Fall

Yesterday I sat outside listening to my favorite fall music, Sea Wolf, as the clock officially ticked over into fall. The sun was at the perfect place in the sky, the whether was wonderfully comfortable, and the music instantly brought me back to the joys and sorrows of falls past. It was the first of many beautiful fall moments.

Bring on the leaves, orchards, and sweaters.

Sea Wolf is perfect fall music because it is packed full of gentle and cool sounds. It is earthy and full of the splendor that I love about fall. I actually purchased the album without ever hearing the music because the album art was so good. People who design great albums often make great music.

Leaves in the River receives my highest recommendation. Go listen.

Guess What!!?? I just looked and they are coming to Minneapolis on the 29th. Its only $10! Who's coming with me?

Rebel

You may think this is going to be a post about the new Lecrea album but you are wrong. It is about a cameras- specifically the Canon Rebel.

I was at the Pike Place Market in Seattle last week and i saw close to 100 of these introductory level DSLRs. I could have sworn that Canon had a booth next to the guys throwing the fish. It was fun to see so many cameras but it also reminded me that to make it in this field you have to be doing something so much different/better than everybody else.

I actually had my camera with but I just couldn't bring it out to take the same flower picture as everybody else.

I, like usual, have lots to think about.

What are your thoughts? Have you found this to be true in your field?

Conference

The Desiring God National Conference is coming up in just a few weeks. Sept. 25-27. I went last year and found myself in awe of the glory of God even more. It was an incredible three days of God honoring thought. As soon as tickets went on sale for this upcoming year's conference I bought one.

Little did I know that I would be working that weekend. To say that I am sad is a sever understatement. This brings me to the purpose of this post- would you like to go? I would sell you my ticket for the price that I bought it for- which is less than they are being sold for now.

Let me know if you or someone you know would like it. They will be blessed by participating in such a wonderful conference.

Blogging

...I miss it.

Sorry to the faithful for being so distant these past few months. I stopped blogging for a few reasons- maybe I will get into that at some point, but for now I think I am going to try again.

Because of my lack of concern for the feelings of my readers I suspect there is a chance that I am writing this into the void.

If you, one of my persevering readers, are still reading, would you mind letting me know in the comments section? Nothing long just a 'still here' would suffice. It will help me figure out if this is still a place I should invest my time.

If you deam the comments section of this post a good place to berate for my tardiness that will also be ok.

Olivia

I just shot my first senior portraits and it was so much fun! We shot for almost three hours! The time flew by.

Olivia was a fun and energetic person to shoot. Taking photos of people like Olivia is such a treat. She had no problem being in front of the camera and was not shy with her great smile.

Thanks, Olivia for such a great shoot. Tell your friends!

Spring

Spring is finally here!

As I write I can hear the finches and chickadees singing their lovely songs. I can see daffodils in white with their golden yellow crowns. I can smell the green grass and buds on the trees. I think there is also a hint of BBQ mixed in with the grass and flowers. And to top it off allergies are in full swing.

I am thankful for all of those things- not just because they are wonderful and fun. I am thankful for them because they are a daily reminder that I too, like the once snow covered land, was dead but now have abundant life in my savior Jesus Christ.

I pray that you too are in awe of the creator today as you take part in his wonderful creation.

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

Logo

This is a logo I designed for my photo business. Thoughts? Is it cheeky?

Apology

In my last post (now deleted) I made a few off color comments about a very real and very sad aspect of our world. If I offended you please accept this as my sincere apology. It was never my intention to ostracize anyone by my comments. It was a joke taken too far.

I wish I could take them back but that is the joy and the bane of the written word- permanence.

Thanks for reading my blog. All for the glory and praise of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Further up, further in!

Under Mercy,
Guytano

Troast

This past weekend I had the pleasure of hosting concert number 14 of 100 for Jon Troast. What a fun night!

Jon is on a 100 day 100 concert tour across the midwest and he made a stop at the Lake House in Arden Hills to entertain a group of us with his chill guitar rifts and his candid lyrics.

The whole experience was so genuine that it felt like a conversation with a good friend.

Thanks Jon.

Verizon

My job: photograph some billboards for Verizon.

My goal: capture part of the city along with the billboard.

What a beautiful day to be in Minneapolis with my camera.

Cousins

Congratulations to my dear friends Nathan and Stephanie on their recent engagement. It has been such an honor being apart of your lives these past years. I pray that God blesses you as you embark on this wonderful journey.

Funny thing- there is a photo of Nathan's parents that is almost identical.

Gumption

While listening to The Weepies I had a thought about gumption. Or 'chutzpah' for my Yiddish speaking readers. In their song 'Can't Go Back Now' they sing "I can't really say why everybody wishes they were somewhere else but in the end, the only steps that matter are the ones you take all by yourself."

