September 22, 2009
Kailyn called her mother.
Kailyn (The girl missing from Akron, Ohio) called her mom yesterday afternoon. She was scared and thought she couldn't come home because she ran away. When she found out they were looking for her she called and promised her mom she was on her way home. Woo hoo!
Posted by Mike at 7:39 AM | Comments ()
September 21, 2009
Kailyn Mitchell, 17 years old is missing from the Northeast Ohio area as of 9-20-2009
Missing Person
Kailyn Mitchell, 17
Last seen in the Goodyear Heights area of Akron, Ohio on Sunday (9/20/09) at 1:00pm
Seen in red tank top and tan short shorts
Height: 5’5’’ 150lbs
Please contact (330)784-8324 or call the police
She has asthma and serious migraines.
If you are in the area and want to print some fliers here they are: Kailyn Mitchell Missing
Posted by Mike at 11:20 AM | Comments ()
June 25, 2009
Ribbons
This was taken from A.C. Brown's Facebook page.My way of "forwarding"... In memory of my father...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
These are the colors that represent the different cancers.
All you are asked to do is keep this circulating. Even if it's to one more person. In memory of victims and in honor of survivors and families.
A Candle Loses Nothing by Lighting Another Candle.
Please Keep The Candle Going!
Posted by Mike at 4:38 PM | Comments ()
March 1, 2009
A Year Without God
February 29th, 2008 was the day I sent out my letter to my friends and family declaring my new found lack of belief. Of course, there is no 29th this year, so March 1st will have to do. 
It has been one of the most interesting years of my life. I've had regular theological discussions for most of my adult life, but never with such variety, and certainly never from this side of the fence.
One of the things I've tried to do is not make assumptions about what people believe. The labels we give ourselves and each other are so very inadequate at expressing what we really believe. There is so much variety of belief, even within each of the nearly infinite denominations within Christianity, that pigeonholing is not advisable. It's easy to label someone a fundy or a new ager and essentially write them off. It's much more interesting, challenging, and sometimes exhausting to try to dig deeper and see what they really believe and why.
I have constantly run into the certainty brick wall. We are all certain of many things, but I refuse to be certain about the invisible. The problem with many of the God arguments that are made, is that they depend on experiences. I'm glad that you are happy and that you've had experiences you identify as God, but that does not mean I will have those same experiences or even if I do, choose to identify them as God. I try to be kind, but there are times where something appears so ludicrous to me that I laugh. Really, none of us is perfect, we could all be wrong.
It's been a good year, no disasters have befallen me, no local floods or fires, God hasn't tried to smite me yet. Of course the year hasn't been perfect, I experienced the same sorts of events that happened when I was a professing Christian. Work related stress from time to time, family medical issues, etc, etc. Then again, a big book I once read said something like "The rain falls on the wicked and the just.".
Let's see how the next year goes.
This was crossposted at atheistsandchristians.com and merelyadequate.net
Posted by Mike at 11:13 AM | Comments ()
December 17, 2008
CD Review - Benjamin Payne - The Way of Truth
Ok, I know, I know. I'm an atheist ex-Christian and I'm reviewing a Christian worship album. Crazy I know, but it's also really good music. I listen to all sorts of music, with all sorts of messages.
This CD is a wonderful combination of great musicianship, terrific song writing, wonderful vocals, and oh yeah, lots of hand raising, foot stomping worship music! There's something for everyone on this CD. Fast, slow, loud, soft, it's all here. The arrangements are lush and really put one into a contemplative mood. Benjamin has been one of my best friends for many years, so you might think I'm biased, but ask any of my friends if I'm afraid to criticize their music. I'm not. One thing about Benjamin, he means every word on this CD. He completely gives his all to God, and this CD shares a little bit of that dedication with all of us, even those of us that don't share Benjamin's faith.
Benjamin Payne - The Way of Truth
It can also be found at digstation.com
I posted this review at cdbaby.com, digstation.com, merelyadequate.net, and atheistsandchristians.com
Posted by Mike at 7:18 PM | Comments ()
December 14, 2008
Sadly, no Team Ico teaser at the 2008 Spike TV Video Game Awards
Sadly, no Team Ico teaser at the 2008 Spike TV Video Game Awards.
Some guessed there would be one. Jack Black was exceptionally funny and there were some other good trailers, but the one I cared about wasn't there. Team Ico made Ico and Shadow of The Colossus, two of the best video games of all time, and some guess that they will release a game in 2009. since they are always on a 4 year cycle and Shadow of The Colossus came out in 2005.
Posted by Mike at 11:03 PM | Comments ()
October 26, 2008
Got the house, moved in totally on Saturday
Image by Andrea_R via Flickr
Thanks to all who helped and to all who have been excited for me and Robyn. We're totally moved in, I hope to have the whole house set up by the time Robyn leaves on the 9th of November.
I got the server and my laptop set up and am still trying to pair up all the power adapters with my main computer's equipment. The three TVs are hooked up as are the Tivo and DVD Player. Still have tons of boxes to go through. Mom, Dad, and Laurie have been working feverishly to help me set everything up, and when Robyn arrived, she jumped right in. We've been having lots of fun! Laurie is the queen of furniture assembly! She rocks! Mom has been so wonderful at cleaning and organizing. Dad has been Mr. Handyman! He's been installing and repairing and of course helping with the heavy lifting too!
I'll post some pics later. I woke up at 3 a.m. on Sunday morning feeling awful, with my head all congested. I hope I feel better tomorrow for work or I may be using my first sick day. 
Moving is exhausting! I sure don't miss the stairs of death at the old apartment though!
Posted by Mike at 9:44 PM | Comments ()
October 2, 2008
Buying a house...or trying to
Well folks, I'm in the process of buying a house. It's located very close to my parent's house here in Canton. I've filed all the paper work and now we are just waiting for it all to be processed.
Here are some pictures:
Posted by Mike at 5:45 PM | Comments ()
September 11, 2008
I'll never forget weeping in front of the TV this day seven years ago
I'll never forget weeping in front of the TV this day seven years ago. I awoke to find a message on my answering machine from my friend Bill. I turned on the TV and just stood there, mouth open, and then the tears came. I was glued to the TV that day. That evening I went to my friends Benjamin and Kimberly's house to pray with them.
Extreme, fanatical, fundamentalist belief in their version of a god led those men to commit those deeds that day. Was John Lennon right? Would it have been different if those men hadn't been religious fanatics? What if there were no countries or possessions? Would they have found another reason to attack? We'll never know. All we can do is live our lives and try to be a positive influence in the world. We need to educate people, but how does one educate religious fanatics? How does one educate people that refuse to listen? How does one speak to a group so extreme that they see human life as worth no more than bricks and mortar used to wall themselves off from the world?
I don't know, but I will never forget that day.
Posted by Mike at 4:42 AM | Comments ()
September 7, 2008
It's been a while since I posted anything...
It's been a while since I posted anything and that's pretty much because I haven't had much to say. I've been busy with things at work, Robyn has come and gone, while she was here we went to Lakeside which was awesome as usual. I've been house hunting, since I'd really like to own a house before we get married so Robyn doesn't have to live in the neighborhood I currently live in. It's not horrible, it's just that it used to be a lot nicer and now I just wouldn't feel comfortable with her walking the streets here.
Overall, I would say life is good. 
Posted by Mike at 4:28 PM | Comments ()
