rest in peace

so, today is an odd sort of day. it feels right that it's raining.

this afternoon i was watching schindler's list after mowing the lawn, while i cut out a stencil for the last painting i need to finish before this weekend. my brother called with very bad news.

my uncle, whom had been battling cancer for the last few years, had passed away. we knew it was close, and he was in a home hospice situation. i don't know what to say here, or how much to say. my uncle was a man that i deeply respected, and enjoyed the times i spent with him. but, we weren't super close. i think my brother & sister in law were closer to him, and that's fine. i deeply appreciate all the love and support that my aunt & uncle have given my dad and my family. i'll miss him and feel for the loss that my aunt and cousins, as well as the extended family, are experiencing right now.

r.i.p. allen guenther

just received this email notice

"Dr. Allen Guenther
Funeral Memorial Service
December 30, 2009
Fellow MBBS Alumni,

Dr. Allen Guenther passed away on the morning of December 23. His wife, Anne, and all their sons, Ron, Barry and Michael, were present the afternoon before to spend time with him. The family is grateful for the goodness of God in Allen's life and in his passing. Allen has lived with Parkinson's disease for many years, his character and intellect shining through to the end. Dr. Guenther, a Professor of Old Testament, was honored as a faculty emeritus after his retirement.

The memorial service will be held at Butler Church this Wednesday morning, December 30, at 10:30 a.m. Butler MB Church is located at 4884 E. Butler Ave., Fresno, CA 93727-5093. Telephone:
(559) 252-3741. Former Presidents Elmer Martens and Larry Martens will be conducting the memorial service and offering the eulogy. You are welcome to attend."


i had allen for several classes in seminary, many of them with just another student or two. allen was a great scholar and mind, and as a student it was obvious that as he battled parkinson's he struggled with the difficulty to let all of his wealth of knowledge out to us. i appreciated every class, and am thankful to have learned from such a great guy. my condolences to his wife and family.

r.i.p. pimp c

pimp c, aka chad butler was found dead in a sunset strip hotel in hollywood. this is sad news. pimp c and bun b make up the group u.g.k. (underground kings), an influential houston rap group.

u.g.k. had been on the shelf for a few years as pimp c was in jail for a few years for not paying child support. but, he had been released in the last year and they had a #1 album.

although i wasn't a huge fan, i did enjoy many of the songs they had collaborated on such as jay z's big pimpin. their current album had a song on it w/outkast that was very nice. i'm going to have to pick that up now.

it's still unclear how pimp c passed, but we'll know more in time. rest in peace, pimp c.

r.i.p. chris benoit

so, most of you probably don't know this, but the wwe is running a storyline right now about vince mcmahon (owner, commissioner) is dead. i heard it somewhere in passing, and i saw a commercial today. i thought this was slightly offensive, but, hey, it's a soap opera for stupid guys. i don't watch wrestling, and i don't care at all about it, but sometimes it gets pushed into the forefront of culture and we have to examine or at least acknowledge it.

i really hope that they will end this charade now. it seems that one of the wrestlers, chris benoit, his wife and child were all found dead on monday. authorities think it was a murder-suicide.

"WWE extends its sincerest thoughts and prayers to the Benoit family's relatives and loved ones in this time of tragedy," the federation said in a statement on its Web site." they also canceled their monday night program, as well as showing a tribute to him.

i hope they go further than that. although, it must be noted that they had a wrestler, owen heart, die during a pay per view event and they continued on.