Republican Christianity, everybody!

This reminds me of all those really awesome scriptures where Jesus talks about how important being wealthy is, and how awesome rich people are, and about how you shouldn't care about the health and wellbeing of those less fortunate than yourself. Billboard God is so cool, guyz.

The dude abides.

I hope everyone had a happy holiday. We did.

I was nervous going in because I weighed myself before we left and saw the lowest number since college, 174.5 lbs. I was very happy. Progress, you know? But I knew that my parents' house is no place for a diet, especially on a holiday. However, I was pretty proud of myself, and although I did allow myself a shred of gluttony at Xmas dinner, I diligently counted my calories otherwise. So today, I weighed in at 176.0 lbs. Not bad, not great. It won't be too terribly difficult to recover from anyway.

Harper had a great time, and Leah and I discovered that, at her grandparents' house, we don't matter as much. We're not offended, we get it. Kind of a pain in the ass when she doesn't eat good because she's too pumped up, but oh well. She got to play with her cousins, which she loves, especially her cousin, Rylan, who is only 6 months older than her but the same size.

I got to see some friends that I haven't seen in a long time, ate some pizza, did some bowling, saw some movies.

We actually saw two movies, because having grandparents around is free babysitting. On Friday, we saw True Grit and we really liked it. Not my favorite Coen Bros. but still really great. On Saturday, we saw Tron: Legacy 3D. IT'S A JEFF BRIDGES CHRISTMAS!!! Tron was OK. Pretty forgettable, but OK. It was in 3D but after the movie we all stood around saying, "Was it in 3D? I don't remember seeing anything that looked 3D."

I'm rounding out the weekend by watching The Big Lebowski at work today.

I had designs to blog about the Old Testament today, and how Christians justify all the crazy shit within, but all the profound ideas I had in the shower escape me in this chair. So it goes. Perhaps I should blog about my ever dwindling desire to engage in religious discussions. I really had a stomach for it a year ago. Now, not so much. I'm sure this blog is significantly less interesting because of that.

I think I've just decided that if any real progress for free thought and/or Humanism is to be made in our culture, it's going to be made through art and/or humor, so I've been exercising those demons by working on the new record. Which I plan to do more of tonight.

On how great and how wrong I think Switchfoot is.

As I mentioned yesterday, I recently discovered Gomusicnow.com. Two of the first records I downloaded upon this discovery were Hello Hurricane and Nothing Is Sound by Switchfoot. I love Switchfoot. I think Jon Foreman is an incredibly intelligent songwriter, both lyrically and melodically, and I'm really enjoying both of these records.

But as I've been listening to them constantly for the last couple of days, I've started noticing something that has either never been so abundant in Switchfoot's music before or I've just never been in a position to notice before. If, for Jon Foreman, art is an extension of self (and I believe it is) then I think we can maybe safely assume that Jon Foreman feels like shit most of the time. And while that is sad for him, what's disturbing to me, is that he seems to believe that that is the way he and everyone else should feel. Culture is empty and meaningless, people are empty and meaningless, life is empty and meaningless, etc. I really wanted to count all the times the word "entropy" is used in all their records but who has the time? But trust me, it's a lot. Also, he really doesn't belong here, and I really can't blame him for not wanting to belong here if he really sees the world the way he seems to.

Here's an excerpt from "Stars,"
Stars, looking at our planet, watching entropy and pain
And maybe start to wonder how the chaos in our lives could pass as sane
I've been thinking bout the meaning of resistance, of a hope beyond my own
And suddenly the infinite and penitent begin to look like home
Everyone, everyone we feel so lonely
Everyone, yeah, everyone we feel so empty

Here's a little bit from "Mess Of Me."
I am my own affliction
I am my own disease
There ain´t no drug that they could sell
No, there ain´t no drug to make me well

There ain´t no drug
It´s not enough
The sickness is myself

And just a little more from "The Setting Sun,"
I've got a wound that doesn't heal,
Burning out again,
Burning out again

I've not sure which of me is real,
And I'm alone again,
Burning out again

My hope runs underneath it all,
The day that I'll be home

It won't be long, I belong,
Somewhere past the setting sun

finally free, finally strong,
Somewhere back where I belong

I really could go on and on and on, these themes are so abundant in almost every song (but that wouldn't make for a very entertaining blog). Of course, there is a silver lining for the downtrodden. Everything in the world in meaningless, but when you add god to the equation, then at least we have hope for a better world "somewhere past the setting sun."

