Getting on Board

I'm kind of viewed by my co-workers at Crossroads as the resident computer/infotech know-it-all. I'm not sure why or how I got that distinction, but it's there nonetheless. It's been quite fun (and entertaining) helping others along their respective digital journeys (and I always lead them towards Mac-dome).

Which brings me to my point today. I've watched my pastor (and good friend) go from complete non-computer use (back in the day) to a proud iPod, MacBook Pro, and iPhone user. Now, he's entered a new chapter in his digital life:  blogging.

I'm proud of him, not only as a friend, mentor, boss, pastor, visionary, etc, but how he's embraced technology. He gets it, and as the resident computer/infotech know-it-all, it's good to have him aboard!

His name is Jeff Ables, and you can check out his blog here.

Facebooking for Dummies (like me)

OK, so I'm totally into the facebook...

I mean, I've got friends from as far away as Sri Lanka, and I want to keep in touch with all of them, and know what each and every one of them is up to, right down to the minute, to every nitty gritty detail.

So, I have a facebook account. It's totally fun, and it's great to have caught up with guys I haven't seen in as much as 20 years (yes, I'm that old).

Speaking of which (the old-ness part), do you find that when you're suggesting friends to someone, that you get confused with who knows whom (or is it the other way around?)?

My life, in a nutshell has five historical periods. Lets call them Richardian Eons:

Eon 1:  Abbeville High School (1982-1985)

Eon 2:  Jimmy Swaggart Bible College (1987-1988)

Eon 3:  University of SW Louisiana (1988-1994)

Eon 4:  The Tulsa Years (1994-2000)

Eon 5:  Back to Cajun Country (2000-Present)

So, I'm reconnecting with old friends, and when prompted to help those with a lesser number of friends along in their facebook journey, I honestly cannot remember who came from what eon! I find myself staring blankly at the thumbnail pics, wondering how the person pictured knows the friend I'm trying to help out.

I feel like George Costanza:  worlds are colliding.

Does this happen to you? Please say it does.

Saying Goodbye

My good friend, Mark Keefer, is mourning the loss his grandmother.

He posted a note he wrote for her, which he read to her the day before she died. It is one of the most beautiful and heartfelt pieces I've read in a long time.  It's the stuff the little boy in all of us can completely identify with. You can check it out here.

What I've noticed through Mark's postings and status updates on Facebook, is that he has become a very gifted writer, with a great sense of lyric and timing. Of course, the timing should come naturally, because he's a great drummer (they don't just hand out those music degrees at North Texas State!). BTW, he's also an Emmy Award-winning audio engineer. I'm not sure if I have a secret crush on him, or I secretly hate him. Either way, I'll keep it a secret.

Mark, I love you like a brother, and I'm deeply saddened by your loss. Just know that you are in my prayers, and you'll see her again, where there will be no more "goodbye waves."

Have You Heard of Church 2.0?

My good friend Greg Atkinson hosts a discussion group called Church 2.0. Basically, he travels around the country, putting on local forums to open up the discussion on where the church is and where it's headed.

Here are the links:

Greg's Blog

Church 2.0 Facebook

Church 2.0 Blog

Personally, I'm very fond of Greg, and I certainly appreciate his Kingdom-mindedness. He's helped me out with Crossroads Creative, and he's opened his doors to me at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship, where he works. He is a well-connected guy, speaking at conferences and conventions around the country.

Greg doesn't make any money off of Church 2.0 forums. He's just a very generous guy, doing his part to help open up the dialog.

If you're in the Boston, Tulsa, or Portland areas, I strongly encourage you to be a part of what God is doing through Church 2.0.

The Most Awesome Woman Ever

OK, so I played a little trick on my wife for her 30-something-th birthday. I had eight of her bloggy friends write something nice about her, and post videos of her singing or acting. Where they got those oh-so-professionally-made videos is anyone's guess...

You can go visit all of theses awesome ladies and see the vids at the following places...

