Jordan Rippy

That’s right. Your’s truly is experiencing a total lack of bloggable material. But I would like to take this oppurtunity to claim the term “Blogger’s Block”. I’m sure it’s been used before, but until I’m challenged I’m claiming it.

On a more serious note…Don’t fear the silence on my blog. This weekend Kristin and I are heading to North Carolina to visit my grandparent’s farm. This is sure to bring a wealth of bloggable material for your enjoyment. Until then, I’m checkign out…I’ll be back to blogging on Tuesday. Have a great Labor Day.

Tony Morgan got me thinking about the major U.S. cities that I’ve never visited. I consider myself pretty well traveled. I’ve been out of the country over a dozen times and traveled all around the United States. That’s why I was surprised how many major U.S. cities I’ve never visited. So here’s the “Top Ten” (in no particular order):

1. Boston, MA - So close, yet so far away. Every year since I was young my family has visited my uncle in Litchfield, CT. Kristin and I are going to Connecticut the first of the year…We’ll have to make it happen!
2. Houston, TX - I’ve actually never been to the longhorn state…I’ve passed through the airports, but that’s it.
3. Dallas, TX - Again, never “Messed with Texas”. I recently almost missed a flight out of Dallas. We actually only made the flight by 60 seconds.
4. Chicago, IL - I’ve had a connection with this state ever since Bozo the Clown.
5. San Fransisco, CA - I would love t o see the Golden Gate Bridge in person. I hear San Fransisco is beautiful, and I believe it. Plus, I really want to see the Tanner’s town house from “Full House”.
6. Phoenix, AZ - No real reason, just want to go. I’d love to catch a Sun’s game.
7. New Orleans, LA - I’d love to check out the jazz scene. There’s nothing better than sitting in a little whole-in-the-wall listening to some unknown totally rock it.
8. Detroit, MI - I’ll go in the fall, when it’s not quite so cold.
9. Miami, FL - Quite honestly, I don’t have a huge desire to visit Miami. I just feel like it has to make the list because of it’s status.
10. Honolulu, HI - Never been to Hawaii, but I love the water so I’m sure it would be amazing!

UPDATE - Apparently I’ve been to Dallas…At least that’s what my dad says.

Jason Upton lead worship at church last night. I really enjoy when Christian artists are humble and genuine, and Jason seemed to be both. He was very nice and laid-back…A listener. My favorite song of the evening was “In Your Presence”. I leave you with this “Jupton” quote: “God’s creativity is different than man’s. God does not create for man’s approval, God creates for man’s discovery.”

* My eyes look whack in this picture.

Today is the first day of my last semester at Southeastern. You know it’s bad when you have a wicked case of Senioritus on the first day of class.  I’m so ready for this semester to be over…Luckily I only have class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which means that I only have 30 actual school days left!

For the last three nights I have consistently woken up at around 4am. My body just wakes up as though my alarm has gone off…And, of course, I can’t go back to sleep. This was particularly frustrating last night, as I had an 8 o’clock class this morning.

Question: When counting sheep, are you supposed to visualize them one at a time? Or are you supposed to visualize a whole field of sheep and count them that way? i tend to visualize a hand-made wooden fence and one by one the sheep jump over it.

So my last post has prompted me to start a dialogue with my vast readership. Saved by the Bell has once again bridged both generational and geographical gaps that no other teen sitcom could attempt to reconcile. Here I am opening a forum for favorite Saved by the Bell moments. I’ll get things started…Here are some favorite Saved by the Bell moments:

• MVEMJSUNP = Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto.
• Zap Zit turns Kelly’s face red before homecoming…And “Red Faces” become the new trend around Bayside.
• Screech ruin’s Lisa’s fashion show by describing Zack’s brown suede pants as “Perfect for wearing while stabbing your best friend in the back…I’m outta’ here!”  
• “Bayside is the school that’s cool and you know that it’s true (know that it’s true, Know that it’s true.)” - a little lemon juice ruins the live performance though.
• And who can forget? B-B-BBB-B GO BAYSIDE!