For a second I thought that was such a great insight. Of course the only steps that count are the ones that I take myself. But then I realized that line might be garbage. The only reason I believed it was because they sang it like it was true. They could have just as easily sang the opposite- "the only steps that matter are the ones you take with someone".

Just because something is put to nice music doesn't make it true. That is a no brainer. I just needed the reminder.

I would probably also lean toward the adapted lyrics.

Allergies

Only in Minnesota can you have blizzards and spring allergies at the same time.

Josh

It was only 2 summers ago that Josh and I first worked together at camp and he has been a great friend ever since. It seems like I have known and trusted him my whole life.

One of the first things I learned about Josh was that he is man who takes his faith very seriously. To Josh, doctrine is not just something to do to- it is the framework in which God reveals himself to man. Josh has been a good steward of the mind the Lord has given him and he has dedicated and applied it to the 'knowledge of the holy'.

It is through this passion and dedication to see the Lord high and lifted up that Josh has become a captivating speaker. When Josh speaks the room listens. I pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to foster his willingness to learn and serve for the sake of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

1st Tim 4:16- Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Madness

It would not be unlikely for me to completely miss the Superbowl, World Series, Finals, and Stanley Cup. In fact, I usually don't even know who is playing in any of those events. I even had to stop and think of the names for all of those sporting climaxes.

But every year I catch the Madness. Spring is in the air and the first round of the men's college basketball tournament is over. It has been an incredible 2 days of fierce competition and I am even in 1st place in our office bracket competition!

Now, lets just hope that UNC goes all the way.

Who did you pick?

Scott

Scott Woller is one of the Lord's most gifted children. There are few people who can wear as many hats as Scott wears- and he wears all of them well. Pastor, father, husband, leader, entrepreneur, boss, visionary, friend.

Scott pastors Corner Church, a young and growing church in the North Loop district of Minneapolis, MN. He truly puts the 'pastor' in pastoral care. Watching him love his congregation and community has been a huge blessing in my life.

Corner Church owns a coffee shop, Corner Coffee, which it meets in 4 times every weekend. I actually had the pleasure of working at the coffee shop for a number of months and I loved overhearing people from the North Loop community talk about what Scott means to them and to their community.

Lord, thank you for sending your servant Scott and his wonderful family to serve in the North Loop. Continue to bless their ministry to a lost city. Make him strong. Make him like Christ.

Winner

Three loud Lithuanian cheers to Laura for winning the first 'Abide' giveaway! Laura has won a copy of John Piper's incredible book, 'Don't Waste Your Life'.

In honor of Laura's last blog entry I will be finding her a wonderfully loved copy that has been read a few times- maybe even my own, because lets be honest- if a book is truly one of your favorites it should never be left on your shelf. Share the wealth.

This just in. Think of your favorite book. Go to your book shelf. Remove said favorite book. Share. Repeat.

Reminder

One last reminder that my giveaway for 'Don't Waste Your Life' ends tonight. Click here for more details.

Also, the 'Reminder' is a great album by Feist.

Slumdog

You should see Slumdog Millionaire.

It is the first movie in a very long time that deserves all of the H(b)ollywood hype.

It has something for everyone.

• Ladies: one of the best love stories put to script.
• Fellas: Die Hard has nothing on this adrenaline rush.
• Moms: beautiful story about family and community- even when it's hard.
• Pops: makes you want to hug a kid.
• Snooty art critics: one of the best shot movies to date. Period.

See it if you haven't. Talk about it if you have.

45

I found my sleep number!
15 was miserably soft.
95 was wretchedly firm.
45 was delightfully perfect!
What is your sleep number?

Giveaway

Last fall I started a blog. You are reading it right now. One of the first things I shared on my blog was that I was a little apprehensive about my new endeavor. I was, and am still not, a real tech savvy kind of guy. Blogging scared me for a couple of reasons. What if I burned out and blogging just became one of my deals. Lame. What if I got really addicted and started blogging about what I ate for dinner and all sorts of other ridiculous things? That would be even worse than burning out. Thankfully, I think I have found a middle ground.

Along with maintaining my own blog I have also taken up the reading of other peoples blogs- blogs of all different shapes and sizes. In my reading I have discovered some traits, trends, and characteristics of blogs. I would like to take a moment and share one of those trends with you- giveaways.

All giant blogs do giveaways and drawings. It makes sense for big and famous blogs to give away stuff. They have a large reader base and they need to keep the mob happy. It's that minuscule drop of hope that you could possibly win the next one that keeps people coming back for more. Its like the lottery, but for people who can read.

