First in line

So, I started a new Facebook page, Joe Hill Jr, for just me.  And we are doing great, she was just tired of wading through pictures of old Navy ships and indecipherable Navy posts.  I was really not interested in the Lilly Condren or Erin Pullitizer stuff either.  It just had gotten confusing, and we were both hard pressed to keep up with what we wanted to keep up with.

Having done that, figured I would start a new blog.  Hopefully, shorter and more direct, and more regular.  I promise there will be really long, long ones, it just sometimes has to be.  But, I am also going to try to edit a bit more significantly.

Topics will continue to be mostly old man rants, things that just strike me wrong, things that I wished we did more of or more often, and things that none of us should ignore.  It is mostly a chance for me to get it straight in my head, because my process requires writing it out.  That is if I ever get it figured out.

I always welcome comment, just leave out the obscene stuff.  You can and hopefully will sometimes disagree with me, just leave out the Fbombs and we will debate away.  I usually win, but give it a shot, you never know.  Just kidding, I always win.  LOL.

Tonight, it is going to be about me.  I guess, since it is my blog, and I am sharing my thoughts, it probably always will be about me...confusing, never mind.  There are posts that are me, my thoughts, and then posts about me.

Bio stuff, for a new blog, though not new to most that will see this.  I am nearly 48.  We have 4 adult children, all successfully living their own lives, in their own homes, on their own terms.  We could not be prouder of the 4 that belong to us, nor the 4 that belong to them.  We have a furbaby, as we are not yet gifted with grandchildren.  I estimate that Tuff, our Chihuahua is the most spoiled dog in North Carolina, potentially America.

I am in great shape for all the things wrong with me.  That applies equally to us all.  I have some chronic health things that I routinely deal with, however, it does not keep us from enjoying the things we want to do.  Mostly, that involves our camper at the beach, seeing family and being together.  Oh, and I work at a job that I love.

But, that is not newsworthy.  Here is the newsworthy part of the night, and the reason I am kind of taking on a new blog.  I have finally set up my baptism for November 22nd.  Yes, I was baptized in the Catholic Church as an infant.  I do not have a personal hangup with infant baptism, I know the verses used to defend it, and to condemn it.  In the grand scheme of my dogmatic dilemnas, this one does not register for me.

My new church, C3, here in Clayton, however, recognizes adult baptism.  Fairly certain that they would happily allow me to continue on as a member of the congregation, even if I did not do this.  But, there is a point to making a commitment and committing to the making.  I am and I told them I was, and that means something.

I also told the family and friends, at the time, that I would let everyone know when it was happening. I would love to share it with you all.  We would love for you to be there, to share in the experience with us, and to see and enjoy the church family we have found.  I will warn you up front, it is kind of a high energy service, not quite the church scene from the Blues Brothers, but it gets close.

We will post all the information on Facebook, and the dates.  We are happy to see any and everyone come.  It is a great worship service.  And, it is a great group of people.  At least for us, it has filled a void of significant need in our lives.

When the lady at church asked me why I did not want to do it right away, I told her that I wanted to at least give some of the family a chance to get together for it.  Right now, we are all seeing one another around visiting my father in the hospital, as he fights a pretty significant health issue.  Even if they can't attend, then at least it is a good news event to think and talk about.

I have found that the only thing that defeats IFS (Illness Fatigue Syndrome, a proprietary term I developed on my own through much more study than any man should have to go through), is to be mindful of and communicate good news.  So this will be some good news to share.

Daddy is going to be okay, we have faith, and good indicators so far.  It is hard to explain just how tough Joe Beans is, but he is already a 3 time cancer survivor.  And, he is a hero to all the men in our family.  That Jr. that goes with my name is probably my prize possession.

So, as we become full members of this new congregation, and build our lives within that church family, we hope as many as possible can attend and be part of the day for us.  Nothing more required.

I historically have closed blog posts with the closing I love you all.  That is an awesome closing, if I do say so myself.  But I think I will close this one with GLYASDI.  God Loves You and So Do I.