Countdown to “Opening Day”

Don’t tell my dad this, but when I was a kid I would occasionally go without food at school so I could spend my lunch money on baseball cards. With the money my mother gave me for lunch each day, I could buy three packs of 1987 Topps cards. At the time it seemed like a pretty sweet trade in exchange for some lousy cafeteria food.

I was obsessed.

I just loved holding those cards in my hands and reading all the stats. I would spend hours learning all the players names, what teams they played for and what town they grew up in. A couple of those players had played in my backyard as members of the Newark Orioles of the New York-Penn League. It was always exciting to see the name of my hometown listed in their minor league stats.

Each Sunday, while eating breakfast before we headed off to church,  I would pore over the league stats in the newspaper to see how my favorite players were doing. I’d skim each column for the names that were on the cards I had designated as my favorites by putting them in plastic sleeves: Mattingly, Randolph, Strawberry, Gwynn, and Puckett. My guys were always near the top of the list!

And they were my guys because I knew their faces. I knew their hometowns. I knew where they played in the minors. I knew all these things because I had spent hours looking at their baseball cards.

But somewhere along the way things changed. As I got older I became less interested in collecting cards. Dealers and retailers had ruined it for me. They had turned my favorite hobby into an industry. Manufacturers produced so many different sets that it became impossible to keep up. And the cost of packs soared in a few short years from 35 cents to over $3 for some brands.

So I gave up on collecting baseball cards for good. Or so I thought.

Having a son does funny things to a guy like me. It makes you nostalgic. It causes you to reminisce about your own childhood and miss being a kid. So to compensate for the loss of your own youth, you begin to search for ways to pass on the best things you enjoyed as a kid to your own children.

For example, baseball cards.

The cost of collecting is still pretty high these days. Though Topps has remained as the lone manufacturer of officially licensed baseball cards, packs are still about $2 a pop. It would take a small fortune for a kid to buy enough packs to complete a set. No more trading lunch money for multiple packs at the grocery store.

Despite the cost, I’ve been trying to find ways to turn Josiah on to the hobby I enjoyed so much as a kid. I’ve bought him a few packs of cards in the past but he’s showed little interest. That’s when I came up with what will hopefully become an annual father/son tradition …. “Opening Day.”

Yesterday we bought Josiah a single pack of 2010 Topps baseball cards. But he’s not allowed to open it until April 4th. That’s when Major League Baseball starts the new season. It’s opening day for them and it’s “Opening Day” for us! After we’ve found out what players he got in the pack we’re going to follow their stats online all season long. (I just know our guys will be at the top!)

The excitement and anticipation has already sparked Josiah’s interest in baseball cards. Yesterday he put all the cards he’s gotten in previous years in plastic sheets and put them in a binder on his shelf. He even organized them by team and has quickly learned that the “All-Stars” are the best guys. He put those guys at the top. Last year he got a Justin Morneau card. Now his hometown is listed on someone’s minor league stat column too!

But truth be told, I’m probably more excited than he is. I can’t wait to tear open that pack and see if we got any Yankees or any promising young rookies. And I  can’t wait until the first time we huddle around the computer to see how our guys did the night before. For the first time in over twenty years I’m excited about opening a pack of baseball cards. But I’m more excited about the fact that for the first time ever my son is excited about baseball cards as well.

Just 26 more days until “Opening Day!”

No Bailouts. No Recalls.

Dear Ford Motor Company:

Please feel free to use this as your next billboard campaign. Free of charge.

Please remember me the next time you have an opening in marketing.

Sincerely,

Shane

With Glowing Hearts – Vancouver 2010

The 2010 Winter Olympics kick of with tonight’s opening ceremonies and I couldn’t be more excited!

I really enjoy the winter games. I think much of it comes from the fact that you get to see so many sports that don’t get much attention during other times of the year; Bobsledding, Speed Skating, etc. But this year I have a few other reasons to be excited about the games.

For one, the host city is Vancouver. It’s a city that’s pretty high on my list of  “favorite-cities-I-have-yet-to-visit.” Partially because of my fondness for Canada, but also because of the breathtaking mountain scenery and the overall culture of the Pacific Northwest. I really hope I get the chance to visit Vancity in person one of these days.

We also have some local rooting interest in this year’s games as Rochester native Ryan Callahan will be playing hockey for Team USA. Not to mention Sabres’ goalie Ryan Miller, who we had the privilege of watching play for several seasons here with the Amerks.

Just about the only thing I don’t enjoy about the Winter Olympics is figure skating. I really don’t enjoy sporting events where the winners and losers are determined by judges (who are often biased and corrupt). Especially when bedazzled costumes are involved. If every contestant skated their routine flawlessly, it really should be impossible for the judges to determine a winner. Which is why I root for them to fall during their jumps. At least then we can say that the ones who didn’t fall probably deserved to win.

Tonight our family will be making popcorn and curling up on the couch to watch the opening ceremonies. And I wouldn’t be surprised if we sang along with the anthem.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise, the True North strong and free …

Do you plan to tune in to the Winter Olympics? What events are your favorites?

Johnny Cash – “Ain’t No Grave”

I’m not sure why. But when I hear Johnny Cash singing “Ain’t No Grave” toward the end of his days … I believe him.

This track is taken from the upcoming release American VI: Ain’t No Grave – the sixth and final installment of Johnny’s “American Recordings” series.

Johnny Cash – Ain’t No Grave

We’re entering a film contest!