I was thinking about it though. Why do you have to be a huge blog to do a giveaway? At what point is it OK to do one? Who decides? I started this blog off with just a handful of faithful readers and I now have 2 handfuls of faithful readers. That is 100% growth! I think that's all I need. That's right, you guessed it. I'm doing a giveaway!

How to win-

• Click on the 'Comment' button right below this entry.
• In the comment section tell me your favorite quote. If there is a reason why its your favorite you could tell me, but it is not necessary.
• If you don't have a user name tell me who you are. Don't worry, you don't have to put your last name- just last initial.
• Everyone who submits a quote will be entered into the drawing.
  

Prize-

• A copy of one of my new favorite books, 'Don't Waste Your Life' by John Piper. This is a life changing book and everyone should read it. If you own it you could give it away to a friend.

Dates-

• Submissions will be accepted until 3/15/09 11:59PM CST.

Thank you for playing and best of luck to you!

Wasted

In an effort to continually diversify my blog I am going to start doing the occasional book review.

'Don't Waste Your Life' by John Piper

Before I start I think it should be made known that I have no interest in promoting this book. My only interest is promoting a Christ centered, God honoring life and this is one of the best tools to help one achieve that.

This is a simple, straight forward, to the point, no nonsense book dedicated to encouraging people to live their lives in a way that makes little of man and much of God. We need to live our lives so that when we reach the end we won't say, "I've wasted it". The only way to do that is to live like Christ. Be like Christ. Give like Christ. Think like Christ. See like Christ. Be Christ.

After reading this book you will never live life the same way. There is no way to go back to the same routine of life that ends in a comfortable retirement. The challenge to live sacrificially is overwhelming and yet there is no trace of the arrogance that is so often found in this kind of motivation. The call is as strong and as welcome as a cup of coffee on Monday morning. Sometimes we all just need a little inspiration and this book has inspiration in spades.

You will never live life the same again. Why? Because it isn't your own.

Bandele

A bandele is a Lithuanian breakfast food and also what I traded for this photo. I didn't know much Lithuanian, but I did know enough to ask him if I could take his photo and then to ask him if he wanted a bandele. He quietly shook his head yes and waited while I quickly ran into the small market and retrieved the morning sweet.

A small interaction that I will cherish for a long time- but not more than the smile he gave me later that day when we crossed paths on the other end of town.

Saved

This past weekend there was a boating accident almost 50 miles of the coast of FL. There were four men aboard the yacht when it capsized in the rough Atlantic seas. The four men were Nick Schuyler, Corey Smith, Marquis Cooper and Will Bleakley- 2 proffesional football players and 2 former college football players.

This story, due to the fame of these men, was in the news for days. The boat was overturned in a storm on Saturday night and only Schuyler was found with the boat on Monday evening. There was no hope of finding the other men on Tuesday evening when the search was called off.

My parents and I were discussing this over dinner the other night and my mom wondered out loud what it would be like to be the one guy who was pulled from the water when your friends had not made it. It was an interesting thought. I am sure he is experiencing both joy and sorrow. Joy because he has been given one more day. Sorrow because he will have to mourn the death of his friends.

When my mom said that I was suddenly filled humility as I realized that I was that man. For no reason of my own I was saved out of an incredible plight. It was not looking good and all of the odds were against me. I was about to die a terrible spiritual death and my savior plucked me out of my sinfulness and made me His own. There was no reason, but I am thankful for the grace he poured out on me.

My life is also filled with joy and sorrow. Joy because my eyes have been opened to Christ's splendor and majesty. Sorrow because I see a world dying in sin and in desperate need of a savior.

Lord, please be with the families of these men who passed away this weekend. They are going through a season of grief and they are going to need you to comfort them. Please show them your reality. Nick Schuyler is a man who has been given another chance. Please use this as turning point in his life. May he not waste this opportunity to make your name great with his new life. May you be praised! Amen.

Nathan

This my dear friend Nathan that I so often mention. As I type this I am filled with an incredible joy because he is in my life. He has been such a close friend to me and in our years of knowing each other and living together we have walked through a lot of life side my side. He is a true friend and a person that can be counted on. His integrity and commitment are admired by all who know him.

Nathan is a theater major at Northwestern and I have been watching him star in all of his shows for many years now. He is incredibly talented and it has been a blessing watching him worship our Lord through his incredible gift.

This past weekend he amazed us all again with his portrayal of Jesus Christ in the hit Broadway musical, Godspell. Nathan had incredible shoes to fill and I think he honored the Lord with his humility as he undertook this overwhelming role. Thank you, Nathan for showing us a side of our savior that we maybe have never seen before. Christ be praised!