June 8, 2009
Now you can digitally.
I’ve been working hard recording my new album and discovered that I don’t really have a lot of money to do it. So I’m trying to make some.
If you haven’t already bought my two albums, you can here for $5.99 each. If you already have, thank you. If you’d like to support my new project, feel free to purchase it again and get two free live tracks per album.
Thanks for your support, everyone. I’m excited for you to hear my new album as soon as it’s ready later this summer.
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May 12, 2009
The stadium lights click on as the sun begins to set. The spring air fills the stands as anticipation is gathered by all of those sitting. Waiting. The chalk is fresh on the dirt, the bags placed carefully 90 feet apart (or something like that) on the diamond.
The home team takes the field as fans cheer them on. They stretch and throw the ball around a couple of times until the batter comes to the box. Ump calls “play ball!”
Pitcher looks the batter in the eyes, as the batter stares back. He loosens his arms, steps on the bag, winds up and then… throws a gentle underhand slow pitch toward his catcher on the other end.
It’s softball season. The home team: a bunch of men from a small(ish) presbyterian church. Their fans: Their wives and kids, with a few members of the congregation gathered to see their 50-something pastor putting his money where his mouth has been after so many years of baseball references in sermons. The opposing team: just another group of men from the area, their wives and kids in the stands as well.
Between soccer on Sunday and softball on Tuesday, I’ve developed a true love for competition. I’ve always been very competitive by nature, but I recently discovered that this is what drives me.
We recently attended a Derby party last week. Becky and I have never attended one, nor do we know much about it in the first place. The party was hosted and attended by her dance circle of friends, so we thought we’d go just to go, and had a blast.
What killed me was the inability to participate in the competitions going on around me. Two-dollar bets going into the hat, trivia questions about the race and the horses. And croquet! (which I could have participated in, but had to leave early).
There is no such thing as a difference between a competitive person and a non-competitive person. We’re all competitive, but vary on the different levels and the ways we participate.
I thrive on competition every day at work. Thankfully, in my job it is rarely a competition between me and my co-workers for a bonus or a commission or a way “up the ladder”, but it is simply a competition with myself to see if I can simply challenge myself to meet a self-imposed deadline, sharpen my creative skills, create something familiar in an unfamiliar way, accomplish something that will be good for the people around me.
When I succeed at the things listed above, it’s a win. When I fail (and I do many times), it’s a loss. I’d say I’m hovering somewhere around .500 lifetime average, but so few times have I completely blown it, because I understand that the spirit of the competition I participate in every day is fully driven by a forgiving God who allows for grace in every loss, and is deserving of all the credit for every win.
The first softball game of the season was a loss (13-9), but a huge win for us mentally because out of 10 people on the team, at least 9 of us weren’t quite sure what to expect or expected the 10-run mercy rule to have put us out of our misery by the end of the game.
Regardless, our heads are lifted after a loss because we’ve discovered we’re not as bad as we thought we were. Individually, and as a team.
God’s grace abounds beyond personal struggles with depression, relationships and sin. So many times we forget that He cares about every aspect, no matter how big or small on our scale that He rarely looks at. I believe He truly enjoys a classic game of small(ish)-town, slow-pitch softball, played by those He loves.
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April 23, 2009
1. Brakes were jacked on car, will cost over $600.
2. Video on website: www.ginodean.net
3. My soccer team is 5-2, the best start we’ve ever had.
4. Softball season starts in a few weeks – practice this Saturday.
5. Family coming to Colorado for summer vacation ~ to Breckenridge we go!
6. New nephew is adorable ~ going to New York in a couple weeks to meet him.
7. Been trying to figure out the mandolin (again).
8. Wondering if Twitter will die a “myspace” death.
9. I want to take my wife on a beach vacation in the U.S. ~ any suggestions?
10. Work is busy, but that’s a good thing, right?
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March 4, 2009
Colorado Representative Jared Polis seems proud of the closing of the Rocky Mountain News. He is quoted saying it’s, “mostly for the better” that bloggers helped kill the Rocky.
Mostly?
Does it mean that it’s mostly for the better that bloggers (he refers to this as “new media and citizen journalism”) with absolutely no accountability or credibility is rendered hundreds (thousands?) of jobs (and college degrees) completely obsolete. This is inexcusable.
