Sweet & Sour Chicken: An Epic

Over the past few years, Pei Wei has become the staple of my carryout life. Not only do I enjoy the ambrosial flavors and the friendly faces of the local Green Hills establishment, but I dare say I relish the challenge of chopsticks. While I may not boast the ability to snatch flies out of the air (yet), I'm certainly on the plane of mastering the art.

Going back as far as I can remember, sweet & sour chicken has hands down been my favorite Asian inspired dish. So, not surprisingly, it is my most beloved dish on the Pei Wei menu. In case you've never had the joy of experiencing the sweet & sour chicken, allow me to paint you a delectable story, an epic journey on the road to taste bud euphoria.

First, and foremost, you must begin with the bed of white rice. It can be easy to overlook the significance of this prologue, but the white rice is a key ingredient in bringing this flavorful adventure to life. The calm taste and gentle texture of the white rice provide a landscape for your journey into savory bliss.

Next, chopped green bell peppers, sliced onions, and strips of red ginger fall about the snowy white fields, adding a crucial crisp to the dish while providing lovely refreshment to your palate. These fresh veggies pave the road for this cuisine crusade.

Crispy chicken is quick to follow suit and join your quest. This is the core of the sweet & sour dish, filling you up and never letting you down. This protein packed ingredient is the perfect companion with just the right mixture of crispy texture and mouthwatering flavor.

At this point in the expedition, the action is rising and our dish is really taking aesthetic form. Atop the bed of white, we have greens and reds mixed in here and there to make you feel festive, but something is still missing. Now comes the pinnacle of Pei Wei's sweet & sour experience, the chopped pineapple. As these dashes of tropical fruit parade their way onto the dish, the flavor really comes to life, exciting all taste buds. Welcome to the peak of the meal.

Last, but not least, comes the application of the mind-numbing Cantonese sweet & sour sauce, the catalyst of the dish. This magnificent sauce rushes over the crispy chicken like the mighty Yangtze River, carrying your taste buds downstream to an unforgettable dining experience. This is the yin and the yang, providing an unsurpassed balance of both sweet and sour. My mouth is watering at the thought of it.

As our tasty endeavor comes to a close, be sure to top your meal off with a fortune cookie and you have the complete Pei Wei experience locked down. I hope I have painted a beautiful picture in your mind, one that inspires you to go out on a limb and reach for the sweet & sour chicken on white the next time you enter the golden halls of Pei Wei. It is an unforgettable experience. Trust me, you won't regret it!

And at the end of the day, it's sweet AND it's sour. What's not to like?

New Background!

Judging by today's high of 40, December has officially arrived. So, to celebrate the accession of the new month, I've changed my background to something a bit more festive. Enjoy!

Let The Festivities Begin!

To Cheer, Or Not To Cheer?

Last Sunday, I found myself in a strange position. With the my beloved Titans down 10 to 19 at home against the Eagles, we were desperate for a spark. Kerry Collins had faced two quarters of relentless pressure as his receivers couldn't find any separation from opposing defensive backs with stud wideout, Kenny Britt, sitting on the bench for off-the-field misconduct. Just before half time, Britt entered the game for his first snaps. With an obvious one on one mismatch against a defense that refused to place less than 8 or 9 men in the box, Collins went to work with Britt, finding the former 1st round pick in the endzone for a touchdown that can only be described as "beast." Rumor has it that Titans radio wiz, Mike Keith, overheard Britt yell, "That's my ball, Mr. Hobbs!" before snatching it from the air, but I have no proof of this allegation, which is coincidentally the same situation Britt is facing in an "alleged" bar fight. I digress.

At this point, Titans fans knew that if we were going to make a comeback, it would either take a few huge Chris Johnson game breakers or Kenny Britt would need a huge day. The only problem? My opponent in fantasy this week started Kenny Britt. Ugh...

Here lies an excruciating fantasy conundrum. What does one do in the situation that you're playing against one of your favorite players, especially when that player could, and probably will, determine the outcome on the field and on the fantasy gridiron. It's fantasy vs. reality. What is a boy to do?

After the first Britt TD, I was hoping that the defense could make a few plays and then perhaps Chris Johnson could make quick work of the Eagles. Not entirely the case. The defense held, but Britt's number would be dialed up again the 4th quarter on a play that resulted in an 80 yard touchdown reception, and again later in the quarter for another touchdown reception. At the end of the day, Britt's 7 receptions for 225 yards and 3 touchdowns were pivotal to the Titans victory over what is possibly the NFC's best team. On the flip side, Kenny's 7 receptions for 225 yards and 3 touchdowns resulted in a 40 point performance, which buried my fantasy team. In the end, I walked away from LP reminding myself, "If Kenny Britt's the one that beats me, then I'm ok with that." In fact, my only two defeats this season have come against outstanding, game changing performances from Titans' stars Chris Johnson and Kenny Britt. I can live with that.

