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 Charlie Knox26, m, resident of spa, northern ireland, a thinker, who tries to be real, enjoys the company of nala(left), indebted to jesus for his grace and instruction in life and whose, amongst other things, studying sports science at UUJ. enjoy rugby a whole lot! |
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Tuesday, December 31, 2002 'It is God to whom and with whom we travel, and while he is the End of our journey, he is also at every stopping place' Elisabeth Elliot posted by charlie | 2:19 PM | Really enjoyed the formal last night. Great scruff, great craic, and a dance floor packed with groovers strutting their stuff. Thanks have to go to Dave Steele for arranging such a night, to Gregory for some cracking tunes, and to Hannah Murray for all her leftovers (ie her whole meal!!!). My only disappointment last night was Sadie not wearing his clothing the way he was meant to!!! posted by charlie | 2:17 PM | Bowled a 178 yesterday - my best score ever! posted by charlie | 2:10 PM | Sunday, December 29, 2002 Bowling didn't go so well tonite. Stu Neill stole the show, despite Mark Crummy actually winnning in the end. From what i saw, Stu's act of generosity on the 9th frame may have cost him the game - but now he has that awesome feeling that goes something like - 'i could have had you if i wanted' - Well done. On that point. Did you know.... that the indians used to play this game called catch coup? Basically one tribe used to sneak into the camp of another tribe at night and leave a feather lying there. Basically in leaving a feather, they were saying, we could have killed you if we had wanted. So in effect what we witnessed tonite was Stu employing catch coup tatics. posted by charlie | 2:18 AM | Thursday, December 26, 2002 'Because of His foundless love, he became what we are in order that he might make us what he is' St. Iranaeus I mentioned that the christmas thing has annoyed me a wee bit this year. Ironically though i think the reason for christmas starting is the one thing that gives me hope in the middle of this christmas season we find ourselves in. I guess the quote above helps to capture some of my hope. Jesus came into the crap to show us somewhere/something better - a life less ordinary. posted by charlie | 9:24 PM | Considering updating to Blog*Spot Plus so i can put up pictures. Not sure - it would mean some financial committment and I'm not sure if it's technically easy to put pictures up. We'll see? posted by charlie | 9:18 PM | Wednesday, December 25, 2002 Christmas day has been good and lazy. This morning i woke up (reluctantly!) to open the gifts from the big man on the sleigh. I got a few DVD'S (Band of Brothers/Ocean's Eleven/ Chariots of Fire to mention a few that I'm particuarly happy about!), got an I-link cable which allows me to get video footage onto my computer for editing etc, and then all the other bits and pieces - books, socks and deoderants etc- having said that my gainage in socks is being cancelled out by SJ's christmas present . SJ had her dreams made real when a new member of the household arrived last night; a female, 8 week old golden retriever called _________. Right now I'm searching the net for suitable names to choose from. The little blighter is peeing everywhere, and has just wrecked one of the new socks i got this morning - i have a feeling the next weeks and months could be fun - i mean we're just getting used to an american about the house - now a canine!!! Ah well. Actually i like the idea - i love animals and I''m sure the nameless one will be able to join me on my many adventures about the Co. Down Countryside! One other of SJ's presents worth noting is this dance mat for the playstation - I'll be able to put in a few days practice before the formal - yeeehhhaaaa! posted by charlie | 9:14 PM | Tuesday, December 24, 2002 The top 100 things searched for on MSN during 2002 1. Big Brother 2. Eastenders 3. World Cup 4. Gareth Gates 5. Harry Potter 6. Wimbledon 7. baby names 8. CBeebies 9. Spider-Man 10. Alton Towers 11. Friends 12. Neopets 13. Barbie 14. music downloads 15. Tweenies 16. Arsenal 17. online games 18. Manchester United 19. Lord of the Rings 20. London Eye 21. song lyrics 22. Westlife 23. train timetables 24. Blue 25. Eminem 26. Blackpool 27. Liverpool FC 28. CD covers 29. David Beckham 30. Commonwealth Games 31. Robbie Williams 32. bargain holidays 33. Cyprus 34. Britney Spears 35. The Simpsons 36. Scooby-Doo 37. Playstation cheats 38. Star Wars 39. Bob the Builder 40. Buffy 41. Pubmed 42. Mercedes 43. digital cameras 44. 1901 census 45. Kylie 46. Nelly 47. James Bond 48. Winnie the Pooh 49. ferries 50. houses for sale 51. London Transport 52. Halloween 53. Disneyland Paris 54. Top of the Pops 55. Will Young 56. last minute holidays 57. family tree 58. UNISON 59. Russell Grant 60. Jordan 61. LEGO 62. National Trust 63. Cornwall 64. RSPCA 65. tennis 66. DIY 67. Beyblades 68. flowers 69. Pink 70. wedding dresses 71. birthday cards 72. FaceParty 73. cats 74. Turkey 75. weekend breaks 76. astrology 77. Popstars: The Rivals 78. shoes 79. TV listings 80. Edinburgh 81. Holly Valance 82. Atomic Kitten 83. Edexcel 84. The Sims 85. Thorpe Park 86. Malta 87. PC cheats 88. gifts 89. Peter Kay 90. broadband 91. Majorca 92. Coronation Street 93. Ibiza 94. Brighton 95. Leeds 96. Manchester 97. hair styles 98. road maps 99. horses 100. Xbox posted by charlie | 6:57 PM | The end of 2002 draweth nigh. Check out MSN's 2002 review to see some of the big stuff that made the news this year (news, sport, music..etc). posted by charlie | 6:47 PM | Not sure what to make of this whole christmas business if I'm honest. Here's just a few of my rantings