Some of you may remember that, back in July, Don Miller sent me an advanced copy of his latest book A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. It was a book that I really enjoyed reading and have since passed on to others.

Don’s book really challenged me to consider the type of story I was telling with my life, and to make changes that would help me tell an even better one. It also helped me realize that, as a parent, it should be my passion to help my children tell the best story possible with their own lives. I have also come to understand that the best stories – those that would have the most meaningful and lasting impact on their lives – are the stories that we tell together.

For me, this line of thinking has been one of the driving forces behind our work with Josiah and Friends.

On Friday, Don announced a short film contest on his blog. He is encouraging anyone who has read his book and has decided to tell an interesting story with their life to make a film about it and submit it. The winner will receive $1,000!

Josiah and I talked about it over the weekend and we’ve decided to make a film about our story. We’re hoping that it might inspire others, especially parents and children, to write great stories with their own lives. If we win, we’re going to donate the prize money to Manute Bol’s school building project.

The voting will start in April. We’re definitely going to need everyone’s support and votes if we’re going to have any chance at winning. We’ll be sure to keep you all posted as the contest gets closer. But for now, we’re off to make our film!

Will Jesus fulfill us here on Earth?

As Christians, most of us were taught that there is a “God shaped hole” in our hearts and only by accepting Jesus can we fill that void and find fulfillment in our lives.

I’ve often struggled with this thought. Mostly because many of the Christians that I know, who love Jesus more than anything else in the world, are also among some of the most miserable people I know. It never quite added up for me.

In this clip – taken from his A Million Miles in a Thousand Years speaking tour – Don Miller explores the idea of finding fulfillment in Jesus as the “Act 3 Climax” to the story of our lives. He also points out how we might be getting that part of the story completely wrong.

The State of the Union

During President Obama’s run for the presidency there were few people more vocal in their support of his candidacy than myself. And I took alot of heat for it at the time. I probably lost a friend or two … burned a bridge or two … but at the time I felt that it was worth the sacrifice.

Here we are one year later. And to be honest, I find myself struggling to articulate what I think about what has happened over the past 12 months.

The health care battle has been disheartening. Many of us feel that the current bill won’t change enough. Others feel threatened by what changes have been proposed. Yet everyone agrees that it all must change. Now.

The war in Afghanistan has been escalated, while the situation in Iraq has been relegated to an afterthought. Many of our nation’s bravest are heading into their sixth or seventh deployments with no end in sight, no hope of victory and no clarity as to why we’ve waged war in the first place, or whom exactly it’s been waged against.

Many of our nation’s largest financial interests have been treated to billions of dollars in federal handouts while millions of families struggle to put food on the table.

The list goes on and on and on and on.

Yet, I still find myself drawn to the basic tenets of President Obama’s campaign message. That we can change Washington if we work together and demand it. That if we refuse to allow ourselves to fall into the traps of cynicsm we can experience the best of what each of us has to offer. Yes we can.

That’s why, in fifteen minutes, I will be very attentive to President Obama’s first State of the Union address. Needing hope. Wanting change. But finding myself questioning those who have promised to deliver it.

Are you looking forward to President Obama’s speech? What do you want to hear him talk about most? What are you skeptical of?

Tim Tebow’s Super Bowl ad stirs abortion debate

Tim Tebow’s accomplishments on the football field are well documented. During his tenure at the University of Florida he led his team to two National Championships, won the Heisman trophy and will be remembered as arguably the greatest player in Gators history. And while the jury is still out on whether Tebow has what it takes to play quarterback at the NFL level, it’s something he’s done off the field that is creating buzz as we head into Super Bowl weekend.

The Christian advocacy group Focus on the Family has produced a commercial that is set to air during the Super Bowl. It stars Tim Tebow alongside his mother Pam and is expected to tell the story of Tebow’s birth in 1987.

While doing missionary work in the Phillippines, Pam Tebow – then pregnant with her fifth child – suffered a life-threatening infection with a pathogenic amoeba. Doctors expected the child to be stillborn and urged her to abort her pregnancy for the sake of her own health. Holding to her maternal convictions she refused to heed their advice. Instead she carried her pregnancy to term and ultimately gave birth to Tim.

Pro-choice groups – despite not knowing what the ad will actually say – have been very vocal in their disapproval of the commercial. Many have voiced their opinion to CBS, demanding that they pull the ad. “An ad that uses sports to divide rather than to unite has no place in the biggest national sports event of the year — an event designed to bring Americans together,” said Jemhu Greene, president of the New York-based Women’s Media Center.

CBS has stood by their decision to air the ad and has even stated that they would accept more “responsibly produced” advocacy ads for the few remaining Super Bowl spots.

The topic of abortion is always the hottest of hot-button issues. And the use of mass-media is certainly not a new tactic for advocacy groups that wish to get their message to the widest possible audience. But this may be the biggest stage any such ad has ever seen, and it’s being produced by the pro-life movement’s heaviest hitters.

I hope that this ad’s message is presented in the most responsible way possible. And since this effectively is Tim Tebow’s first professional endorsement, I hope that he has given it heavy – and prayerful – consideration.

But ultimately I pray that this message would bring hope and healing to women and not the type of condemnation and ridicule that so many have cynically come to expect. That would be the kind of thing that could truly bring people together instead of politicizing this issue and dividing us further. Anything less would be a disappointment.

Where do you come out on this? Should CBS be allowing advocacy groups to buy Super Bowl ad time? Will such a heavy issue put a damper on your ability to enjoy the game? Could the backlash effect his draft position?