Minister Of Mocha

Happy New Year and all that stuff…! Here it is the 3rd of January and I’ve already taken down Christmas decorations and put up New Year expectations. It is fairly common for people to use the change of the year as a turning point or an impetus for change. New Year’s Resolutions surround us. There…

Christmas has been here. You can probably tell with a quick glance in the dumpsters of most of the houses on your street. As many folks do we spent our day with four generations of family and friends. There were quite a few memorable events that happened throughout the day, but I’ll only take a…

This week brings us Christmas Eve and then ultimately Christmas (sorry folks, you’ll need to wait until next Monday for Boxing Day!) The anticipation is building with every waking moment, then add the visions of sugar plums dancing in our dreams…Wow, there is a lot of stress to go around! I was having a conversation…

I spent a portion of my Sunday at a show here in beautiful Ridgecrest. We were visited by Jake Hamilton who brought a drummer, a wall of sound, and unbridled passion. It was pretty amazing to witness. There were so many things to take in at the rare Ridgecrest event. The outer edges of the…

I spent some time in San Diego this past week. I probably don’t need to tell you that it is pretty nice in San Diego, but just to be clear: it’s pretty nice in San Diego! I took a road trip with my son-in-law to go see a concert at a small club, so we…

That Paul had scales on his eyes, THIS Paul has scales on his mind…more accurately, under his feet. If you follow my Facebook feed you probably already know that I fell victim to the dreaded “pink box” on Thanksgiving. Actually, my fall from grace began before that, but this past weekend highlighted that I need…

I guess I write this with my Pastor in mind. I’m sitting in front of the glowing screen weighing the options for what to write on the Monday before Thanksgiving.There are lots of options: I could write about my LA Kings beating the Ducks and laying a claim to first place in the division (redemption,…

Sometimes the question “Why?” is the one that takes the most prominent position in my mind. I found myself asking this after an election. Perhaps I especially ask it after this election due to the results or the aftermath… but this isn’t about that. I often ask it when my team loses. I asked it…

I will be among the first to admit that the road to recovery can often run uphill for a l-o-n-g time. At times it feels like there is no progress or that the progress made isn’t worth the effort expended. And then the Cubs win the World Series after a 108 year nap… It’s a…

As I write this it is Halloween morning. I’m sitting in the office wearing my finest Miami Vice outfit. This weekend we made Jack-o-Lanterns with our grandsons and wore Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy outfits. I just love costumes and dressing up. Here’s the problem though: sometimes people get confused by the costume. My grandson…