In another story, a Cowboy's fan found himself in the same situation Monday night as Tony Romo went down hard in the first half against the Giants. Quickly after, I received a text from this fan pondering, "Is it bad that I kinda hoped Romo got slightly hurt in this game so I could beat *name disclosed*?" Unfortunately, Romo was more than slightly hurt, and his crushed collar bone opened the door for my 2008 deepest fantasy sleeper, John Kitna, to take the stage en route to a Cowboys to defeat. The bright news here? Cowboys fans have to believe that just over the horizon lies a Wade Phillips' firing, which could be good for both fans and fantasy owners.

In both of these situations, including countless others around the fantasy nation, we find people forced into conflict where they have inclinations to cheer against their favorite teams, which raises the ultimate question: "To cheer, or not to cheer?"

It's your right to form your own opinion, but someday you'll be faced with a very similar situation and you need to be prepared. What's it going to be? Do you cheer for your team? Or your fantasy team?

Or, in the end, do we hold our brothers to a higher standard, expecting that they bench players in matchups that they know will cause this agonizing conundrum?

Nah.

Passion Photography Church: Beauty

Photography Passion Church: Worship

Tuesday night worship at Kairos in Brentwood, TN.

Photography Passion Church: Creation

Ethos Photography Passion Church Assignment #1: Creation

For this first assignment, our church was asked to meditate upon the following verses:

• Job 38:1-7
• Psalm 24:1-2
• 2 Corinthians 5:17

As I sat in my den, reflecting upon these words, a torrential rainstorm snuck up outside my sliding glass door. I took a moment to pause, walk outside, and listen to the monsoon, when like lightning, inspiration struck! I quickly ran back to my room and popped a roll of 35mm film into my Minolta. As I removed the lens cap and unscrewed my polarizing filter, I took a gaze at my desk. Resting atop my place of work was my life pot, a glazed piece of pottery I painting in summer of '09. So I picked up the life pot, snagged my camera, and got to work. By this point, the heavy rain had saturated our hanging tomato plants, so water was cascading from the suspended pots. I instinctively knew I wanted to capture the falling water, so I placed the small life pot on my balcony rail and began looking around for shot ideas. Much to my delight, the large tree overlooking our balcony volunteered itself to be the perfect viridian background. I framed the shot, played with the focus, and adjusted my aperture to create a shallow depth of field. The rest was 35mm magic.

Sometimes we find it easiest to focus on what's directly in front of us, but in doing so, we can miss out on the full scale of God's beautiful creation.

The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.

10 Bold Predictions for 2010: Fantasy Football Edition

Here goes.

1. Joseph Addai, not Donald Brown, will finish this season as the Colts' starting running back,  and probably end up as a top 10 fantasy back, as he did last season and in seasons past. I feel like this prediction isn't too bold, but with all the hate going his way, I feel that this is befitting of a bold prediction. Let's break it down. First of all, Addai's running style fits the Colts offense perfectly. Sports writers everywhere are raving about Brown's explosive play ability, but honestly, is that what Peyton Manning's offense wants? Of course not. Peyton's way of life is to methodically drive the ball down the field, exhausting opposing defenses while giving Freeney and co. time to rest. The choppy, quick, tap dancing run style of ole J.A. is simply ideal (especially in the red zone). Aside from running productively everywhere from the stretch to between the tackles, Addai is also incredibly effective in the Colts passing attack, especially coming off a career high season in receptions (51) and receiving touchdowns (3). And when Manning takes the air, I can guarantee he'd rather have the rock steady blocking of Addai in the backfield than that youngster from UCONN, so it's pretty clear who will stay on the field for third down. Of course people will rant and rave about how Brown was a first round draft pick, but let's not forget, Addai was the Colts first round pick 4 years ago.

2. Jermichael Finley takes full advantage of his new starting position, becoming Aaron Rodgers' go-to target in the red zone. I boldly predict that Finley will lead all fantasy tight ends in touchdowns, finishing the season with a higher ranking than beloved red zone beast Antonio Gates, who is being drafted rounds higher than Green Bay's soon to be favorite Lambeau Leaper.

3. While we're mentioning Chargers, let it be known that Malcolm Floyd will pick up right where V-Jax left off in San Diego. This 6'5 burner has one of the most impressive wingspans in the NFL and will undoubtedly spark an intoxicating downfield relationship with Philip Rivers, giving the Governator a new reason to scream "GO CHAHHHGERS GO!"