Permission to Peruse

Moments and Memories

The Sky is Only Dark Between the Stars

Pianomomsicle

Life in the Parsonage

Musings of a Future Pastor's Wife

Blessed With Five

Everyday Miracles

BTW, we could all learn something about effective marketing by looking at the creativity with which each of these ladies goes about their own blog.

Oh yeah, if you want to see someone totally kicking her husband's booty at the blogging, go check her out here...

Happy Birthday Mama Belle! There's no other way to say it...you ROCK!

Dallas Trip, Part 8 and I'm Done

I really had a great time on my trip. I saw some great facilities, saw some great gear, and met some great guys.

What I took away most from the experience is this:  Dallas tech guys have it going on. Why do I say this?

They all have a spirit of excellence. Neat departments, well-run programs.

They share a mutual respect for each other. To take it a step further, I'll go as far as to say that they all share a real love for each other. When Greg Atkinson asked me where all I was going, he offered nothing but glowing praise of his comrades. When I told Ryan Howell I'd be going to see Greg Davis, he said, "You're gonna love him and Fellowship." Greg Bacus had a really boyish smile when I mentioned Watermark. When one of them has something new going on, they all get together, have lunch, then check it out...together.

Obviously, these aren't the only guys doing great things in the Dallas area. These are just the ones I was fortunate enough to meet. They've inspired me to try to start up a forum of tech and creative people here in Lafayette.

But that's another post for another day...

Dallas Trip, Part 7 of Many

Last stop on the trip:  Lake Pointe Church and my friend Jason Cole. This place is huge. I don't remember how many their auditorium seats, but it's like 40 thousand million...something like that.

Here's a shot of their set up close. These pieces are made of metal studs with corrugated plastic and OSB screwed to them. Bare-bones, but oh so cool...

Here's a shot of their stage from the tech booth.

This is where parents pick up their kids from their children's ministries. Kids can walk down the stairs or use the huge slide in the middle. I would assume that this is the most unused staircase in the entire world!

Here's a shot of their youth building. What!? This place is completely off-the-chain, over-the-top AWESOME! Makes me wish I were a teenager in Rockwall, TX.

You may think your eyes are deceiving you, but you are, in fact seeing a double-decker half-court basketball court. Simply amazing.

Here is Jason and me. By the way, he hosted us on his DAY OFF. Thanks so much, Jason. You're awesome!

In all, another great visit at another great facility, hosted by another great guy. I'll have a wrap-up tomorrow, and some comments about all the great guys I met while on my trip.

Dallas Trip, Part 6 of Many

Alright, after leaving Brian and Fellowship Bible, I headed on to Worship House Media. If you've read my blog before, you know that I run Crossroads Creative, and that we have pieces on Worship House, among others. Anyway, the two main guys there are Kent McKeaigg and Dale Carter. They have a video podcast (mostly) every week, and they crack me up.

While in Dallas, I wanted to do a little PR for Crossroads Creative, so, I went to lunch with them. I got to see their facility, which was cool, and we traded swag. Their offices also house Igniter Media (their parent company) and Collide Magazine.

Anyway, I brought my camera in with me, but forgot to take pictures, so I made this today...

Crazy, mad Photoshop skills. I took extra precaution to ensure matching the color of my face compared to theirs!

I had a great time with them (and Kent paid for lunch!).  Great guys.

Tomorrow, I'm on to Jason Cole at Lake Pointe, and their hugenormous facility.

Dallas Trip, Part 5 of Many

OK, so begins Day Two of my Dallas adventure. After a great breakfast at my hotel, and catching a little of the FOX News coverage of the announcement of my new girlfriend, Sarah Palin as John McCain's running mate, I was off to Fellowship Bible Dallas, to meet my new friend, Brian Davis.

This was simply one of the coolest places I've ever been. They converted an entertainment complex into their worship facility, and the transformation is amazing!

The first three pics come from the first floor. This is their coffee shop. I'm not sure what this was before, but the result works for me...

This is one of their children's rooms. The entire children's facility was once a laser tag arcade. Nice.

