Silent Sunday: Little Bird

Friday night, Mick was turning the sprinkler on in the front yard when he noticed a tiny bump on the lawn. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was a small baby bird. He called me to the area and we watched it for a while...it was shaking, rocking back and forth, and was constantly holding its head up as if to get food from its parents. We waited for a while, but didn't see the parents. Pretty soon, ants began to crawl all over the baby bird. Occasionally it would open its mouth but the call was so weak we became concerned. So, we went inside and began to research "how to take care of a baby bird who has fallen from its nest."

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What Would You Do? Musing Over the National Debt Ceiling, Delta Airlines and Personal Hunger.

The question had been reverberating around in my head for the past few days, and tonight, it was put to the test. What would you do?

What would you do for a Klondike Bar? It’s a famous jingle, and you likely can recall some of the TV commercials of people doing outlandish things for these frozen delicacies.

What would you do if…?

What would you do for…?

A topic of frequent conversation at the non-profit management symposium I’ve participated in this week has been “the Federal Government and the infighting over the national debt ceiling.”

What if they can’t agree? What if the leadership prime directive, much like the medical practitioner’s Hypocratic Oath of “First, Do No Harm,” breaks down? What if this high stakes game of federal budget chicken results in a full-speed head-on collision like the one in Minnesota? Who gets hurt? What might the collateral damage be? How long might it last?

So many questions, so little true leadership. Pardon the digression diatribe.

A small group of us got down to brass tacks last night discussing what such an event would cause in the macro economy. Certainly, like in times past, the national government would shut down, but this would go much further than the temporary closing of Yellowstone Park and the like.

The U.S. Treasury would be out of money. They would default on bond payments. They would not be able to pay Social Security benefits. They would not be able to fund federally issued college student loans. Yikes! What if it happened this week, and they could not pay air traffic controllers and all commerce and travel were to stop? How would I get home? 1,500+ miles away from Edmond, America, how would I get back to the Little Frau and our Kinder? It made me recall those classic John Candy moments in the back of the polka band truck as “Kevin’s mom” hitchhiked back to her son in “Home Alone 1”.

Well, we finished our conversation, and I actually forgot all about the what if’s and headed to the airport this afternoon for the trip home to Edmond, America and the folks I love.

Then, it happened. Continue reading What Would You Do? Musing Over the National Debt Ceiling, Delta Airlines and Personal Hunger.

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Barber Shop Theology – The Big & Small of it

The Big and Little of the Gospel

 I’ve heard it said that the gospel is simple enough for a child to understand and still so complex that theologians can discuss it at great length. This makes the gospel all the more beautiful.

Just how wonderful is the gospel? Even angels long to look into these things. I Peter 1:12

Precisely what is this gospel? It is ‘good news’. But what is the content of this good news?  Well, for this Barber Shop Theological foray, let’s see the big and the small of the Gospel.

My dad, Oscar, first stepped behind the barber’s chair of his shop in Apache, Oklahoma in January of 1963. I was in the first grade. There is no telling how many thousands of haircuts he has given over the past 48 years.

My dad tried to retire once and sold his shop in town, but a stream of guys from around town found their way to the house and the chair he had put into the garage, and soon he was only semi-retired.  To this day, he still greets customers by their first names as they show up a mile north of town to get a haircut. On my recent visit home Continue reading Barber Shop Theology – The Big & Small of it

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You Can’t Put A Price On Dreams

by Rob Loeber

What would you do for a dream?  How far would you go to achieve a lifelong goal?

Those are the questions thousands of athletes ask themselves every single day.  From Alaska to Maine and all points in between, minor league and semi-pro players are making enormous sacrifices to stay on the field, rink, or court.

It must be love for $400 a week. (courtesy urbantulsa.com)

This recession has hit America hard over the last few years, but economic struggles are nothing new for the players who toil in obscurity and put their bodies on the line for very little reward.

The Tulsa Talons play in the Arena Football League and the average Talons’ player takes home $400 per week.  That adds up to $7200 for a complete 18-game season.  These are men with college degrees.  Most of them have families but most of them don’t have second jobs because of the time required for practice, travel, and games.

What would you do for a dream?  Would you walk away from the cushy desk job and the 401k package to throw yourself full-speed at another human being for 400 bucks?

I asked one Talons player why he does it.  “I love football,” he told me.  “I can’t imagine giving this up.”

The Talons players have almost no chance of ever making an NFL roster, but out there on the practice field they were smiling and laughing throughout every drill and after every play.  They looked joyful.  They looked like kids.  How many of us can say our jobs make us feel like kids again?

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Wanted, Alive & Kicking: RDC Intern

We knew we were going to need you sooner or later.  And SOONER, as in…NOW, is the operative word at the Red Dirt Chronicles (RDC).  We would like to hire one bachelors or master’s level business, marketing, creative design, art promotion, event management or a combination of something-like-those-three areas for the Fall 2011 semester.  We would prefer this student have access and time within one of our two major metropolitan areas (OKC or Tulsa) at least two days per week.  There is much going on at the RDC and we need help; we’re willing to provide a great experience, excellent mentorship, goals construction and support reaching those goals, and potentially a stipend or share of revenue generated by your efforts. Businesses looking to expand their outreach teams can also benefit from the expertise of door to door sales recruiters to find motivated candidates.

Please e-mail your resume to:  reddirtchronicles@gmail.com by August 5th, 2011.  We will respond to every inquiry, and will schedule interviews after that deadline.  We will confirm the position with our selected candidate well before the Fall semester begins.  We look forward to meeting you, and think this position will provide you with a set of newly developed skills to prepare for your first post-graduate professional position.  So…do it now – send your resume in.  We want to meet YOU…because you’re cool. And we need you.  And you’re cool.

Sincerely,
[kelly]

Editor – Red Dirt Chronicles

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Showcasing Red Dirt culture ~ authored and managed by contributors with connections to the great state of Oklahoma.