“Citizen Journalism” is a ridiculous concept. Journalism is a profession, not an activity. To believe “Citizen Journalism” is the same as asking a 19-year-old high school dropout to give you a colonoscopy or defend you in a murder trial. Citizens who wish to participate in journalism should not take this lightly because readers will believe anything that’s published (newspaper, magazine, blog, etc.).
Mr. Polis is the perfect example of the liberal mindset that things in this country need to change to get better. (Actually, the true liberal mindset is that things in this country need to change by their standards and on their watch to get better.) I respectfully (okay… disrespectfully) disagree.
The change that Mr. Polis praised (and then apologized for praising), is resulting in the loss of jobs (and if I know my liberal politicians, they’re still blaming George Bush for that one), and will only continue. It won’t be long before there is only one newspaper for every major metropolitan area, putting more pressure on that newspaper to figure out how to survive and cope with the “citizen journalism” that is trying to put them out of business.
Mindsets like Mr. Polis’ (and President Obama, who doesn’t seem to understand that businesses create jobs, not money) will continue to divide this country.
This country doesn’t need forced change. We need to continue building on the foundation of this country, allowing the country to change naturally.
Change today is telling me that I should be ashamed if I don’t accept gay marriage (thank you Sean Penn), or I am naive if I don’t support the pro-choice agenda, or I’m blood-thirsty if I’m not a pacifist, or I hate animals if I enjoy a burger, or I’m offensive if I’m a Christian, or I should be guilty that I have a job, or I’m racist if I didn’t vote for Obama.
If that is change, I’m not on board.
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February 28, 2009
I was not a subscriber of the Rocky Mountain News, and personally have always preferred the Denver Post as long as I’ve lived in Colorado (a total of over five years), but a newspaper shutting down after nearly 150 years, is not only sad for it’s employees and readership, but sad for the state of the world.
Because this generation is probably getting their news from PerezHilton.com
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February 15, 2009
Five years ago (on Valentine’s Day), Becky and I got engaged. We shared the story at our small group last night, and it brought back some memories.
It was the night of a CD release concert for “Other Side of Town”, my first record. It was promoted as a $1 show, and Summit Church, Salt Company, New Song Pres. and other places promoted the show via email. I believe Clint Roberts wrote the following emails to promote the show:
“Saturday: Christopher Gino Dean’s CD release party @ Solid Ground Cafe..if you’re lonely, if you’re weary of the dating scene, come hear Chris’ soothing music and let it reassure you: Hey, if this kid can get a chick, there’s hope for all of us…”
“Sat. night is Valentine’s Day, & what better way to say what you long to convey to your beloved than by letting the rich, smooth, & quite manly love-tones of guitarista ginodean (dot-net) do the talking for you. Let your love then overflow into his coffers by purchasing his new CD at the event, which will feature live a full band that deano talked into backing him up on V-day – which reminds me, John, aren’t you married? What were you thinking?”
Pretty much everyone in the venue knew what was going to happen (besides awesome music) that night. In fact, my parents & grandparents, who wouldn’t have come to that show otherwise, were there. (My mom asked me if I could just propose before the concert so they wouldn’t have to sit through it… honest to goodness.) Also, Greg, BigScott and Laura all drove out from Boulder to be there. (Becky just thought all these people were being really supportive of my music!).
That’s me getting ready to play U2’s “All I Want is You” to Becky. In the middle of the song, she discovered there was a ring-boxed shaped bump in my jean pocket and realized what was going on (though I think she had little clues before).
After the song, in front of about 80 people, I proposed. I like this picture because of the candle. The venue did a really good job of setting a nice mood for the event.
This is the official “engagement” picture, taken 12 1/2 second after she said yes. I’m not sure whose camera it came from, but I’m glad it came out so great.
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January 27, 2009
Is Obama a spokesperson for Pepsi, or is Pepsi using him so sell more six-packs?
I learned the answer the other day, and though I don’t hate President Obama (hatred is for liberals), I feel like I’ve “been had” by a soft drink company whose product I do hate (fine, judge me), and whether he knew about it or not, my new president had a hand in it.
In seeing the billboards all over Denver that declared “HOORAY” and “WOOHOO” and any other word of excitement with an O in it, I was trying to figure out what it was. On one hand, the round emblem that was the “O” in the words, looked just like the Obama logo that had infiltrated billboards and bumper stickers across the country. However, there was something stunningly familiar about that logo as well… that of a famous soft drink.