why. (1) Its a season of Goodwill...blah, blah, blah.. - shouldn't we be doing the goodwill thing all year round?? (2) How can the celebration of Jesus coming be characterised by so many things that he came to save us from eg. materialism, greed, bad stewardship, constant stress.... to name but a few! Paul Coles mentioned last night that he feels christmas is the time when he least experiences what christmas is supposed to be about. So basically the good things about christmas - should they really be higher on our agenda around december as compared to july etc? And the bad things - well they just aren't good at any time of the year. Having said all this I feel pretty sucked into alll the crap already. Bah Humbug! posted by charlie | 1:42 AM | Beating the boredom blues over Christmas Some people have remarked over how they expect to be bored over Christmas. Well if thats you, check out www.puzzlemaker.com and make yourself(or your family) a customised wordsearch. That'll fill 10 minutes at least!!! posted by charlie | 1:26 AM | Sunday, December 22, 2002 Instead of running away from, denying, or covering up the pain, dryness and empty feelings that sometimes (or often?) characterise our spiritual journey, we need to embrace them. We need to accept these times as reality, to admit things aren't as we might like them to be. We need to allow these times to rekindle within us a desire for a higher reality - something that we were built for. This is an extract that I've adapted slightly from 'The Sacred Romance' posted by charlie | 4:30 PM | Johnny just clocked in - i swear he's a few inches taller than when he left - he says its just his boots. posted by charlie | 4:21 PM | Thursday, December 19, 2002 Just visited Mad Ministries site, as recommended to me by Mr. Robinson. Some interesting discussions taking place in the forums on the site and they're nicely divided into sections for stupid stuff and more serious stuff. Go register yourself and chip in some thoughts! posted by charlie | 11:17 PM | Tuesday, December 17, 2002 Was in Spa Primary this morning for my last time in '02. Today helped me get into the Christmas thing a wee bit more - i aint really got that Christmas thing yet despite a few shopping trips into Belfast and our tree going up last night(what does that say about christmas?). The kids were all hyped up about their christmas disco today and were doing very little work - you know that last week of school feeling - just fun stuff all the time - so i guess seeing them excited and looking forward to the holidays rubbed off on me a little. posted by charlie | 1:24 PM | Saturday, December 14, 2002 The other night i came home early and when i flicked on the TV, Blue Peter was on. The show was being presented by Simon Thomas and he was reviewing his recent trip to the Solomon Islands, where he had been taking time just visiting the local area and exploring the local culture. Below are some of his final reflections at the end of the show..... 'During my time here I've had plenty of time to think about life and happiness. I think I've found that happiness is found in community, where creation is celebrated and valued. In particular, during my time here, i have found that happiness is found in enjoying God's blessing - and you don't have to be on the Solomon Islands to find that! i love when God speaks when you are least expecting it! posted by charlie | 12:29 AM | Thursday, December 12, 2002 I was driving through Lisburn and spotted the following words on a church poster board.... Glory, Glory Man United with God TIP: It may take a few reads for that to fully sink in! It left me speechless - I'll leave it for you to guess the emotions I was having! posted by charlie | 12:55 AM | I've been in schools alot over the past few days. In Spa Primary I've been teaching the kids the Christmas story (might say more about that later!), been helping with their website and today i took their assembly - I love their assembly - especially the start - when the kids are told to say hello - they all do it slowly, in their little high pitched voices and all in complete harmony - 'Gooooood Morning Charles' - love it! Yesterday I was over in Lisburn, firstly in Lisburn Tech (seeing Sadie's artwork) and secondly at Wallace with Andy Steele taking an SU. Then later today, i was in Wellington College, again taking an SU. Being in these places kinda makes me miss school a wee bit - you never get such time to grow and develop - so much info being fired your way, so many different people all around you etc etc I guess the whole irony of it all is that when you are there you can't wait to get out and when you are out you wish you were back - doh! Anyway - if you're at school now - try and make the most of it - you know what they say - those days are the best days of your life -lol !!! posted by charlie | 12:48 AM | Monday, December 09, 2002 Went bowling on Saturday evening (credit to the kells for that idea!!) for the first time in a very long time and got 135 - something i haven't done in an even longer time!!! Dave Steele tells me that one can bowl 3 games for £4 midweek at the superbowl - i'll be at that sometime! Sunday was good. Arrived at church pretty down and pretty wrecked, more spiritually than physically! It was nice to be in the company of others feeling the same and to take time in with the one who has the power to do something about our failings and more! I spent some time at Drumkeeragh in the afternoon and was specially graced at one moment by either a buzzard or a sparrowhawk (my ornothology aint up to scratch, so i don't know which it was! i do seem to remember James Bond had that skill well honed but i'll not mention him too much!!) just hanging in the