since this past january, i’ve been blogging about derek webb’s latest innovative project called democracy vol. 1. earlier this year, fans could cast votes for up to 12 songs that they wanted webb to cover. then, the 12 songs receiving the most votes would be covered by webb for the album. the album has been in the process of being recorded over the span of 2010, with 1 track being recorded and released each month. over the past 10 months, webb released the first ten tracks. here’s the current track listing:

1. the beatles: while my guitar gently weeps
2. coldplay: fix you
3. bob dylan: the times they are a-changin’
4. gnarls barkley: who’s gonna save my soul
5. sufjan stevens: chicago
6. u2: where the streets have no name
7. huey lewis and the news: power of love
8. the beatles: eleanor rigby
9. simon and garfunkel: the sound of silence
10. radiohead: karma police

instead of releasing the the full list of tracks, webb is revealing each track month-by-month. and today, we found out the eleventh one.

this is the kind of post that won’t win me any friends. so, i ask that you keep an open mind and see this in a possible new light.

indeed, in many ways, this is a lose-lose situation. my progressive friends will criticize my defense of a group/cause that they view as hateful. my conservative friends will want me to take a firm stance on the issue of homosexuality. (and that’s not even to mention my fellow apple fanboys after i criticize apple…)

and yes, this post does offer a criticism of apple, which—not surprising to anyone who knows me—is my been my favorite company for well over 10 years. i’ve been accused of being an apple lemming, but the reality is that they won me over a very long time ago for their extraordinary and inspiring products. where i lose my lemming status, though, is in the fact that i don’t think they’re perfect and feel compelled to offer criticism when appropriate.

in this case, i feel it’s appropriate.

my wife seems to think that she has very little to say that is significant. that, of course, is far from the truth. whereas i spew forth my thoughts far too often on my blog, she blogs infrequently. so when she does, you know she probably has something important to say. today, over on the babybyrds blog, she shared some thoughts about what our family is doing for christmas and i thought it was worth sharing here. you can find her post here or read it below.

today, our little olive turned 2 years old. instinctually, as a parent, you tend to say, “wow, i can’t believe she’s already 2″, but we were talking a couple days ago and for us, we can’t believe she’s only 2. we really can’t remember a time when olive wasn’t here and that’s probably the ultimate statement of how much of an impact she’s had on our lives.

since this past january, i’ve been blogging about derek webb’s latest innovative project called democracy vol. 1. earlier this year, fans could cast votes for up to 12 songs that they wanted webb to cover. then, the 12 songs receiving the most votes would be covered by webb for the album. the album has been in the process of being recorded over the span of 2010, with 1 track being recorded and released each month. over the past 9 months, webb released the first nine tracks. here’s the current track listing:

1. the beatles: while my guitar gently weeps
2. coldplay: fix you
3. bob dylan: the times they are a-changin’
4. gnarls barkley: who’s gonna save my soul
5. sufjan stevens: chicago
6. u2: where the streets have no name
7. huey lewis and the news: power of love
8. the beatles: eleanor rigby
9. simon and garfunkel: the sound of silence

instead of releasing the the full list of tracks, webb is revealing each track month-by-month. and today a couple weeks ago (yeah yeah, i’m a little behind…), we found out the tenth one.

i really do hate mustard. i hate the flavor and just as much (or even more), i hate the smell. admittedly, i don’t like many condiments. i can eat ketchup in relatively limited quantities and i like barbecue sauce (in relatively limited quantities) and, well, a couple other condiments in—you guessed it—relatively limited quantities. but most condiments, i just don’t like (in limited or unlimited quantities…).

and mustard ranks very near the top.

but i’ll get back to that shortly.

earlier this week, i posted a poll that allowed you, the readers, to determine one of life’s most pressing questions: who has the best pizza in little rock? i asked. you (well, 59 of you…which is better than i expected) responded. before i get to the results, allow me to make a couple statements. first, since i know you’re all [...]