This was once "Club 88" which was owned by Drew Pearson, who played for the Dallas Cowboys from 1937-1983. There was even a big backlit 88 in the dance floor. It had a commercial kitchen, so they decided to make it their fellowship hall.

OK, that was all on the first floor. On the second floor was a movie theater complex. There were four rooms on one side and three on the other. One side comprises their youth facility, and the other is a chapel and their auditorium. Their auditorium is actually three movie theaters all combined into one large, yet surprisingly intimate worship space.

 The third floor was just workspace for the projector rooms, plus catwalk for the complex. They took out the ceilings and converted it all into usable space. Their media facility is actually in two of the old projection rooms. How cool is that? This is the view of the second floor from one of those now-exposed catwalks.

And here I am with Brian. He's a really talented guy, and a great new friend.

Fellowship Bible was a really cool place. It was neat to see how they retrofitted their design into the space that was there before them. Great job!

OK, tomorrow, I'll post about meeting the two main guys from (and my tour of) Worship House Media.

Dallas Trip, Part 4 of Many

OK, on to the next part of my Dallas trip.  Thursday evening, we went over to Watermark Community Church to visit my new friend Ryan Howell. We got there in time to check out their tech rehearsal. All of his guys were very accommodating, and we all learned a lot from them.

Watermark's building is absolutely gorgeous. They used raw materials in a very elegant way, resulting in an unusual but beautiful worship center.

OK, the first pic. Notice the striations at the back of the room. Those are actually 2X4s separated by empty spaces all in front of insulation painted black. Oh, yeah, the 2X4s aren't sealed, so when you get to the last couple of rows, you smell the raw wood! So very cool.

This is their band rehearsing. The huge images on ether side of the stage aren't screens. Those images are projected on the walls (and they're running through their lighting console). Awesome.

Here are the sound deflection panels hanging from the ceiling. They're finish grade plywood (maple, I think) and thick-chipped OSB, hung sporadically around the room. I think there is sound treatment on top of them. So cool.

And here's Ryan. What a great guy. He's one of those dudes that, if you don't like him, it's because you have a problem!

I just can't stress enough how great each of these guys were, and Ryan was certainly no exception.

Tomorrow, and amazing transformation as a church takes over an entertainment/movie theatre/night club/laser tag complex. We'll look at Fellowship Bible Dallas and Brian Davis.

Dallas Trip, Part 2 of Many

The last week of August, I flew up to Dallas to check out some large churches there, because Crossroads Church is building a 1500-seat auditorium. I got to make some great new friends.

My first stop was at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship, where Greg Atkinson serves as the Director of Technical Arts. Greg is a highly influential and well-connected guy, and I'm sure he had plenty of things he could have been doing, other than giving me the tour of their truly awesome facility.

Here are the pics...

This is their baptistry in the foyer. This photo doesn't do it justice... 

This is their coffee shop. really cool...

Here's a shot of their auditorium...

And here I am with the man...

(By the way, I'm 6 feet tall. Greg is like 9'47").

Their facility is simply beautiful, and extremely (and tastefully) well-done. We capped off our visit with a trip to La Hacienda. If you've read his blog, you've heard of it. Thanks again, Greg, for your hospitality.

Tomorrow, Fellowship Church.

What's Wrong With Me?

OK, OK, for those of you who know me, you're already thinking, "Well, Rich, that's a loaded question!"

Seriously, I have four friends over right now at my house, and my wife is in the living room, with them, and they're playing the Wii. I, however, am at my computer, uploading Crossroads Creative videos. I'm done uploading to Catholic Media House (they're not up yet), and now I'm working on Worship House Media.  What's more, after I'm done with that, I plan to upload to The Shoutable Store, and if there's time, Graphics 4 Worship, and Sermon Spice.

Am I that much of a workaholic?

To be fair, I've been in the living room most of the time. I just came in here to check the status of the uploads, and this is something I planned to do long before my guests showed up, but shouldn't I be in there, and should I be in here blogging about it?

OK, now my wife is telling me that her team desperately needs me to help out playing Big Brain Academy. So, I guess I'll oblige and say, "Good night."

Good night.