4. Up in Pittsburgh, the 4.3 speed of Mike Wallace is going to infuriate opposing secondaries. I wager that once Roethlisberger retakes the helm of the Steelers offense, Wallace will become a starter of the no brainer caliber. I boldly predict that Mike Wallace: 2010 :: Desean Jackson: 2009.

5. Brett Favre will finish the season outside of the top 10 fantasy quarter backs. He certainly still has that rocket arm that has sealed his date with the hall of fame, but I'm afraid his supporting cast on offense is note as solid as we found it one year ago. His number one target, Sidney Rice, will be out for a majority of the season while rehabilitating from hip surgery, the sort of surgery that presents a long road to recovery. Most notably, the offensive line is not the force we remember so well from 2009. Youngsters DeGeare and Herrera will have to hold down the fort until Sullivan can return as the team's starting center. Harvin, while extremely talented in space, has been suffering migraines all summer, which is not encouraging for a contact sport athlete. And with little chemistry with Berrian, it looks like tight end Visanthe Shiancoe will be the team's top receiving threat. I do believe that things will get better as the season goes along, and the Vikings may even make the playoffs behind that stingy defense, but Favre has his work cut out for him.

6. Ronnie Brown will make a return visit to his mansion on the IR list, but he will be a top 10 running back and be among the league's leaders in rushing touchdowns until he goes down.

7. Before the season is over, Arian Foster will make me wish I had drafted him over Ronnie Brown at the end of the 5th round. This guy is the second all time leading rusher for the University of Tennessee, so he has credentials that merit potential fantasy goodness. Gary Kubiak loves to run the football, which is surprising for a team that boasts one of the league's most dangerous passing tandems in Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson. More surprisingly, the Texans are among the league's leaders in rushing plays called inside the 10 yard line. So not only will Foster get his shot at goal line carries, he should also have some impressive running lanes as Andre Johnson and friends keep opposing safeties honest.

8.  Just about every week, Jamaal Charles will score more points than ESPN predicts. This seems to be synonymous among fantasy "experts", but this kid will end the season as a top 10 running back. He's explosive, catches passes out of the backfield, plays in the AFC West, and let's be real, how else are the Chiefs going to move the ball on a weekly basis? Dwayne Bowe? Pass.

9. This is the year of the Rams. And by that, I mean I predict they have more than 5 wins this season. And by Rams, I mean Steven Jackson.

10. Here's one for you folks in IDP leagues. For my 10th bold prediction, I say the Titans, led by 2011's starting AFC Pro Bowl safety, Michael Griffin, make a Super Bowl run this season in a year where 3 AFC South teams make the playoffs, just as we saw in 2008 when the Titans joined the Jags and Colts in the postseason (but this time the Texans will make their postseason debut).

Passion

Colossians 3:17 - And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Over the last year I've really found a spiritual home here in Nashville with Ethos Church. It's kind of wild to think that in 2007, Ethos was only an idea floating around in the minds of a wonderful couple in my community. Now in 2010, hundreds of college students, adults, and families flock to the Cannery Ballroom every Sunday (now offered at 3 convenient services) to fellowship and worship with our Ethos family. When I began coming to Ethos in fall of 2009,  I was immediately intrigued by the concept of "house churches." These Wednesday night small groups meet all around out city, giving everyone a chance to get plugged in. As the semester progressed, my house church in Hermitage quickly became my favorite aspect of Ethos. Every week we grew closer and closer while sharing meals, telling stories, and reading the gospel to brainstorm ideas of how we could better serve Nashville.

One year has quickly come and gone.

I now find myself as a college graduate transitioning from the university setting into the real world. Ethos has been a terrific element of my life over the past year, so I'm very excited to jump back into the house church circuit. With Ethos' great growth during the 2009-2010 school year, there are more house churches on the table than ever. Even more intriguing, Ethos is offering a whole new breed of house churches called "passion churches." These small passion focused groups will meet once a week to discover how their common passions can be used to serve Nashville in the name of Christ. This beautiful new series of churches will see groups unite around passions such as running, crafts, and even ultimate frisbee. We have a home repair passion church who will be volunteering a night out of their week to do handy work for our neighbors who may not be able to do home repair for themselves. In another part of town, we have a sewing passion church who will unite to craft wonderful sewn goods that can be donated to Nashvillians in need. I personally have joined the world's first photography passion church.

