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I want to let you guys in on a little secret. There’s a really cool new podcast on the block. Tell your friends!

The WebChurch Podcast is off the hizzle (I’m not really sure what that means but I think it means it’s really cool dawg). Word.

What is the WebChurch Podcast?

“Want to start an Internet Campus at your church? Are you looking for ways to leverage the latest and greatest techno-toys for God? The WebChurch Podcast is for you! Join hosts Brian Vasil, Miguel Umanzor and Stacie Gonzalez as they take you on a trip through the week in church technology. If it plugs in, has buttons that blink or is just plain awesome…we’ll be talking about it! Stay connected with the WebChurch Podcast!”

But wait! Don’t you worry you non-tech savvy person you. We do talk about what’s hot and cool in the world of tech but we don’t get too carried away with the jargon and technological babble. So try it, you’ll like it.

Check out the WebChurch Blog (http://webchurchpodcast.blogspot.com) or you can subscribe in iTunes by clicking the little iTunes picture below.

Drop us a comment or suggestion on the blog and let us know what you think. Or drop Brian Vasil and Miguel Umanzor a line on their personal blogs.

Stay Connected!

That’s dirty bro…

Today was a pretty crazy day here in iStacieville. Exciting yes but also a bit draining.

So what do I do when I feel drained? How do I unwind? Cut loose?

I’m glad you asked.

Here are a few of the things I like to do to relieve the stress:

-Read. From the Bible to blogs and everything in between. Sometimes I like to read fiction like Harry Potter because they help me escape to the world I’ve created in my head. My HP world is totally different from the movie version though. My characters are American. I can’t think with an accent.

-Being active. I hate the gym, but I love to be outside. Whether it be riding my bike with my family, tossing the frisbee with friends, or pwning boys in basketball — I’m happy.

-Cartoons. Those of you who know me personally know how much I love cartoons. I can hold a conversation with my friends’ kids about Nickelodeon and Disney like nobody’s business. Watching cartoons puts me in my happy place. It’s all good when I’m watching Spongebob.

-Video Games. I’m not a hardcore gamer by any means. I play the Wii which apparently is the “Chicks XBox”. I heart the Wii. What am I currently addicted to? Guitar Hero III and Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End. However, I am getting annoyed with a certain pirate who keeps getting drunk and drowning which is causing me more stress because I can’t beat the level! Deep breaths…..

-Milk and Cookies. Seriously, nothing says “Life is Good” like a cold glass of 2% milk and Double Stuffed Oreos.

Look back, I have the list of a 9 year old. I don’t care. Thank you God for making me special.

You: Who’s there?
Orange
You: Orange who?
Orange you glad I didn’t say Apple?

I decided NOT to blog about WWDC and the unveiling of the new 3G iPhone. I guess I’m blogging about it now so I better stop.

Today I caught a glimpse of a Spanish comedy show my grandparents like to watch. On the show they had a guy impersonating a psychic and I thought to myself “what ever happened to Miss Cleo?” Then my ADD mind thought of other television has-beens. Of course, I had to look them up.

Miss Cleo: Last seen staring in Florida car dealership commercials. 

Mark-Paul Gosselaar aka Zach Morris: Gosselaar is a sports car enthusiast, race car driver, track cyclist and pilot. He’s married with 2 kids. 

Brian Bonsall (the kid from Blank Check): Currently working in construction and residing in Boulder, Colorado, Bonsall plead guilty in 2007 for third-degree assault of his girlfriend. 

Jim Varney (Ernest): Varney died of lung cancer on February 10, 2000. Oh my gosh Ernest! I had no idea!

Paul Reubens aka Pee Wee Herman: Out of jail. Already?

Bob Denver aka Gilligan: He died too. I’ve been living under a rock!

Jaleel White aka Steve Urkel: He’s making random cameo appearances on shows I never watch. 

Carson Daly: He’s still hosting that show nobody watches at like 2am. I loved him on TRL back when it was cool and people wore clothes. 

Bored? Yea me too. Here are a few sites that will keep you entertained for a good 7 mins.

Name that Theme Song – A flash game that challenges your knowledge of useless television trivia.

The Dialectizer – Temporarily convert a website to a comical dialect. It’s really funny when reading a serious blog or news article.

Netdisaster – Ever feel like sucking the text out of my blog? Well, now you can!

Culture Shock Miami – Because for 5 bucks we can afford to be better cultured. (This is only for my local readers)

Lost – Start watching online. Warning: This will take more than 7 mins.

Yo Gabba Gabba – Spend some time exploring the Yo Gabba Gabba website. Unless you have a low tolerance for annoying characters who flail their arms uncontrollably, freaky songs, blinding bright colors, and a host called DJ Lance Rock

“A generation awakened to make Jesus famous. A generation marked by worship and justice. A generation working together to change the world in Jesus’ name.”

I was reading Liz Mesa’s post about Passion’s World Tour and it gave me goosebumps. I was ready to call it a night and go to bed but something just grabbed my heart and torn me up. I took out my journal and read what I wrote while I was a Passion:Atlanta.

