St. Pete's Blog

I Am Going to Focus My Blogging Efforts

2009-08-24T14:52:00.003-05:00

In December of last year, I started this blog as a way to unwind and write about stuff that didn't seem to quite fit over at my real blog (Beauty of the Bible). And I have had a blast doing it.

However, this semester is going to be challenging enough with work, church, and blogging responsibilities without my trying to maintain and promote two blogs. So, I've broadened my horizons over on my real blog to include the sometimes funny, often offbeat, and always entertaining (to write, anyway) stuff I usually post here.

For example, the following recent posts are completely inappropriate for a Bible blog, yet, somehow they're not:

Don't Bite Your Friends
Internet Addiction Detox
I Love Conspiracy Theories
I Know All Men are Created Equal but Come On, and
Insert Joke Here (this probably was appropriate).

I'm not doing away with St. Pete's Blog, I will leave it up, and I may post here from time to time. I may ultimately combine everything in to one master site. Who knows?

Anyway, if you're a follower or subscriber of this blog, I won't let you down. I'm just asking that you subscribe to my other blog if you want to still follow this one.

Thanks.

Though for the Day on Sonic

2009-07-21T12:24:00.001-05:00

A Sonic on the way to work is a dangerous thing-especially in summer time.

It wasn't so bad when it was out if the way, but now...yikes!

-- From My iPhone

Comments Fixed-For Now

2009-06-30T11:31:00.003-05:00

I have heard from several friends over time that they have been having problems commenting. Well, I think everything is working properly now (or, rather, for now).

I guess that's what you get for trying to use third-party templates, and then trying to tweak them for the look you want.

I appreciate you guys letting me know about the problems. If they persist, please keep me posted.

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 1

2009-06-27T08:25:00.003-05:00

Our beautiful princess and her enormous brown bow.

On the twelfth day off...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 2

2009-06-27T08:20:00.004-05:00

This is classic Libby. Truly one of my favorites of all time...and those eyes.

When she was first born, and for several months thereafter, this is the only way she wanted to be held.

On the eleventh day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 3

2009-06-27T08:10:00.004-05:00

The Hip-Hop Libby - "The Libster":

On the tenth day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 4

2009-06-27T08:02:00.003-05:00

I love this one because it shows off her smile. This is my laptop's background image, so I get to see this smile almost every day.

On the ninth day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 5

2009-06-27T07:56:00.004-05:00

I'm playing catch-up after being away from my computer for a few days, but here goes.

On the eighth day of...

She's going to be a reader, this one. Even at a very early age, her favorite toys were books and they still are.

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 6

2009-06-23T14:03:00.003-05:00

Even all wrapped up and under covers, she is all eyes.

On the seventh day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 7

2009-06-22T15:36:00.004-05:00

Her pink cap was so cute we could hardly stand it, but it's missing now. Consider this our APB for the pink princess cap.

On the sixth day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 8

2009-06-21T18:59:00.002-05:00

My two girls together:

On the fifth day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 9

2009-06-20T08:06:00.004-05:00

This is still one of our all-time favorites. Although how she slept through the photo shoot is beyond me.

On the fourth day of...

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 10

2009-06-18T16:58:00.005-05:00

In my infinite math wisdom, I miscalculated the number of days between the 15th and 27th, of which there are actually thirteen. So, Libby got a day off yesterday.

On the third day of...

Whoa! What a bow!

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 11

2009-06-16T16:21:00.004-05:00

In keeping with the holiday theme, here is Libby and her proud papa on Easter.

"On the second day of..."

I do believe that is the prettiest Easter dress ever (not to mention the prettiest child ever).

Twelve Days of Libby-Day 12

2009-06-15T15:14:00.007-05:00

In just twelve short days, our daughter, Libby, will be one year old. It's hard to believe that twelve months have flown by so fast, but they have.

In honor of her coming birthday, I will post one photo of Libby a day until her birthday. It's hard to say that these are my twelve favorite because I love most of them, but they are twelve of my favorite.

"On the first day of..."

Libby and cousin Alex on Christmas morning! Can you beat that smile?

Beauty of the Bible Bookstore

2009-05-27T14:07:00.006-05:00

I have launched a bookstore over at my real blog (Beauty of the Bible) so readers can browse and/or buy Bibles, Hebrew resources, books reviewed on that site or this one, and much more.

The bookstore is named, cleverly enough, the BOB Bookstore. So, if you are in the market for a new Bible, Father's Day gift, great books, or other stuff, click on over to the BOB Bookstore and have a look around.

Our Very Own Baby Bach

2009-05-23T12:49:00.004-05:00

We have our very own Baby Bach, and, although I'm partial to Mozart, "Baby Bach" just has a nicer ring to it:

Facebook Bucks?

2009-05-22T15:03:00.004-05:00

Not exactly Facebook bucks, but Facebook credits.

CNET News is reporting that Facebook users may soon be paying Facebook "credits" for Facebook applications. I suppose it was inevitable.

Apparently some app developers are making a killing on virtual currency, and Facebook is looking for its cut. If any of you are spending your hard-earned cash on purchasing this virtual currency, you will soon be able to purchase Facebook credits instead to be used across the Facebook application universe.

It's hard to blame any company for chasing down potentially huge revenue streams, but, in my own humble opinion, so many of the Facebook apps are annoying enough as it is. Now, I'll have to click "No" who knows how many times just to confirm some third or fourth cousin's relative request.

It will be worse than leaving a drive through. If I want to add an apple pie, chili and/or cheese to anything, or purchase a gift card, I will say so.