I think religion enables a lot of shoddy thinking. In some parts of the world, it's still downright dangerous, but even in America where the zeitgeist has dragged most of our religions, kicking and screaming, to a point of moderation that can almost be considered harmless, it still seems to be a proponent of unhealthy thinking. I can so vividly picture an 18 year old Taylor connecting with these lyrics so strongly, as well as all of my christian friends today. What has happened that makes good people think that they aren't worth the skin they're wrapped in unless they believe that one day a loving sky wizard is going to come and make it OK? Why did I believe that? Why didn't it, at least, seem weird to me that I thought that? As I've said before, the most depressing times in my life were when I was the most "connected to the holy spirit." And just like Jon Foreman seems to think, I thought it was good for me to feel that way. How perverse that seems to me now!

Ignoring the fact that this kind of thinking is unhealthy on a social level and leaves little to no incentive to fix the world that you actually do belong to, despite what any chosen faith might want you to think, I think it was the father in me that made me take issue with Switchfoot's lyrics. I think it just dawned on me when I was listening to it, that if anybody tried to convince my daughter that she, her world, and all of her relationships and dreams, were essentially shit unless she prescribed to their particular delusion, I'd be pretty pissed off.

As I said before, I love Switchfoot and I'm not going to stop listening to them because I disagree with them. Nor am I going to keep my daughter from listening to them, if she feels so inclined. (I do think that they also say some really great things about culture sometimes and I'd much rather her listen to lyrics that are at least thought provoking and wrong than lyrics that are degrading and shallow, like so many are.)

What I am going to do is write a record that is the antithesis of their message. You do belong here. We all belong here. There is hope for this life. People are worthwhile regardless of whether or not god loves them or even exists.

IntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegrityIntegr

I'm not really a fan of the late night shows on the big networks. In high school I went through a phase where I watched Letterman pretty regularly and shortly after, a friend showed me how awesome Conan is. I've always hated Leno. I don't think he's funny at all. Pretty obnoxious actually. Now in my 27th year of life on the question of "who is the best out of Leno, Letterman, or Conan?" the answer is "Jon Stewart."

Conan deserves the Tonight Show because it was promised to him. I am a firm believer in people doing what they say they will do and this seems to be a pretty clear cut case of that being the problem. To my knowledge, Conan has upheld his end of the agreement, and Jay seems to be under the impression that he can make up the rules as he goes along. I'm sure it's complicated with money and ratings, but I'm not interested in hearing that argument. Conan did his part, now NBC needs to honor their commitments. I heard about Jimmy Kimmel (who's also better than Leno), taking Leno to task on his own show last night and I can't wait to see the footage. I've heard some people saying it was staged but I don't really think so. We'll see, I guess.

When I was in youth group at my church growing up, we had a saying that I'm sure is popular in churches all over the world, "You may be the only Jesus some people ever meet."

People sometimes ask me why I bother spending my time in religious discussions with people that show no sign whatsoever of even being able to see any perspective but their own, and I think of that saying, except now it's "I may be the only skeptic some people ever meet." The only critical examination their beliefs ever get, the only voice of reason, etc. Of course, it's discouraging how little difference these conversations ever seem to make but I was encouraged the other day by my friend and Quiet Company manager, Paul. I was telling him about some of the conversations I'd had recently and I said something like "...it doesn't matter what the evidence suggests, they've made up their mind to believe what they want in spite of it." And then Paul said "Yeah, but I would've said the same thing about you a couple of years ago."

So I believe that people can come around because I did, though sometimes I forget that I, too, was once "blind but now I see" as the song says.
I'm currently involved with such a discussion via Facebook with a girl I went to school with and it has been pretty irksome and discouraging at points. I think the most irksome thing was in her email that I received this morning that essentially said "I don't know if you've ever REALLY searched for god, because the bible says that if you do, you'll find him. So if you haven't found him, surely you haven't really searched for him." Circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works because circular reasoning works!

She obviously doesn't know me very well and never has so I tried to soothe my ire and countered with "I don't know if you've ever really looked critically for god because if you had, I believe you'd have found him somewhat less than present." Somewhat perfectly, as I type this, the shuffle on my Ipod randomly started playing "Godless" by The Dandy Warhols. Maybe that's an ironical sign from god that he does exists...? What does the bible say about god's appreciation for irony?