This past weekend the worship band at FRC played “God of this City”. Holy cow is that song amazing! I first heard it at Passion and Chris Tomlin explained the story behind it. I cannot express how much that song moves me. It’s a song of hope and compassion and a great reminder that God has not forsaken the world. “Greater things have yet to come and greater things are still to be done in this city.”

I am just FLOORED when I hear stories about what God is doing in other parts of the world. I think we sometimes get so caught up in our fluffy soft Western Christianity that we forgot how hardcore the work of God actually is.

Just watch this short clip from Kampala, Uganda. This was the video that got me.

Today was Justin’s 5th grade graduation.

Here’s the thing with Justin. He may not be the smartest kid in his class and he doesn’t have perfect attendance but he does have a big heart. He got the an Outstanding Merit award and Most Improved in Physical Education (LOL that last one actually made me laugh – I’m horrible). I was proud. Is it wrong that I wanted to pull the chair from under little miss smarty pants that was sitting in front of me?

Anyway, I told Justin I was going to blog about him and he got all excited. So here it is! An entire post dedicated to my annoying but sometimes cool little brother.

Justin and I have a typical sibling relationship. We constantly fight and give each other bruises every now and then (even though we’re 9 years apart and I’m supposed to be the “bigger person”). Honestly, I think it’s how we show our love. I know that when he jumps on my back and crushes me until I beg for air he’s really saying “I love you”. But I know he has my back and I have his. Today he introduced me to his friends like this: “this is my sister, the one that like Hannah Montana”. Thaaaaaanks bro, for making feel like a 5th grader. But seriously, that showed me how proud he is of me and how much he looks up to me. It made me feel really small because I’m not always the nicest person to him. I know it’s hard to believe but I’m a huge jerk sometimes. I gotta work on building him up and not tearing him down.

Here’s to you Shark Boy!

Stuff Christians Like has become one of my favorite blogs to read on a daily basis. It just cracks me up! Check it out if you haven’t already.

Yesterday’s post had to be one my favorites. It was titled “#269. Understanding how metrosexual your worship leader is. (A handy guide)“

I took it upon myself to rate two of our beloved worship leaders. I chose Heredes and Vaughn.

I may be a little off but here were my results:
Heredes: 39
Vaughn: 40

Anybody wanna score Ricky and Fuller?

Last night was the season finale of Lost. It was AMAZING but I’m still kinda bummed I have to wait for the new season to premier in February. I know I talk about Lost a lot. Those of you on Twitter who don’t watch Lost, I’m sure you’re glad to hear the season is over.

I get a lot of “What’s the big deal with Lost? It’s just a bunch of people stuck on an island. It’s Gillian’s Island on crack”. So I decided to write the top ten reasons why I love Lost (in no specific order).

Top Ten Reasons I Love Lost (I promise no spoilers)

10- It’s creative and different.
9- It’s unpredictable. Just when I think I know what’s going to happen, they reveal something that shuts me up.
8- The suspense. We still don’t have answers from the very 1st episode. That’s nuts!
7- The music. It makes my skin crawl! When I was catching up and watching the DVDs I’d watch a few episodes at a time at night. When the episode ended I tried really hard to switch to the DVD menu before the closing credits came on. The music really scared me… and at night… forget about it!
6- It has just the right balance of action, drama, love and a big BAM of suspense. The perfect recipe for a good show.
5- I like looking for the little extra details they put in the show. It’s like looking for Hidden Mickey’s at Disney World.
4- They have a great official Podcast. Speaking of great podcasts. Check out the WebChurch Podcast. (I know it’s a cheap plug but it’s my blog and I can do what I want suckas)
3- This is the only show I’ve been faithful to. Usually the show starts off good but loses momentum and I get bored. ::cough:: 24 ::cough:: Lost still has me sitting on the edge of my sit each week.
2- The characters are so round. They are constantly changing. You think you know ::insert Lost character:: but they change and develop so much through the series. Who’s my favorite? Sawyer. Ben comes in a very close second.
1- It’s just really really cool, ok?

I used to think I had good taste in movies. But now I’m starting to question my judgment. Lately I’ve been renting bad/mediocre movies. I look at my Netflix queue and shutter in shame. They are all lame movies!

Here’s the thing with Netflix: There’s too many choices! It’s so easy to add garbage to my queue because it’s so easy to return it and get a new movie in 2 days later. I know I’m not the only one. I’ve spoken to other mail-in movie junkies and we all have the same problem. I think I’ve forgotten what it’s like to spend 45 mins at Blockbuster pacing the aisles, picking up a movie and setting it back down, picking it back up, but putting it back down because I remembered I had a billion dollars in late fees so I could only rent one. Back then I had to be sure I really wanted to watch the movie I chose. I lived in fear of the dreaded WASTED RENTAL ::cue dramatic music::

So I need your help! What are you favorite movies? What should I rent? What would you consider to be a MUST SEE?