Instant Message can be a total time burglar.

However, taking a few minutes to talk (IM) with my wife during the work day seems to be the opposite of wasting time.

We just had a great little convo checking in with one another and making plans for tonight. Having the ability to instantly connect has its advantages.

I know this post about IM sounds like it came right out of 1998- but hey gotta love the classics of the Internets.

Much like Superman’s Fortress of Solitude, the Batcave serves as a place of privacy and tranquility where Batman can be himself. – Wikipedia

When I need to get away and do some focused hard-core study for a class or a lesson I pack up all my gear – my notebook, Bible(s), book(s), iPod, pens, and highlighters – and head straight for my new, secret getaway. This place serves my needs because it is away from my desk, it is always quiet, and I avoid distraction from email or phone calls. I call this place of privacy and tranquility…

The Batcave

This top-secret photo was snapped during my last visit and smuggled off the premises on my iPhone.

So where is the Batcave? I’ll never tell. However, I will spill the beans on what the Batcave is.

The Batcave is an annexed room next to my local comic book shop. The room is often used by groups of people play fantasy games like D&D, Warhammer 40K, and World of Darkness. It’s official name is The Gamers Guild.

That’s right I study at The Nerdery. But as you can see from my picture, in the middle of the afternoon no one is playing anything. The room is almost always completely empty. The people at the comic shop are so cool and so kind to let me use this area to study. I am so thankful to them. Every employee there has teated me so kindly. I love my new study-home.

It is so quiet there that I feel like my productivity quadruples. I just throw on my iPod (or don’t) whip out my pen and notebook and go to town crafting lessons. Very awesome.

Sure, there is no supercomputer or trophy room filled with the spoils of past lessons or retreats and there definitely is no Batmobile waiting in the wings (I do have a black car though) but this Batcave suits me just fine.

Until next time readers. Same Bat-channel. Same nerdy writer.

I sure am glad that I spent all that time on the fan and the fan belt. Whew!

Over the weekend there were some classic Camaros parked down the street from the church building. The owners refused to let me flip one on its side so I can only assume that this looks correct. They had no respect for authentic pursuit. Jerks.

Cleanest. upholstery. ever.

I am actually proud of the small detail on the dash of the silver Camero emblem that I managed to paint. I almost wept I was so proud. Almost.

I spray painted the first coat in my real garage. For some reason my wife freaked out when I started prepping the kitchen table for an impromptu spray painting area. I’m only kidding. I never prep anything.

What’s a swinging bachelor like me going to do with my new found freedom? Work on my classic 1969 Camaro Z/28.

Unfortunately for me, this classic car is only a 1:25 scale model.

We went to the craft store on Monday and I got the itch to build. I put together a Corvette back in college and I had a lot of fun working on it. My fat fingers make it a real challenge to glue some of the tiny pieces together but I’m up for the challenge.

I have completely taken over the kitchen table. For all practical purposes this weekend this is the garage.

The engine has been lowered into position and has been fastened to the frame.

Here I’m letting the glue dry so that I can apply some paint touch ups when I get home.

I’m pretty upset that when I finish this piece and glue it into place it will cover over the front part of the engine obscuring the view of the fan and fan belt. I’m just sayin’.

Stay tuned for more pictures of my classic ride.

Catalyst is, hands down, my favorite week of the year. I went to the labs last year and I am still trying to decide if I want to go to the labs again this year. I have a while to decide.

This looks to be a great event again. I’m getting excited already!!!

Last week was my last week of (relative) freedom before the beast that is summer had a chance to take over my life. I left my computer wherever. I failed to return emails. I kinda checked out of cyberspace.

It Begins…
Summer began for me in earnest today. We began Work Camp early this morning and that will last until Wednesday night. We have about 200 teenagers representing about 10 churches painting houses and cleaning yards in the Arlington area this week. I love the idea of teens and adults spending their first week of summer paying to paint other people’s houses in the hot, hot sun. What a great week! Bonus today as a cool front moved in at the end of the work day. Hopefully, we can continue to have mild and clear weather for the remainder of the week.

Summer Staples
I picked up a one volume copy of all of the C.S. Lewis Signature Classics to read through this summer. I have read some (Mere Christianity, Screwtape, The Great Divorce) and there are a few that I have not read (Problem of Pain, Miracles, A Grief Observed). I had already planned on reading through Miracles and Screwtape this summer but then I thought it might be fun to try and read through all of these master works over the next three months. I never tire of reading through Lewis. I get overwhelmed sometimes but never tired.

I Shall Retire to the Nerdery
Another of my summer plans is to decorate my office. Those of you who know me know I love movies and music and animation. What you may not know is that I love comics too. I’m not a total geek but there is just something in me that connects to mythology, storytelling, and folklore . What better place to find those elements than in the comic book heroes that I know and love? So in an effort to find some interesting pieces of wall art I headed down to the closest comic book shop to pull some issues with cool covers. I found what I was looking for but I also got sucked in to a new storyline from my favorite hero, Batman. At the end of this new series RIP… (dum, dum, daaaaaaaaaah) Bruce Wayne will no longer be Batman. Whaaaaaaaaaa? Sounds pretty cool to me. I’ve cross another line toward total geek-out.
I hope everyone has a great week. I’ll talk to you again soon.

I will soon be posting my annual Best Of lists for my favorite books and albums of 2007. I’ll post my favorite albums of 2007 on Monday. Expect some Winehouse, Keys, Foo, Stripes, and Crowder. However, before I do that I want to hear from you.

What were YOUR favorite books from the past year?

What were YOUR favorite albums of 2007?

Join the conversation.

Oh, boy! I just geeked all over myself while veiwing this video clip of gameplay from the upcoming Ghostbusters video game. The game will feature the original cast and the script has been penned by Aykroyd and Ramis (Ray and Egon respectively).

In the clip you can spot recreated scenes from the two movies, references to Tobin’s Spirit Guide, and a visit from everyone’s favorite librarian (Get Her!). There is already an official game site up and running. Click here to see more.

I cannot wait to play this game.

Favorite Quotes from Ghostbusters:
“Back off man! I’m a scientist.”

“It smells like burnt dog hair. Oooh, Pete, I’m… I’m sorry.

I hope everyone had a great Labor Day. I sure did.

On Monday I hit the links with some students and some men from church. We had a tee time set for 7:45 but the course was running a little behind. We ended up teeing off sometime after 8am. The public course that we played on was beautiful and well maintained. We had a blast!

The best part was that the rain held off until right as we finished the 18th hole. We couldn’t have timed it any better.