You really can't trust anyone who won't dance.

Leah and I are now officially home owners. There are a lot of great things about owning your own home and a lot of benefits but the thing I'm most excited about is being done with the buying process. If there is a hell, for me, I'm sure it involves spending eternity trying to buy a house and also, shopping at IKEA is somehow involved.

Another thing I'm pumped about is that, as soon as Harper is old enough for me to push a large part of the responsibility onto her, we're getting a dog. A big, badass dog! Almost definitely a mutt; definitely a rescue. And it will be an inside dog, something I've never had.

Leah and I watched a documentary last week called The God Who Wasn't There, which makes the case that Jesus, not only wasn't divine, but didn't actually even exist. Its an entertaining movie and, despite some cheesy music and graphics, I liked it. Though, honestly, its more of an emotional appeal than an educational one. Ideas are presented but not backed up thoroughly. Its a feel good movie for atheists, in other words. It left me in, generally, the same place I was before viewing it. Which is to say, "I don't know."

Leah and I went to east Texas to celebrate the holidays with our families a couple of weekends ago, so we were tired of driving and opted to stay home on Christmas. It. Was. Amazing. We watched a lot of movies, cooked and ate good food, relaxed, she got some editing done, I got some recording done and also beat X-Men Origins: Wolverine for Xbox 360. My favorite thing was on Friday when we put Harper to bed and made a huge pallet on the living room floor out of blankets and comforters and watched Inglorious Basterds, which is a lovely film. Last night, my mom and dad came to town (because we bought our house from them and we closed today) and we went out to eat and got in some sweet hang time. All in all, one of my favorite holidays ever.

I've been a little annoyed with something on Facebook/Twitter lately. And its not a big deal, just one of those things. But on Facebook, especially on Sundays, you get a ton of people updating their statuses with really exuberantly religious statements. "Going to church to worship our perfect lord and bask in his ray of golden loveliness with forgiveness and mercy etc. etc. etc...."

That's all fine and good, and while I may quietly (or loudly) scoff a little bit, that's not what annoys me, really.
First, let me say that sometimes when I've told my Christian friends that I'm no longer a believer, the news is met with a sort of...I don't know if "pity" is the right word, but we'll run with it. I get the feeling that they think I've lost my faith in the same way that a little boy loses his puppy. But that's not the truth. I haven't "lost" anything in the sense that I've misplaced it or had it taken from me, I've very calmly, and very intently rejected it, least ways until that time where I'm provided sound reasoning to return to it. And I'm not sad about it. Quite the contrary. I LOVE HUMANISM. I love the idea that we can be good for goodness' sake, without the permission, direction, or threat of punishment from an unseen deity. I love the idea that humans are all in this together and I love being part of a community that I feel is a proponent of reason, equality, kindness, and scientific thought.

So, that being said, sometimes I'd love to fire off a status update about how free I feel, having abandoned religion, and how joyous that is to me, but knowing a lot of my Christian friends, I feel like a lot of them see any representation of ideals that conflict with their own as an affront to their ideals. Its a double standard, and maybe one that exists only in my head, but an annoyance all the same. Technically speaking, their status updates are an affront to my beliefs, but I don't get offended. Maybe I'm not giving them enough credit. Maybe we'll never know.

Doing my part to keep America beautiful.

You don't see a lot of mullets around nowadays. You still see them, to be sure, but not as much as we once did. Probably because they became a huge national joke. I don't know how it would be possible to have one and be unaware that the rest of the world wasn't laughing with you, but most certainly, at you. Unless you're one of those cool indie guys with a taste for the ironic where your hair is concerned, you most likely recognize what a bad idea the mullet is.

There are a couple of other fashion trends, I'd love to see go the way of the mullet, and here they are.

1. Drawn on lip liner and/or eyebrows.

Maybe its that no one has the heart to tell these girls, but no one, and I mean absolutely no one, could possibly find this attractive. And I don't just mean on this poor creature, but on anyone. Once when I was 14 or so, I met a girl at a church function and hit it off enough to justify talking on the phone a lot. When I met her she was just a normal looking girl in a t-shirt and jeans. She called one day and asked if she could come over and hang out since she was going to be in the area so I said, "sure." When she arrived she was scantily clad and her eyebrows were drawn on. She really wanted to get her make out on with me but those eyebrows were really freaking me out. I was really disgusted with her. Why would anyone shave off their eyebrows and draw them back on? We know they're not real eyebrows.

