I think I lost the ability to get into the 'Christmas spirit" a long time ago. Today was fairly boring as far as days off go - except today was the biggest holiday of the year. And so here I am, sitting in front of my little black IBM laptop typing away - listening to Dave Matthews sing "Tripping Billies" and reflecting on how apathetic I've become about the holiday that surrounds the birth of whom I profess as the Son of God.

I spent the better half of last week at church, programming the aforementioned moving lights. I honestly wonder if I spend so much time there that my identity is slowly fusing with the church. I'm no longer Sparky, I'm now "Technical Director". Mind you, I wear that badge with pride, and I love my work, but I don't want to become the personification of my work. If that makes any sense. Maybe it would help to spend less time there. This week, for instance:

Monday: off Tuesday: 09:00 - 23:00 Wednesday: 09:15 - 21:24 Thursday: 10:30 - 22:16 Friday: 09:20 - 04:30 (Saturday morning) Saturday: 13:40 - 22:50 Sunday: 07:00 - 17:00

What does that add up to? Lord, I don't even want to know.

I heard so many negative comments about the service too, and that didn't help matters much. I'm not going to pull any punches here - Jeff Mullen's song came across as so fake and contrived that it sparked a lively 20-minute discussion at Christmas with the 'rents and aunts and uncles later that day. His song was "Go Tell it on the Mountain" - with a choir singing behind him and Ron Woods (Think the charisma of Ray Charles) playing the keyboard with a Rhodes organ patch. At the end, he coaxed the choir into clapping and hooting "Pentacostal" style as he emphasized the last notes of key verses. Nothing about this song emphasized that we should go and tell the world that Jesus Christ was born - it was clearly all about Jeff. It was so un-authentic that you could practically hear the crickets in the room.

He had his CD for sale in the atrium. Remember the one that he just overdubbed his voice on? Clay Crosse's Christmas CD? That's the one. Gag.

At least the lights were cool.

It took me almost a week to program that show - a total of six songs. I was most fond of "Saviour Christ the King", a slow and expressive song that I used a red wash with fuschia beams from the hard-edged fixtures on - and an upbeat version of "Joy to the World" with an effect that I affectionately referred to in the cue schedule sheet as the "Balls Out Bally". (A term I was introduced to when I was programming lights in Souix City for a corporate show.) I think the lights were well-received by the audience - Jeff and Tom were both happy - and so I was, too. I guess, contrary to the title of this entry, that I'm not really going to tell you how to program a light show - I'm just going to give you little tidbits about the one I did.

Chris was there taking pictures - I'll post some when I see him tomorrow.

Christmas this year came, and went, without much fanfare and without so much as a flake of snow. In fact, the KCCI weather beacon is currently shining a brilliant red, indicating "Warmer weather is ahead". I received a sorely-needed backpack, assorting clothing items and plenty of socks. This was the first time ever that I cannot remember going to our grandparent's house for Christmas day - after breakfast and opening presents, my dad was ready to go work on the car in the garage and mom sat down to pay bills and balance the checking account.

Fundom.

Instead of staying home to do complicated math sums, I asked if I could tag along with Hope and Bill (My sister and her husband) to their family Christmas - partly because I was bored and partly because Bill and Hope tell horrible stories about how mean their family is to each other, and I had a sick interest in seeing a family more dysfunctional than my own. Total let-down! They were perfectly cordial to each other - though Bill remarked in hushed tones that they were probably holding back because I was there. Hope's niece, six-year-old Abbie, was the designated "Kid Who Gets Doted Upon By the Grandparents" at the festivities and remembered me from the wedding - I set up what basically amounted to a Speak-n'-Spell for her, though in the form of a colorful laptop computer, and was instrumental in extricating Barbie from the labyrinth of zip ties and super-duper-molded-plastic that toys come in these days. (I carry, on average, three knives with me at all times.) After the football game was switched on, we watched the original Disney "Peter Pan" with her curled up on my lap nearly asleep, and I wondered about the implications the commercialization of Christmas will have on the younger generation.

I chatted with Bill for a while about the differences between the Zune and iPod, fielded a few questions about my job, and generally walked away thinking their family was pretty normal.

And the peach pie was good. Merry Christmas!