Transformers

And now for something completely different...

I was reminded recently of one of my favorite childhood toys growing up, Transformers (more than meets the eye, you know). From the mid-80's give or take. Loved 'em - Christmas 1985 was the Transformer Christmas for me. I had soundwave, Cliffjumper, the small autobot airplane, the firetruck, the microscope, Braun (the little jeep), at least a few others...

I kept a few, and sold of the others at yard sales and such as I grew up... Fast-forward to tday: I looked 'em up on the internet, and to my surprise, on ebay, there's a huge market for these things - they were maybe $20 for the big ones back then... They're selling for well over $200-300 dollars these days! Holy cow.

One of the things that made these toys so unique and is probably pushing their value yet today is that they could change from at least one "object" - usally a car or a plane - into a robot, then back again. They were adaptable to situations and needs.

One of the most important abilities we humans should cherish too is our ability to change. To be instruments of change, when needed. Think about it.

-Orin

Interesting Surveys of Catholics, Thoughts and Practices

Hi All -

Click above to visit this week's National Catholic Reporter special insert on American Catholics - the results of several polls over several years. There are some interesting results between varying age groups and beliefs/practices, and may turn your thoughts about stereotyping "who is what sort of Catholic" on your head.

For instace, which age group had the highest percentage to self-state they "could not explain their faith to others"?

Those born before Vatican II, at 59%. The lowest percent is 44%, from Shannon and my age group, and the overall average is 49% (Table 13, toward the bottom of the page) - 49% is rather high, don't you think?

Make sure to read the whole of the findings, and please, don't take any items out of context, including the above statistic - everything is much more complicated than it seems...

For more, click here.

-Orin

Site Updates

Hey All -

Over at the main page, check out the new info on the CD "Little Steps" and our new book,"Just Because You Can," based on our song of the same name. Other merchandise (t-shirt!) will be for sale soon too, check it out.

Over here at the blog, we've introduced some small google ads. If you click on them, or the ones over at the main page, Oddwalk earns money. Like, 4 cents per click or something. Searching Google via our main page also drops some $ in our coffers. If you want to support us and our ministry, here's a quick, easy way that won't cost you a dime!

Thanks everyone,
Orin

Great Time in Jeff City (Pt. 2)

I just wanted to echo Orin's sentiments about Sunday's Diocesan Youth Rally in the Diocese of Jefferson City.  I witnessed a great spirit among the teenagers in attendance, the adults, the speakers, and the wonderful team.  For the first time in recent memory, the day ended with Mass.  What a joyful celebration.  Thanks again to Tim for the invitation to be a part of the rally.  We're looking forward to more "house-banding" in April for the Jefferson City Diocesan Jr. High Youth Rally.

Great Time in Jeff City

Hey everyone,

Sorry about the suddenly somewhat slow pace of posting, it's been a busy 2-3 weeks, and may be busy right up through NCYC!

We had a great time in Jeff City this past Sunday at the Senior High Youth Rally; thanks Tim for putting together a wonderful event. Wasn't APeX awesome, as usual? And Dawn Kinsman too!

We hope you enjoyed our music and our humor, both gifts from the Lord, meant to be shared.

We don't really have anything coming up until NCYC, but that's okay - got to get a lot of stuff ready for the booth and for the comedy stage, coffee houses... Should be a great weekend too!

Forget Something?

Last week Shannon talked to Mike Eppler, Director of Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Evansville, IN, and wrote down several very important details about the (then) upcoming Oddwalk appearance at the Evansville Youth Rally. That information included directions to the hotel, the name of the hotel, and phone numbers for the rally organizers. As he left Fulton, MO, Shannon placed that piece of paper in his pocket and left to meet Orin and Erin in Belleville for the trip to Evansville. That is the last time Shannon ever saw that piece of paper. This was not a problem until we reached Evansville and needed to know where to go, where we would be staying, and who we would talk to when we got there. After arriving in Evansville, Shannon, Orin, and Erin (orin's wife) spent the next two hours calling every hotel in Evansville (there are many) to see if they had ever heard of “the Diocese of Evansville”, any one named Cerneka, or anyone named Orin Johnson. The first place Shannon called was the Days Inn. This was because Shannon believed that to actually be the place we were staying. The man at the desk told us that they had no reservation for us. Well…actually…they did. I’m not sure what happened, but long story short, we finally got checked in to our rooms, albeit two hours after we had initially called them. Thanks to the hotel staff at the nearby Holiday Inn for letting us rest on their couches and helping us by calling hotels for us while we were lost.,

