BEYOND THE RAPIDS IS A QUIET STRETCH

Sadly, I've decided to close the BFZ until after Labor Day. Lots of stuff has conspired to make this summer a busier season then normal. I know that the cardinal rule of good blogging is to post often, But it aint happening so I thought I might as well make it official and formally close up shop for a time. You should tune back in Spetember though because I plan to post  like fury to make my goal of 370 posts in 2011.

See ya in September!

GOOD NIGHT

Let sleep come on like a gentle flood,
Let it wash the day away.
Untether the mind and let it drift
With the dark, heavy current.
Let yourself be swept away
In the cleansing flood of sleep.

Let it carry you out,
Way, way out,
Caught up and born along,
In its irresistable pull,
Far from the shores of concern
To where it's deep and silent.

BOWDEN'S GUN

Every boy out west should have gun. At least that's my idealized notion. So for Bowden's last birthday I bought him a BB gun for $30.00 at Walmart. For a couple of years Bowden and I have been going out with Grandpa Dave's old BB gun, and I have been teaching him the gun safety tips which were drilled itno me over my four months at the VT police academy.

Bowden loves it! He even loves the rules. It's all very adult and official sounding. (It actually is a very sober and adult kind of topic.) I think he's actually a pretty good shot as well. Watch out varmints!

OVERHEARD AT THE BEACH

"Hey man, you just do your thing. Just focus on what you gotta do, and all that other b---s--- will just take care of itself."
Heavy set, middle-aged male, heavily tattooed, and wearing swimming trunks, wife-beater, and blue crocs speaking to an unknown second party via cell phone outside a public restroom. (Moonlight Beach- Encinitas, CA)

"I tried talking to her about it, but you know Crystal, she won't admit when she's wrong. She just shut me out."
Twenty-something female in conversation with a second female of like age walking along the beach. (Moonlight Beach- Encinitas, CA)

"Isn't this crazy! Look at all these people! Have you ever seen so many people at the beach before."
Middle-aged female to two teenage males. She waved her hand expansively to encompass the throng of holiday beach goers crowding the water. (Moonlight Beach- Encinitas, CA)

"Ah, Dude, look. Look at those two, dude! Just do it! Come on, throw the ball! Throw it!"
Twenty something male of hispanic ancestry to a younger male (possibly his brother). He was trying to get the younger male to purposefully throw a football so that it would land near two bikini-clad females who were walking down the beach. The ball was perfectly placed so that the twenty-something male nearly collided with the aforementioned females in his attempt to catch it, which, of course, necessitated an apology. His attempts to follow up his apology with follow up conversation were thwarted however, and the two females continued down the beach. (Moonlight Beach- Encinitas, CA)

A WEEK!

It has been a while since I went a week without posting. Sheesh! I follow a number of blogs and the only thing I dislike more than prolonged dry spells between posts is when the authors suddenly reemerge only to post about how they haven't been posting enough. So I shouldn't do that, right? I post plenty, generally speaking, so I have nothing to apologize for, but I still feel the need for a mea culpa.

Let me explain, a number of factors have contributed to the lack of recent content here at the BFZ. First, it is summer time, and my job at Camp Maranatha has been very busy as a result. In addition to hosting hundreds of youth during any given week we also have a summer staff here on the grounds, which I often describe as a 24 hour youth group with an emphasis on service. If you knew the kind of awesome stuff that God has been doing in and through the ministry here at Maranatha you would not mind sacrificing the BFZ for it. Last week alone 21 kids asked Christ into their hearts! It is good to be invested in such a work. The second reason is that lady muse has entirely abandoned me lately. For weeks I have felt like so many dry sticks, and writing, which usually has a momentum all its own in my experience, has felt very uphill indeed. I have simply had nothing to say.

Ah well! Even though I still feel like so many dry sticks and I continue to have nothing to say I'm gonna resume posting just the same. Should be interesting.

VIVE LE BFZ!!!