He Went to Paris

He went to Paris looking for answers to questions
That bothered him so
He was impressive, young and aggressive
Saving the world on his own
Warm summer breezes, French wine and cheeses
Put his ambition at bay
The summers and winters scattered like splinters
And four or five years slipped away

He went to England, played the piano, and married
An actress named Kim
They had a good life, she was a good wife
And bore him a young son named Jim
All of the answers and all of the questions
He locked in his attic one day
'Cause he liked the quiet clean country living
And twenty more years slipped away

War took his baby, Bombs killed his lady and left him
With only one eye
His body was battered, his whole world was shattered
All he could do was just cry
While the tears were falling he was recalling
Answers that he never found
So he hopped in a freighter, skidded the ocean
And left England without a sound

Now he lives in the islands, fishes the piling and drinks
His Green Label each day
Writing his memoirs, losing his hearing
But he don't care what most people say
After eighty-six years of perpetual motion
If he likes you he'll smile and say
"There was some of it magic, a lot of it tragic,
But I had a good life all the way"

He went to Paris looking for answers to questions
That bothered him so

(Waylon Jennings)

Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing

This version is longer and a little bit different than the one we're used to, but I really like all the words. Click here and here for a little bit of history...

*****

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,
Till released from flesh and sin,
Yet from what I do inherit,
Here Thy praises I’ll begin;
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home.

Jesus sought me when a stranger,
Wandering from the fold of God;
He, to rescue me from danger,
Interposed His precious blood;
How His kindness yet pursues me
Mortal tongue can never tell,
Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me
I cannot proclaim it well.

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

O that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Clothed then in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;
Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,
Take my ransomed soul away;
Send thine angels now to carry
Me to realms of endless day.

“Dancing with the Angels”

Memories surround me,
But sadness has found me.
I’d do anything for more time.
Never before has someone meant more,
And I can’t get you out of my mind.

There is so much that I don’t understand,
But I know…

You’re dancing with the angels,
Walking in new life.
You’re dancing with the angels.
Heaven fills your eyes
Now that you’re dancing with the angels.

You had love for your family,
Love for all people,
Love for the Father, and Son.
Your heart will be heard
In your unspoken words
Through generations to come.

There is so much that I don’t understand,
But I know…

You’re dancing with the angels,
Walking in new life.
You’re dancing with the angels.
Heaven fills your eyes
Now that you’re dancing with the angels.

We’re only here for such a short time
So I’m gonna’ stand up, shout out,
And sing Hallelujah.
One day I’ll see you again…

Artist: Monk & Neagle

This is getting ridiculous!

A few months ago at church, they asked everyone to submit their favorite hymn and why. I entered 'Come Thou Font of Every Blessing' of course, because it was my dad's favorite. We ended up singing it at Dad's service. The last month or so, each service has included one of the top 10 hymns. I've missed quite a few weeks so I figured they had run through all of them already. Today I went to choir practice and there was a full list of the results, broken down by age group and some other categories. I quickly scanned the list and didn't see it on there anywhere, so I figured the general church population just isn't as enamored with the word 'Ebenezer' as Dad was.

I then went to my seat and picked up the rehearsal schedule, which always starts with the hymns for Sunday, and there it was, #400 (nee #93). At first I wondered whether Mark had read my submission and had selected it for me. But then he started rehearsal and announced that this hymn was the #1 pick of our congregatation. It turns out that the hymn survey was throughout the whole conference or something, but our particular church's favorite hymn is 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing'.

Way.

Another oooOOOooo

‘Scrubs’ scrubs in on ABC
By Diane Holloway Wednesday, July 16, 2008, 06:18 PM

"After seven seasons in limbo, not to mention dozens of time slots, “Scrubs” comes to ABC in September — and it may or may not be the actual, final end to the medical slapstick show.

“We thought every year was our last year on NBC, so we’ve basically already got our finale written,” said chief creator and perpetual jokester Bill Lawrence. “We just have to change a few pop culture references.”

And what if “Scrubs” actually becomes a hit on ABC? It will have to go on without star Zach Braff, who has made other commitments for 2009.

“We really thought we were over last year, but I would love to come back and visit if the show goes on for another season on ABC,” Braff said.

Perhaps in anticipation of new life on ABC (“This will be the year we’re a hit! Mark my words,” said Lawrence, who rarely if ever is serious), the writers are introducing young characters as bumbling interns. Hoping for the best …

And they’re lighting up the marquee with guest stars. Former “Friends” star Courteney Cox has a three-episode arc as the hospital’s chief of medicine.

“She’s hilarious,” Lawrence said. “She’s what we call a ‘gamer.’ She’s up for anything. We’d love to have her come back for more.”

Now that “Dirt” has been canceled, maybe she can.

And in an episode filmed in the Bahamas, the Janitor will get married. But his name is not spoken, a running joke on the show. Neil Flynn, who plays Janitor, has decided to call him Zanzibar Buck-Buck McPhee.

Nobody on this show is NOT joking. "

no. way.

"Granddad and Zachary were passing along all the words to some real good songs. :)"

oooOOOooo!

There is a new song out right now by Kid Rock I think, about singing Sweet Home Alabama in the summertime or something like that. I caught the end of it the other day and didn't think much of it, but this morning I heard it again and realized that underlying the song is the piano hook from Werewolves of London! Eerie!

I forgot about Warren Zevon

Ever since Dad died, whenever I hear about a celebrity dying, I think about how much Dad liked them and would have wanted to meet them. Like Bo Diddley. Or someone I know, like Nancy from choir. Dad would have really liked her - her lights were definitely on! Then I imagine them together in Heaven, and it makes me feel a little better, sometimes.

This morning I was listening to Zachary's new cd on the way to work - Dan Zanes Catch That Train, which is a really cool kids' cd. There is a song on there by Leadbelly, and he even introduces the song by explaining who Leadbelly was. It made me feel really sad that I didn't get to tell Dad that Zachary had a cd with a Leadbelly song on it. Then another song on the cd made me think of the song 'The First Showboat' and I realized that I left that off Dad's ipod mix, and that made me feel even sadder.

I finally got to work, sat at my desk, and turned on my radio. I don't remember what song was playing, but the very next song that came on was 'Werewolves of London'. I really felt like it was Dad telling me not to be sad, because really, how can you feel sad listening to that 'Werewolves of London'? That song rocks!

Anyway, it reminded me that Warren Zevon is up there too, which is awesome. He rules, BT (big time).