The moral of the story is…well…actually…there is no moral. Just don’t trust this kind of information to Shannon…EVER!!

I Always Wondered...

My (Orin's) score was exactly 50 - I expected much higher. What's yours? Click above!

Many Orins

So, I put my name in that little blank up there, and clicked the "Search All Blogs" button. Many folks write about Orins, some Orins are writers themselves. Lots of Orin Kerr posts and references. So for a more random sampling, I tried "Orin -Kerr" and that helped.

I'm not entirely sure why, but I think this post may be my favorite of the ones I looked at, and it's first on the "orin - kerr" list. Maybe because just by itself it leaves so much to the imagination.

Apparantly, I have not been blogged about, other than right here. That's just fine, not sure what I'd expect others to be saying anyway.

Listening for God

This is only Tuesday, and it's already been a pretty busy week.  Due to some circumstances out of my control, Fr. Jamie Smith (the associate pastor at the parish where I work as youth minister) and I had to scramble to put together a three-hour program for about sixty-five 6th, 7th, and 8th graders.  The event was a big success, but I wasn't sure that we would continue to have it once a month as I had originally promised.  That was mainly because I am already pretty busy and the thought of adding to my schedule makes me really anxious.  Throughout the course of those three hours though, five or six volunteers stepped forward to say that they would be more than willing to help me out in the future.  It was really cool.  God was using them to speak to me.  Their offer will allow me to provide more opportunities for our parish youth to deepen their faith in God.

 

Sometimes our idea of what should or shouldn't be happening is contrary to what God is calling for in that particular situation.  I think it's really important to listen for God's voice.  It's likely to come when you are least expecting it.

 

-Shannon

Very Sunburned

Shannon and I are. So is Orin's wife, Erin, but probably not Shannon's wife, Erin.

Also, Orin is thirsty.

But we had a good time at the Festival of Faiths and Cultures at the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, where Oddwalk served as emcees, opening prayer coordinators, and all-around good eggs. Erin was the stage manager.

So, it was sunny and in the 90s here today. Ow. We also got to wear nice, but heavy, brown, long-sleeved shirts.

We'll hopefully be in better shape by Evansville next weekend. Is that event indoors?

Site Update - Donations Page Live

Everyone -

More updates at the main site, including several links to make donations - for the Katrina relief efforts, or more generally.

Erin and Orin have signed up through the Humane Society to become a foster dog home for any displaced pets - updates if anything happens there.

Go bowling Sunday night, help a good cause

On Sunday night at 7pm, join Belleville-area young adults for an evening of bowling to support the St. Vincent de Paul society - visit Belleville Young Adult Ministry for more info.

PS - Yes, I'm biased, my (Orin's) wife is helping to organize this... Hi, honey...

A personal perspective

Our good friend Mike Patin lives in Metairie, LA, a suburb of New Orleans.  Thankfully, Mike and his family escaped the city several days ago and are staying with family in Lafayette, LA.  Mike has been updating the blog on his website since the tragedy began.  If you would like to check it out you can click here.  The blog offers a unique and personal look at the devastation.  His writing also offers a Christian perspective and suggests a Christian response.  Very interesting.

Main Site Updated

Hi everyone,

I've just updated oddwalkministries.com - the main page is slightly updated, the donations page is available for donations to our minsitry or to charities around the world, and you can finally buy our CDs online! Go take a look: shiny updated web page