find something incredible in a place I gave up looking.

It’s like luck, or favor just builds up and builds up before/until it bubbles over. Maybe that is what pressed down, shaken together, running over means. We just don’t notice the blessing until it runs over. Maybe it’s because room must be made for the blessing before it comes: The ache of boredom and loneliness before the blessing of friends and fun, the frustration of searching to embrace the finding.

Elementary, my dear?

One Word

I stroll down the wide dock at the WL Yacht Club with one small, sticky hand in mine, the result of an ice cream cone gone out of control, and ponder the question Katie just introduced: Explain Mary in one word. I don't hesitate: Strong will. We move on to Katie and she beams: Dreamer. Now what about Miss Stephenie? A moment of thoughfullness, then Mary bursts: Giving! Katie's eyes light up in agreement. I'm stunned. That wouldn't have been the word I would use to describe myself, but to them it fits me perfectly. I would have expected the word caring, or something like it. I guess I do give my time, my advice, my love, my help, my patience. I give of mysef and they know it.

The little things that we do really don't go unnoticed. Our everday lives and presence create a solid (yet invisible) essence of who we are. It remains apart from outward appearance, it is the inner person. It's the person others grow close to, fall in love with, learn to respect, miss when we're away. It is the person that will remain long after our physical body has expired from this world.

Relationships are like mirrors: They allow you to see yourself more clearly.