I don't like make up, in general. If I can tell a girl is wearing make up, she's wearing too much. The idea of kissing a girl wearing lipstick really sicks me out too, but if I had to kiss a girl wearing lip liner I'd probably puke in her mouth.

Maybe some girls just don't know this, but most guys I know say that they like girls who look natural. Also, I can only speak for myself, but fake boobs are gross.

Side note: I don't really need anymore reasons to find Sarah Palin repugnant, but in my search for lip liner pictures, I discovered that she has tattooed lip liner. God, everything about this woman irks me.

2. Affliction and/or Ed Hardy t-shirts, ie Douchegear.

I've got to be honest, I fully intended to mock the shit out of the people in this picture but now that I'm looking at it, I just feel really sorry for these guys. I mean...gosh. I wonder if they know that their mothers cry themselves to sleep every night.
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Anyway, we had a great weekend in east Texas with the family. Our first holiday as humanists went off without any kind of conflict or friction. However, irony did strike when Harper was the only child in the entire family to receive a religious gift from my grandmother. I'm pretty sure she doesn't know that her family includes any humanists, so its not a big deal.

Its weird to see holidays through non religious eyes now. The weirdest part is how the holidays are really not religious at all. Aside from the baby angel doll that says a prayer when you squeeze it that Harper got, I doubt anybody said anything about their faith, or lack thereof, the entire time we were there.

The rest of the weekend was spent hanging out with friends, eating at the best Mexican restaurant in the world, playing with Harper and my niece and nephew, and everyone having their ass kicked by Leah at bowling. I also got quite a bit of cash to spend at Amazon.com via gift cards and such. I've, thus far, bought 11 DVDs, 2 box sets, 4 CDs, and 4 books and I've still got $30 left. I love my family! I love Amazon.com! I love humanism! I love Festivus!

Bill O'Reily is an asshole. Also, bears shit in the woods.

If you watch Fox "News" for any reason other than comedic value, then you deserve to have your head filled with polarizing, sensationalist, right wing tripe. Its a testament to Bill's journalistic integrity that instead of bringing on a representative from the American Humanist Association he brings on 2 other Fox "News" talking heads, presumably so they can all agree with each other. That is, after all, the point of Fox: so people who are too conservative for their own good get to hear someone shouting out what they think on TV, regardless of whether or not what they say is factual, objective, or responsible. As long as you're completely sure you're right, no matter what and the truth be damned, you have a place at a 24 hour news network in America.

Since no humanist was present to answer Bill's nonsensical questions, I'll do it.
-Humanist groups have been putting up signage like this all over Europe for quite some time now, and now American groups are starting to.
-Yes, they'll put them up in July.
-Yes, they'll put them up around Easter.
-Yes, they'll put them up around Ramadan.
-No, we don't hate the baby Jesus...moron.
-No, those signs are no more of an affront to religious groups than nativity scenes all over the place are to Muslims or Jews.
-The sign says, "No God? No problem. You can be good without god." it doesn't say "If you believe in god, you're a f**king moron! And we hate you. And we hate your stupid family." What, exactly, is wrong with people reaching out to the like minded for a sense of community? Isn't that what church is? The fact is that we live in a hugely religious society, and its not uncommon for non-believers to feel like they're alone in their beliefs, especially around the holidays.
-Most of us celebrate some form of the holiday anyway so, no, you arogant child, we're not "jealous" of what a good time religious people have around the holiday.
-Christmas, like Easter, is an originally pagan holiday that Christianity hijacked somewhere along the way. So, if you want to get into a game of "who was here first?" the Christians will find themselves pretty far back in the line.

It is trully sad how much Bill O'Reilly depends on his audience being ignorant little sheep. A loud voice does not a sound argument make.

Heritage not hate....

By now, most of the people who care know how hardly any of our founding fathers were evangelical Christians. Some were Deists, some where probably Atheists, most were skeptics at least. So I don't know how we got from that point to this point where non religious people can't get elected to any public office without at least paying some form of lip service to one denomination or another.

Well, color me impressed, Asheville, NC. They've elected an openly Atheist man, Cecil Bothwell to the city council. Its only the city council but its a start. Now, I don't know if this is a good choice or bad choice, since I know nothing about his politics, I just think its impressive that he was able to get elected at all.