Recently, when my wife and I were in San Francisco (at a restaurant which shall remain nameless), we overheard a wait staff training session where the manager was teaching the staff about "check building." Upgrading this or that, pushing fruity beverages, and suggesting sides and desserts are all ways to "build checks." A bigger check = bigger tips = more money for the restaurant...you get the picture.

Well, now it's coming to Facebook.

What Did She Call Me?

2009-05-19T09:40:00.002-05:00

I walked into a local bakery today, and the clerk kept referring to me as "hun." It was no surprise, really, she always does that, and so do the other clerks who work there.

Now, it's entirely possible that I could be so utterly charming that each individual clerk is compelled to refer to me so affectionately. But, if that's the case, then I just so happen to be at the bakery at the exact same time as other equally charming people because they get the same greeting.

I wonder if they actually train the employees to call people that, or if the tradition that started with the previous generation of employees (because it's been going on for a long time) just continued.

Is There Such A Thing As Too Much Football?

2009-05-13T19:05:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I reached a point in my life I never thought I'd reach: I complained that there was too much football on TV.

I was flipping channels when I noticed ESPN-U was showing the Alabama spring game. "Are you kidding me?" I thought to myself.

Over the next couple of weeks I noticed that ESPN-U was showing various SEC school spring games, and I said to myself, "If ESPN is showing intra-squad practice games in April, there is too much football on TV."

I was just flipping channels again tonight, and I saw that ESPN-U was about to televise the Texas spring game.

Oops, I guess I was wrong.

-- From My iPhone

Top 5 Marketing (Mis)Spellings

2009-05-05T11:14:00.006-05:00

Following up on my last post (Observations on Marketing), here are my Top 5 Marketing (Mis)Spellings.

Qualifier: I realize these may be legitimate spellings somewhere, but it is obvious (to me, at least) that these spellings are deliberate marketing efforts and not simply alternative spellings.

5. Towne - Seriously? Is "town" somehow insufficient? Can you charge higher rent for living or conducting business in or at a towne?

4. Pointe - If you are a ballerina, feel free to use "pointe" as necessary, otherwise... Do I need to pointe out what's wrong with it?

3. Centre - It's not quite a silent (and useless) "e", but it's just as bad. Let's make it doubly bad and name a shopping center Towne Centre or Centre Pointe. Why not just do away with "er" spellings altogether: Blogger is now Bloggre, Twitter is now Twittre, and I am now Petre.

2. Shoppe - I think we should all boycott Shoppes on principle and shop elsewhere (another storre perhaps).

1. Markette - Okay, I made this one up. I haven't seen this one yet, but it wouldn't surprise me to see it somewhere soon. And if you do see it, by all means, stay away.

Observations on Marketing

2009-05-02T15:09:00.001-05:00

Don't you just love driving through a row of apartment complexes and reading the lofty-sounding names?

How ever do they come up with such drivel?

If you ever have the misfortune of having to market apartment complexes, here is all you have to do: take any two of these naturally occurring phenomena and combine them: stone, ridge, creek, hollow, bend, crest, brook, wood, river, briar, hill, meadow, timber, and forest. For example:

Stone Crest Apartments
Timber Ridge Townhomes
River Bend Apartment Homes

See what I mean? Piece of cake.

If you're marketing high-end (or luxury) apartments, use three:

Meadowbrook Hollow
Stonebriar Creek
Woodridge Forest

And if you want to attract people with more money than sense, add a "the" and an "at":

The Hills at Rivercrest
The Bend at Hollow Creek
The Meadows at Stonebriar

If there are other marketing questions, I'll be happy to help.

-- From My iPhone

Facebook Throwdown

2009-04-29T14:39:00.003-05:00

Calling all Facebookers!

Last night, I was belittled by my wife because of the number of our Facebook friends. She has 115 and I have a paltry 105. Well, I can't stand for that, now can I?

Please, I beg you, if you, my dear reader, are a Facebooker, please befriend me (Peter M. Lopez) here.

I realize I only need eleven to take the lead, but I want to close the door on this discussion forever.

I will be forever grateful!

I Officially Feel Like An Adult

2009-04-29T11:52:00.000-05:00

My wife and I will celebrate our five-year anniversary in a couple of months.

I have a child about to turn one year old.

I have a law degree, and I have tried numerous criminal cases with a person's life literally in my hands.

I am 35 years old, and I have run my own business for 9 years.

But, I have never really ever felt like an adult until the other day. I went to the corner convenience store because the ice maker in our fridge is out, and I asked the clerk for a bag of ice.

"That will be $2.26."

I was stunned. "Well," I thought, "that's probably for a 20lb bag. Okay."

Wrong! It was $2.26 for a little 10lb bag of ice. Are you kidding me? That ice better be made out of Evian, or Perrier.

The last time I can remember having to buy ice by the bag it was $1.07, that is $.99 plus tax. No such luck anymore.

I know things are kind of crazy right now economically speaking, but this is ridiculous. And I've never considered myself thrifty (I think my wife and parents can attest to my former spending habits), but, as a matter of principle, I can't continue to pay $2.26 for a bag of ice.

So, it's official, I now feel like an adult.

-- From My iPhone

Blogging From Bethel

2009-04-25T08:47:00.003-05:00

If any of you follow my other blog (Beauty of the Bible), you know that my wife and I were recently in Redding, CA at Bethel Church for a children's pastors' conference (she is the children's pastor at our church).

During the conference, I blogged about the experience to the extent I was able. Here is a directory of those posts:

I also learned of three other blogs which might interest you about Bethel Church:

Bill Johnson’s Blog - Bill, of course, is the Pastor of Bethel Church.
Kris Valloton’s Blog - Kris is the Senior Associate Pastor.
Beni Johnson’s Blog - Beni is Bill’s wife with a thriving ministry of her own.

Check them out, I think you will find them worth your time.