Please join in the fun by posting your favorite Saved by the Bell moments.

Just finished watching 24, season 5. It is definitely the best season so far. I have to be honest…Season 4 was great, but it got a little slow in the middle. Season 5 has been non-stop since the beginning. Its got me really excited for season 6. Here are some season 5 thoughts and observations:

• Jack Bauer / Frank Flinn is the man.
• Buchanan is probably the best CTU director to date.
• President Logan is unbelievably reprehensible.
• I miss President Palmer.
• Season 5 has the most interesting and intricate plot.
• Kim wasn’t in this season enough to do anything too stupid.
• I really like Aaron Pierce.
• Jack always yells into his cell phone…I’ve never understood why he doesn’t keep it on “silent”.
• 4 people I really liked died in this season.
• Jack works best “on a provisional basis.”
• The last hour…WOW.

Yesterday I was actually going to buy a CD. I know what you’re thinking, but something just came over me. Anyway, I’ve heard great things about the new Delirious? Cd, Now Is The Time: Live at Willowcreek. So I go to our local Family Christian Store to pick up a copy. When I get there I find out that not only do they not have it, but they’ve never heard of it, and they can’t order it. I mean, as far as Christian music goes, Delirious? has some serious cred…They opened for U2 in Europe for cryin’ out loud! So I get the number of another local Christian bookstore…Guess what? Never heard of it, can’t order it. So I come home empty handed. Then I jump on my computer, pull up iTunes, and I have the album like ten seconds later…

iTunes: 1
Christian Music Stores: -2

The 11th is always a big day of the month for me, because it seems that many-a-mile markers in my life fall on the 11th. Here are three anniversaries that fall on August 11th:

1. Our engagement - 1 year ago today I asked Kristin Laurel Dunning to marry me. Today we’ve been happily married for five months. I can’t believe it’s been a year. It seems like yesterday we were planning our wedding…
2. The Blog - 1 year ago today I started the blog.  Our engagement, marriage, and my graduation all fall within about 18 months. I knew that all of those events would bring a lot of growth, and change. I wanted a medium to tell the stories that come with major life changes…I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the last twelve months of my life as much as I enjoyed living it…I’ll keep living. You keep reading.
3. Our wedding - Five months ago today Kristin and I were married in Orange Park, FL. It was a perfect day. I can’t believe it’s already been five months!

Our Engagement Post

Our Wedding Post

Only the true John Mayer fan will catch the lyrical pun in the title…Tonight Kristin and I saw Mayer for the second time this year. We saw him for the first time in January when he was in Orlando. Tonight we caught the show in Tampa at the Ford Amphitheater. We were happy to be in the covered portion of the venue, because it rained really hard for quite a while. We did get a little wet when the wind picked up, but we weren’t near as wet as the people on the lawn. My friend Chris and his girlfriend were like two rows behind us, but the seats directly in front of us ended up being empty so we all got to sit together.

The musicianship on the stage was incredible. Four favorite songs of the show would have to be:

• Belief - Show opener.
• I Don’t Trust Myself (With Loving You) - Incredible sax solo.
• Good Love Is On The Way - One of my favorites.
• Neon - Acoustic version.

Keep in mind, literally every song was incredible. These songs were just some personal favorites. Also, last fall when John Mayer was in Tampa he was co-headlining with Sheryl Crow. Crow is remembered here in Florida for coming out on stage at the end of the show (a bit tipsy) and in her underwear (Check out the madness here). Tonight, when the band came out after the acoustic encore they were all in their underwear, a wife-beater, and tube socks. It was hilarious.

As for the openers…James Morrison was actually pretty good, but Ben Folds was just frustrating. Maybe he just had an off night, but his set list was literally annoying. There were actually people around me covering their ears because he went all crazy on a synth that sounded like nails on a chalkboard.

Kristin and I pre-show