Apparently, there are some crazies trying to bar him from service because the NC state constitution states that no one can hold public office if they "deny the being of almighty God." Obviously, their constitution is unconstitutional, but you can't explain that to crazy Confederate flag loving, former NAACP president H.K. Edgerton. So it goes.

I recently received an email from girl I knew in high school and also went to church with. She had purchased Everyone You Love Will Be Happy Soon, off of itunes and wanted to tell me how much she liked it. However she was curious what the terms "Deist" and "Humanist" meant, as she had seen them on my Facebook. I explained the terms and, through a few email exchanges, told her a little about my deconversion from Christianity. Being devoutly Christian herself, I suppose she found this somewhat disturbing and wrote me yesterday to explain that now she can't listen to some of the songs on the record because they show a disregard for the things she believes. She specifically referred to the song "How to Fake Like You're Nice & Caring." I've heard other people talk about how that is the most anti-Christian song on the record and it just goes to show that what you mean for a song to say and what it actually ends up saying to people can be two totally different things.

First off, the record is full of mixed philosophies mainly because there was a lot of time between the first and second record. So some songs have been around for a really long time by the time they get recorded. That's why in "Congratulations, April and Lucas" I'm sure that there "must be a god" but by the time I wrote "Congrats Seth & Kara" I thought that Old Testament Joshua was "an asshole" and by the time I wrote "My new Years Resolution..." I was sure that nobody knows anything about death and the afterlife.

"How to fake" was written out of frustration with our culture's politics and right wing political theatre but I used a lot of religious imagery so I'm sure its misleading to some people. To me, its one of the more, if not christian then certainly, moralist songs on the record.

All these mixed philosophies won't be problem on the third record though. I'm really happy with the way the writing is going. There will be parts that are so epic and anthemic that they'll seem like a Humanist praise and worship record (if that wasn't an oxymoron, that is), but I think it will also be the most personal thing I've ever written.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried about losing fans, though. I know that either by circumstance or coincidence, we've aquired a lot of Christian fans over the years and I hope they remain fans. I hope they can continue to listen to Quiet Company and just accept that everyone's journey is different and that they don't have to agree with me to empathize with me. I made mewithoutYou my #1 record of the year and I certainly disagree with the philosophy of that band. But when I listen to them, I'm not sitting here going "Oh, I disagree with that and that and that." Instead, I'm sitting here going "Man, he's a great f**king lyricist!"

But who knows. That's me, I could be wrong.

"If there's a god looking down below, I hope he sees all that he controls. And if he chooses not to intervene maybe its best that I don't succeed."

I'm going to let my friend, Jason, blog for me today. And by that, I mean that I'm feeling lazy as shit and his blog talks about me so I'm going to link it.


In this one he talks about the conversations that he and I have had, usually over wings at Waterloo Icehouse, about Jesus/faith/atheism/yadayadayada.

In this one he talks about why he likes my song "On Modern Men," and relates it to the first blog.

I love it when people talk about me and Jason's a really kind and smart guy. When you're done reading the blogs be sure to listen to his music and get your life enriched, as well.

I don't agree with everything he says (and I guess that's kind of the point), but most of my complaints with his post are semantics and not worth noting because I think I agree with the core of what he's saying. Enjoy.

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ADDENDUM:
Jason doesn't have a link on his new site to the Jets Under Fire site, and you can get way more of his music there (for free!!) so I thought I'd add it.

When my wife yells things like "Hit him in the mouth!" at a hockey game, I know we'll be together forever.

Last night was amazing. I've always known that I like hockey, ever since Disney's immortal classic, The Mighty Ducks, came out, but now we actually have a team where I live, that plays five minutes from my house. Leah and Robin surprised Jeremy and I with tickets to last nights game and so we all went to see the Texas Stars (our team) battle the Houston Aeros (we lost in overtime 2-3).

There's not a lot of points scored in hockey but I think that just makes each goal mean that much more. When someone finally puts one in the net, you know they've been working their collective asses off to do so. Hockey is also the best sport to watch because it combines skill, aggression, violence, and grace so seamlessly.

I also enjoy watching tennis.

We're going to go to more games, and Leah will probably always cheer for the visiting team because she feels bad for them. Maybe I'll join her if we're sitting far enough away from other people and I feel like we won't incite an angry mob.