So I gave in to the urge to look further at the billboard and remember the website, “refresheverything.com.”
Okay. Is “Refresh Everything” a political statement about how everything in Washington will be “refreshed” in getting a new president, or does “Refresh Everything” mean what what a soft drink commercial’s message would be: “our drink is refreshing.”
Fair enough. I had to find out. I went to the website when I got home, and sure enough, it was BOTH. Ugh!
I applaud Pepsi for succeeding in affecting my life through an advertising campaign, because I work in marketing.
However, I never liked Pepsi because of the horrible aftertaste it leaves in my mouth.
Amazing how true that statement is on multiple levels.
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January 20, 2009
I am skeptical because talk is cheap and trust needs to be earned.
I am glad because we have a president that the country is rallying around.
But.
I am only hopeful because God is sovereign, and loves this vulnerable, thirsty nation.
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January 10, 2009
Like every single other Utah alum who doesn’t feel like he doesn’t fully understand the grand scope of the BCS, I have found one thing in which I fully agree with Barack Obama. College football needs a playoff.
If major league baseball can stretch their season into the depths of October and sometimes even November (where at times even Mother Nature can’t believe a summer sport is being played so late in the year), college football needs a playoff.
If the Denver Broncos collapse by the end of a season (to the point where they missed the playoffs after leading the division the entire year), and the San Diego Chargers emerge after a 1-4 start, then college football needs a playoff.
If college basketball’s branding of March Madness can become so popular to the level of the BCS’s unpopularity, then college football needs a playoff.
If they can build a hockey rink on a baseball field, find two teams to play, and sell out the entire stadium, on New Years Day, in subzero temperatures, then college football needs a playoff.
Finally, if the season starts one week earlier, ends one week later, and perhaps a game is eliminated from each team’s schedule, then you’ve got three weeks for the top 8 teams to play in four bowls, and the winners of those go on to play, you guessed it, a college football playoff.
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January 4, 2009
Thanksgiving through New Years is incredibly busy for almost everyone, so I use this as an excuse for not updating the blog in a while. While I’m at it though… I have updated this blog:
- Photos page – Has lots of photos on it. If you view them using Facebook, they are the same, so it will feel redundant.
- About Us Page – I changed up the story that was about 3 years out of date.
- Becky’s Dlog – Eventually I’d like this to be a separate page, but for now they’re on the sidebar. Six of Becky’s dances on YouTube.
THANKSGIVING
We went to Utah for Thanksgiving and spent the majority of time with my parents and grandparents. It was a lot of fun being able to see our friends from New Song and talk with them after the service. Steve and Anna came over and we ate Wingers, drank beer and played WiiFit all night.
While out there, my dad told me that if I could ship his spare electric piano, I could have it. $200 later, it’s sitting next to me in Colorado. This has been a major blessing because I have not been able to play guitar for the past three months (and I’m not sure the next time I will). I have continued writing songs using the piano, which, if you know me, is how I began writing songs. (Below is a picture of our friend’s little girl jamming on my piano):
CHRISTMAS
Becky’s family came out to visit us for Christmas. What a relief it has been to not have to travel this year for Christmas. Throughout the trip, I kept promising them snow, but not a snowflake throughout the entire trip. Brown Christmas excluded, it was fantastic celebrating the way I grew up (opening presents on Christmas Eve in front of a fire).
We celebrated Becky’s brother’s birthday on the 23rd by going to see the Avs play. It was a sweet game, with the Avs scoring in OT to win (though blowing a two goal lead in regulation). It gave me something to cheer about after seeing the Broncos blow it a few days before.
Becky directed her fourth straight Nutcracker at her studio and performed as the Sugar Plum Fairy for the third time. Here is all of us after her last performance:
Becky got me a grill for Christmas, but instead of actually buying it, fitting it in her car and bringing it in the apartment all by herself, she wrapped a very large box and weighed it down with books. Inside was a print out of two grill options, from which I chose which would eventually become mine. My friend and I picked it up and built it yesterday, and then enjoyed juicy steaks afterwards.
We had a great new year, pondering what 2009 will bring. We have goals, dreams, hopes for the new year, but we sit in the hands of God and plan on waiting on Him.
The best part of the holidays? I think stealing the Christmas Tree was the highlight… sadly, the decorations (and tree) are all coming down today.
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