I can trace my passion to photography back to the 6th grade. You may not be able to tell by looking at me, but I was once the finest wildlife photographer in the Dickson County public school system (and I have the ribbons to prove it). As a borderline ADHD 11 year old, I found a great peace and satisfaction going out into my yard and hiding in a small tree to take photographs of birds as they came in to feed. With my mom's 1980 Minolta 35mm camera in hand, I was able to capture some National Geographic quality shots of cardinals, pileated woodpeckers, and Tennessee's lovely state bird, the mockingbird. Perhaps my favorite of all was a dazzling close shot of a Carolina Chickadee, the photo which I brandished all the way to the state 4-H competition in Murfreesboro. Good times... Anyway, here I find myself 12 years down the road jumping back into photography with the same Minolta 35mm camera I wielded back in the winter of '98. I had a monumental photo safari with some talented friends last weekend, and I'm already planning my next adventure. With this being said, I'm very excited to see how my photography passion church develops.

Tonight we held our first passion church gathering in a charming house on Woodvale Drive. Arriving fashionably late, my party entered the den, ascending our total attendance from eleven to fifteen. We began our night by going around the circle to introduce ourselves and share why we were drawn to this particular passion church. As we went around the circle, a common theme arose; Everyone had a love for the art of photography, and we want to discover how our passion can be used to serve the Lord. For the next hour we chatted about our thoughts and dreams for history's first photography passion church. We drafted several service project ideas, such as hosting a baby photo shoot for single mothers and hosting a benefit art show. Over the coming weeks, we will be taking different topics (like creation and reconciliation) upon which we will meditate, pray, and use as inspiration for photography projects. Then, we will take Wednesday night meetings to share our latest work and discuss how our images transcend the image of God. It was truly a thrill to be surrounded by such a talented, passionate group of individuals. I realize that we only spent a brief time together tonight, but I can safely say that our first gathering is only the tip of the iceberg. A huge, creative iceberg.

God is doing wonderful things here in Nashville. And I cannot wait to see the work these Ethos house churches do for our community this autumn. As we move further into 2010, I'm curious to know what you're passionate about, and how can that be used to better your community?

"Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion." -Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, German Philosopher

Bold Steps 4 The Convivial

My blog has officially relocated itself from Tumblr to Blogger. To view my previous blogs, please visit
http://boldsteps4theconvivial.tumblr.com/

The Battle For Dickson County

Jumps into the battle for Dickson County as the DCHS Cougars host the Creek Wood Red Hawks. Watch as the orange and blue clash with the red and silver in the teams' first meeting at DCHS. Ladies and gentlemen, football season starts here.

I've Got An Idea

I’ve got an idea…

Tonight as I sit in bed, memorizing 50 new words for GRE, Fantastic Mr. Fox is playing in the background. In the midst of cramming words like refulgent, laconic, and garrulous into my cranium, I can’t help but stop and soak in the artistic beauty of this film. When I watch, my left brain becomes entranced from the get-go. My eyes lock onto this crafty fox as he flows fluidly across the screen in what can be tersely described as stop-motion refulgence (thanks GRE).

This avenue of art invokes a childlike sense of wonder in my mind, raising a beautiful question in my mind: “How did they do it?”

Turns out they did it through a commendable combination of creativity, diligence, technology, and team work. It took the talented cast and crew 5,229 shots, consisting of 621,450 frames, to capture the footage needed to bring this film to life. If we do a bit a of math and plug the 621,450 frames into the film standard of 24 frames per second, we can calculate that over 25893.75 seconds (431.56 minutes) were taken in the filmmaking process. Even more amazing is the level of meticulosity reached to ensure that these 621,450 frames would run smoothly once pieced together in post production. 

To take a deeper grasp on what this means, take a look at this filmtrailer. For every single second of film you see, 24 individual frames had to be taken. And in between each of these frames, an artist had to go in and make the most precise movements to the puppets so that every shot flows fluidly. As I continued researching the making of Fantasic Mr. Fox, I came to a realization: Wonder is beautiful. 

An ancient Greek proverb states “wonder is the beginning of wisdom.” Scottish writer Thomas Carlyle once said, “wonder is the basis for worship.” Wonder is that spark within the human mind that leads to bold new thoughts and revolutionary discoveries.

If Christopher Columbus had allowed fear to swallow his urge to wonder, the world might still be living under the presumption that the world is flat.

If Galileo had never wondered at the stars, mankind could still be unaware of far off galaxies. And mankind may have never discovered Pluto, then pompously decided that Pluto was unworthy of “planet” status… anyway, that’s a tirade for another time… 

And if a wonder-filled Benjamin Franklin never had the curiosity to fly a lightning-friendly kite in a thunderstorm, we could still be sitting in the dark. I certainly wouldn’t be typing this on my MacBook right now.

Wonder dares us to dream, dares us to seek something greater than ourselves.