I finished My Ishmael by Daniel Quinn just a few minutes ago. It was really good but there's something frustrating with Daniel Quinn's books and its not his short-coming really, but mine.

Almost everything I've read by Daniel Quinn makes perfect sense to me in that way that the concepts seem so obvious that you wonder why you never saw the world in this way before. After I read Ishmael I must confess that, initially, I thought he was suggesting that the only way to really save the world was to return to our Hunter/Gatherer origins. After some thought I realized that he wasn't really suggesting that since that is an impossibility and a ridiculous one at that. When I read The Story of B I began to see a little more clearly and now that I've finished My Ishmael, I think I've got everything he means to give. However, that doesn't make it any less frustrating, and here's why.

Daniel Quinn isn't a messiah and the laziest parts of me want him to be.

He's an amazing teacher/philosopher/writer and his books have forever changed me, but he hasn't told us how to live. And why should he? Why should I expect him to know? How could he? After all, one of the biggest truths in his work is that there is no one right way to live, so why am I so hungry for him to give me one? I finally understand that the burden is on those of us with changed minds to figure out how to live sustainably, not on a leader to show us the way.

I have no idea (yet) how to live my life outside of what Quinn calls "Mother Culture," but I know that I have to start with these truths:
-There is no one right way to live.
-It is possible to adapt our culture into one that is sustainable.
-There is nothing inherently wrong with people, just as there is nothing inherently wrong with butterflies or grizzly bears.
-Human beings like us lived with a culture that worked for them for hundreds of thousands of years and these peoples can serve as models for us to learn from.
-We must be inventive and fearless. Keep what works and prune what doesn't.

I'm probably not smart enough to do much good in this world, but I can do my part by raising my child to be aware of these things and maybe she'll be smart enough to do a lot of good.

Don't go to Devil's Bathtub without a sponsor...

Recently, an old friend from church came into town and we had lunch. It was good to see him and talk about how much things have changed. This guy used to, basically, take over our Sunday school class and teach it (which always annoyed the crap out of me) but now it seems that he, too, has taken the first few steps on a road away from faith and I wish him luck, whatever that means. One of the things he seemed to be having trouble reconciling was that he had such good memories in the church. I had them, too. In fact, I've been really nostalgic about them today. Probably because my brother, who is a minister, posted about how he's getting ready for church camp, and I started thinking about all my summers at Falls Creek Baptist church camp in Davis, OK.

I stopped being a Christian because I, simply, couldn't make the square peg that is the Bible fit into the round hole that is my conscience and logic. And after years of trying, desperately, to do so, gave it up as a bad job. That being said, there is a large part of me that really wishes that I could believe like I did in high school, before I had seen or thought anything that challenged my faith. I would love to go back to church camp and relive the passion, the emotion, the week long attempt to get a summer girlfriend (come on, we all know this is one of, if not the main reason for teenage boys to go to church camp). Sometimes, I even miss church itself. Not the sermons or the music or the classes so much, just the hanging out really, and the idea that we were all part of some great purpose handed down by god. It was a lot of fun and it would be ridiculous to act like it didn't shape me. That's not to say that its improbable that I would've turned out just as good without it, I probably would have.

There is a summer camp for Humanists with several locations in the U.S. but while, I'm sure its fun, I doubt its the same kind of fun because it wouldn't be the kind of thing that would pull on your emotions the way church camp does.

Maybe Quiet Company should just make it a priority to try and play Cornerstone every year so I can get my nostalgia fix. When we were there last year, it was really obvious how weird a lot of it seemed to Tommy, who has always been a non-believer, but to me there was such a familiarity. Maybe there's just something in my personality that tends to enjoy a certain level of mysticism. I don't know.

Of course, its unfair to look backward through those rose colored glasses of nostalgia. Things like that were never really as good as we would like to remember. I don't miss the guilt or the shame that is often exploited in the hopes of conversions, and I don't miss all the guys with their guitars who don't know how to play, yet, seem to always have the instrument handy. One time, I was playing this kids guitar at church camp and he stopped me and said, "Taylor, I only want Christian music played on my guitar." I said, OK, but come on, I wasn't even singing anything. Is the D chord more christian than the A chord? Has the G made a profession of faith whereas the F# lives in sin? Ridiculous.

Anyway, weird guitar kids aside, I kind of miss church camp.