Why Rock Stars Really Rock

Dear Rock Stars,

You always thank us regular people, but here is a regular person thanking you.

It's easy to think about how glamorous the life of a professional musician must be. It's in the Hannah Montana song (limos, hottest styles, every shoe in every color, movie premieres, etc.). Doing something that you (hopefully) love has become your livelihood, with the help of your adoring fans. The truth is, almost everyone wants to be in your shoes, and you know it. (As a side note, thanks to those of you who have not let this fact go to your head.)

Every situation has its backside (pun intended), though. Rock stars put up with a lot:

-Long hours on the road

-Being absent from their families for long periods of time

-Rarely getting a home-cooked meal while touring

-Stalkers

-Creepy blogs detailing their personal lives, style, every picture of them ever taken

-Stalkers with creepy blogs

-Total invasions of their privacy and personal space (Mat Kearney had his butt grabbed in the crowd at a concert, see Matt Thiessen being touched by the crowd above--that takes a strong stomach)

-Tabloids/paparazzi

-The potential of never having a normal love life

-Having to be hesitant/distrustful when making new "friends"

-Signing autographs until they have carpal tunnel

-Playing their songs over and over until they get sick of them (see "Cartoons" by Chris Rice)

-Stress-related illnesses and ailments

-Squealing fans that are in love with you, despite being 1/3 your age

-Having to spend large amounts of time figuring out how to keep putting God first

With all of that going on in your lives, I don't know how you do it! Sometimes I wish that I could make that quiet homemade meal for you, just to show you how much you are appreciated in a way other than what your looks, money, talent, and fame have to offer.

Rock stars, you rock.

P.S. If you guys want to take me up on that homemade meal thing, give me a heads up. I'd be glad to, and no one would ever have to know.

[Picture by me, at a Relient K concert some years ago]

Kind of Addicted to This Song

This is What I Have to Say to the World

"You sit on a throne of lies."

It is often used facetiously, but is something I find myself yelling at the world as of late.

(Yelling in my head, that is...)

But too often we point out the world's faults before we admit our own. Thus, I will own up to some before ranting. First of all, I started that sentence back there with a conjunction. Sorry.

Also, I apologize for any time that I've been fake with someone. Whether it was to make them have a higher opinion of me, bolster my sense of security, or as a form of blowing them off so that they could not actually get to know me. I am working on this problem. Sometimes, it is just so much easier to play a part than to be myself. That must be why I ended up as a drama major. I am already so good at acting.

That being said, I will now rant.

I hate it when people are dishonest about their intentions towards me, or when their intentions towards me are dishonest. Do you not think that I can see through your lies or manipulations? I've committed the same, or at least similar, indecencies. They are as recognizable when you are committing them as when they are committed against you.

This is why I don't trust you, world.

You are the throne of lies.

That Time I Went Crazy: Roswell Edition

Second only to that time that Craig watched two seasons of 24 in 48 hours, was the past 2.5 weeks in which I watched three seasons of Roswell. Wow, that was a lot of numbers in one sentence.

Mindy had mentioned that when she did a similar thing with The O.C, she had started thinking about the characters as if they were her friends and would start to discuss them as if they were real people.

Same thing happened to me, except for I also started picking up their mannerisms, instinctively expected to see them in public, and feel as if my friends moved away when the series ended.

"Dead Man's Cell Phone"

[*So, I'm doing a different devotional program for Lent, which means a break from the Romans 12 thing.*]

The UW Drama department's Undergraduate Theater Society put on a production of "Dead Man's Cell Phone" last year, or maybe it was two years ago. Either way, I didn't get a chance to see it, as it was during the run of another show I was working on. It's a shame.

The play has something to do with the cell phone of a man who died (hence the title), and his friends and relatives are calling and leaving messages. Or something like that.

Last summer, a friend of mine died. His phone number is still in my phone, and there is always this urge to call it.

Tonight I did.

It was busy.

Honor One Another Above Yourselves

"Honor one another above yourselves." Romans 12:10b

Honor reminds me of two things:

1. Military awards

2. Marriage

The point is, honor requires sacrifice. You have to give up something that you really like. Your pride. Your comfort. Your life.

It is its own reward, though, to see a person benefit from your sacrifice. Honor is not the real reward.

It's strange, though. Everyone wants honor, but those who get it don't set out with honor in their sights. They have some higher purpose.

Be Devoted to One Another in Brotherly Love

[Photo credit: awkwardfamilyphotos.com]

"Be devoted to one another in brotherly love."

The phrase "Brotherly Love" evokes in me memories of lazy Sundays watching the Lawrence brothers in their quirky TV show. Good times. It also reminds me of John 15:13 ("Greater love hath no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.").

Most of all, it reminds me to cherish those around me. The verse doesn't say "be devoted to your friends" or "be devoted to the people you like," but "be devoted to one another." Everyone, love everyone!

Again, we are all human, it can be plain exhausting to be 100% nice to 100% of the people around you 100% of the time. Plus, you might just come across as creepy or fake.

Honestly, I have a really hard time telling people how much I appreciate them. I never had a steady friend as a child, so I get really nervous that my friends will just forget about me and move on to cooler people. It's happened before. Also, I struggle with a lot of mental negativity from depression, so it's easy for me to put myself down and think that no one wants to be my friend.

Showing brotherly love to someone can take a lot of courage, but simple gestures go a long way too. Hold doors for people. Help someone pick up their loose change that they dropped in the store. Smile. Hug. Laugh with. Pray for.