I’m curious to hear what makes you wonder.

To sum things up, I’m about to post this blog and finish watching Fantastic Mr. Fox. I fear that the image of barn “27 B” has permanently burned its way onto my television screen. But before I go, I’ve got an idea… At some point over the upcoming year, I’m going to create a stop-motion project of my own. And it’s going to be wonderful.

#HotBox

A Lot Can Happen In 48 Hours

It’s officially been one week since the 48 Hour Film Project hit Nashville, TN, and I have yet to officially recover. Six sporadic hours of sleep over two days has a way of doing that to a man. Anyway, I digress…

For those who are unfamiliar with the 48, it’s a creative, chaotic perennial contest where filmmakers are asked to go above and beyond the call of duty. After drawing a random genre from a hat, each team is given a random character, prop, and line of dialogue from which they have 48 hours to formulate into a 4-7 minute film. 

Last Friday night at 6pm, 54 Nashvillian teams sent representatives to NuMynd Studios (48 Hour HQ) to receive the random elements. As the clock struck 7, the last element was announced and the delegates sprinted out of the studio with the wildest of ideas racing through the air. It was beautiful chaos on the grandest scale. On my way out of the studio I called my team and the creative amalgamation known as filmmaking began. Here’s what my team, Sons of Liberty, came up with:

Title: ” The Accidental Kidnapping of Ellie Minors”

Genre: Dark Comedy

Character: Evan Minors, City Employee

Prop: A Chess Set

Line of Dialogue: “It’s not easy being me.”

Synopsis: An unexpected relationship forms after the mayor’s daughter is accidentally kidnapped.

First of all, I want the world to know how proud I am of my team. Bringing a short film to life in 48 hours is an arduous task that really tests what you’re made of. My colleagues of Sons of Liberty passed with flying colors. For the most part, we had a team of first timers, which is quite admirable. Congrats guys. You rocked it, and I look forward to working with you all in the future.

This two day process is like clockwork. If your work doesn’t flow smoothly, the filmmaking can all fall apart very quickly. People can talk all day about strategy for taming such a beast, but it really comes down to two things - having a strong team dynamic and being adaptable.

When you have 48 hours to completely start and finish a film, a lot can happen. For example, if it winds up raining when you meant to shoot an outdoor scene, then you better have a back up plan (or get a poncho and adapt to the weather). Problems will always arise. It’s just a matter of keeping your cool and transforming the issue into some positive.

Perhaps the most helpful advice I can give to fellow 48 Hour Film Project directors is to surround yourself with a good team. And not just people who are gifted in their craft, but folks who have good heads on their shoulders. In football, they say a quarterback is only as good as his wide receivers. Imagine Vince Young dropping back to hit Kenny Britt on a pass across the middle when, all of a sudden, the play breaks down. If Britt and his fellow receivers freak out and shut down, there’s going to be trouble. On the other hand, if the receivers stay focused and keep the play alive, you can have something beautiful on your hands. I don’t know about you, but I like having people who can keep the play alive.

Along with the team dynamic, it’s important to note that everyone serves a purpose. Whether it’s holding a boom, tossing out an idea, or finding a guy who owns a sweet motorized scooter, EVERYONE has a role to play. It’s critical to realize that even the smallest piece plays a vital role in pulling a project off in a weekend. For example, we had a guy who didn’t get the chance to be behind the camera until the last scene, but then he sparked the idea for a window shot that showcased the Nashville skyline, one of my favorite shots in the entire film. 

Before closing, I want to note what this weekend meant for my journey as a filmmaker. This was my first time to compete in this project in several years. Over the last year I’ve been taking intentional steps in my practice of filmmaking. When I came into this project, I wanted to gauge where I am in my journey compared to where I was three years ago. It puts a big smile on my face to see how I’ve not only developed as an artist, but as a person. Not to be ostentatious, but I’m very happy with the person I’ve become over the last few years. The relationships I have built, combined with the tenacious mentality I take into every endeavor of life, really showed up in the making of this film. When combining this with my freshly acquired knowledge of film, I’m really happy with where I stand. I want to thank God for giving me the opportunity to practice the art I adore while spending such quality time with friends.

Lastly, I would like to raise a toast to everyone who competed in Nashville’s 48 Hour Film Project. It takes a lot of hard work and creativity to pull this mother off. You should be proud of what you’ve accomplished.

“The Accidental Kidnapping of Ellie Minors” will be premiering at Belcourt Theater this Thursday night at 9:40pm. If you’re in the mood for a snappy dark comedy, come check it out!

Oh, and of course, it always takes a bit of luck. You know, a lot can happen in 48 Hours.