blowy sky above me. Sunday evening we had another praise time - can't go wrong with that really - during it i decided i might tackle Job (the book/person not the thing that one does for money!) - Job was a guy who learnt to praise even when life was giving him a dodgy deal - i'd like to know more about that. After the service we headed to Steele's - Stu (or someonelse?) came up with the idea of singing carols around some folks houses nearer Christmas and Sadie suggested we could do it to raise some money for the Tearfund african appeal - i liked both those ideas - we'll see what happens. posted by charlie | 9:42 PM | Saturday, December 07, 2002 Played rugby today against Ards and won 42-5. Good to get the win but i wrecked my hamstring again - probably going to be out now until after christmas - pretty annoyed about that but little i can do. Still deflated by this poverty thing. it would be nice to get over it or to ignore but i can't. Basically I'm living a life of it while people are loosing theirs. I feel guilty, pissed off at the injustice of it all, and pretty powerless to do anything. I have little idea what God is saying into it all if I'm honest but I'm asking Him plenty of questions. I aint lost hope - God loves the world, he will come out on top - that don't take away from the pain of it though. Let's pray folks that God would show us how we can begin to do something and then get on to it. posted by charlie | 6:33 PM | I mentioned Bono tonight. Check out the 'Band news' section of U2's website to see some of the stuff Bono is trying to do about the emergencies in Africa. posted by charlie | 1:20 AM | Wednesday, December 04, 2002 Bono issues blunt message for Christians The singer is on a seven-day tour of Mid-America with his organization Debt, AIDS and Trade in Africa, or DATA as he calls it, to raise Americans' consciousness about the plight of millions of Africans who are HIV-infected and dying--more than 6,500 of them every day--because they cannot afford life extending AIDS drugs made in America. "That there's a force of love and logic behind the universe is overwhelming to start with, if you believe it," Bono told the Chicago Sun-Times as he road past mown corn fields west of Omaha. "But the idea that that same love and logic would choose to describe itself as a baby born in s--- and straw and poverty, is genius. And brings me to my knees, literally. "Christ's example is being demeaned by the church if they ignore the new leprosy, which is AIDS. The church is the sleeping giant here. If it wakes up to what's really going on in the rest of the world, it has a real role to play. If it doesn't, it will be irrelevant." When the 42-year-old lead singer of the Irish band U2 talks about "the church," he's counting himself among its members. As a lyricist, Bono has woven sometimes overtly Christian themes through his music. And as an activist, he's comfortable talking about moral imperatives. But he doesn't often talk explicitly about his own faith. That seems to be changing as his passion for what he calls "the emergency" in Africa grows. Saving Africa is not just a matter of economics, security or morality. For Bono, it's a matter of faith. "To some people the church is their ticket to respectability, a certain bourgeois point of view, a safety net for when they go to bed. My idea of Christianity is no safety net, a scathing attack on bourgeois values, and a risk to respectability. "By the way, I don't set myself up as any kind of Christian. I can't live up to that. It's something I aspire to, but I don't feel comfortable with that badge. It's the badge I want to wear." from Jordon Cooper's site posted by charlie | 11:00 PM | Tuesday, December 03, 2002 Billy Elliot was my DVD of choice last night and I must say I thought it was a cracker. I thought it had tons of positive stuff to say about life and relationships and was also pretty entertaining - especially the bit at the end where Billy's brother and Dad sit down in the theatre and failed to recognise Billy's best friend from childhood who has come out as being gay since they last saw him! Theres tons of other funny bits intertwined through what is a pretty powerful and dare I say it, a quite heart touching movie. Strongly recommend it if you haven't managed to see it yet. Although if you like to think you're tough - watch it on your own so you won't be embarrassed when the emotional bits come along!!!! posted by charlie | 11:59 PM | Monday, December 02, 2002 Paul Coles is taking this bloggin business far too seriously - not the amount that he blogs but the time of the day at which he does them! posted by charlie | 11:20 PM | Saturday Night Escapades On Saturday night I had nothing on, so I decided to go for a drive to do some exploring and ended up in the Strangford lough region. My escapades took me to through metropolises such as Killinchy - Whiterock - Killyleagh - Quoile - Saul - Downpatrick - Bishopscourt - Ballyhornan - and then Ardglass, somewhere I'd never yet been to in life. Ardglass was dark, smelt of the seaside, seemed to have some old buildings and might warrant a visit again sometime during the day! I finished my little tour at the Magic Wok who serve an absolutely gorgeous cantonese style sweet sour chicken dish with fried rice. Back at home I sat down and watched a cracking movie starring a very young Robert De Niro - it was called King of Comedy - i already tried explaining it to someone and made it sound crap so I wont talk about it here, other than to say it was very enjoyable. posted by charlie | 11:10 PM | Check out the Rugby Club website this week to see Andy Edgar in action!! posted by charlie | 10:49 PM | |
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