Over the last few months I've tried out several programs to make my themost out of the dial-up internet I use.  Since I don't have a lotof scratch, all of the programs I tried were freeware.  I'm nowpresenting my top five most useful free programs.  Enjoy.

To whom it may concern,If anyone was interested in reading the discussion board I was in at the Mt. Juliet Church of Christ, you may know that the topic was locked and then deleted. I managed to save the thread after it got locked, but before it was deleted, so if you're interesting in reading the whole thing, you can click here.

The concert last night was awesome. I have never seen it rain for so long. In fact, it's still raining outside now, a day later. Soggy though I was, I really enjoyed the show. My favorites were Superchic[k] and Reliant K. Anyone else want to say what you thought?

Have you, like me, spent the last several months thinking that it's been too long since there's been a good Christian rock opera? If so then you'll be glad to hear about !Hero, a modern retelling of the story of Jesus set in near-future New York and starring Micheal Tate, Mark Stuart, Rebecca St. James and T Bone. Check out Herouniverse.com for more info. I think this might actually be pretty cool, but I'm even more excited about The Passion by Mel Gibson.

The Adrian Christian Church CD Library just got a new batch of discs. Without further ado . . . (why doesn't anyone ever say "With further ado"?)Dave Lubben: A Place Called Surrender (a worship CD)Pump'D (a mix CD for getting pumped up for a game)tobyMac: Re:Mix MomentumBy the Tree: RootDJ Maj: The RingleaderEverman: EvermanJill Phillips: Writing on the WallSandtown: Based on a True StoryCome and check a CD out and tell me what you think of it.

Our last two fish died yesterday so I drained the tank and bathed everything in scalding water to kill the vicious little parasites. I refilled it and now I'm planning on getting some tougher fish, like Black Mollies or Guppies. Sure, those names don't sound tough, but trust me, you wouldn't want to meet these fish in a dark alley . . . or any kind of alley . . . or anyplace dark. So once we get the new fish I wouldn't recommend trying to rob our house. Up until that point, however, please feel free to steal my stuff without fear.

I thought that keeping fish was supposed to be good for your mental health, but I'm finding it depressing. Sixty percent of our fish have died. Dr. Kevorkian had a better survival rate with his patients than that. I realize now that neon tetras were the wrong kind of fish to put in our newly set-up tank. They're pretty, but they're not very hardy. Let that be a lesson to all you young men out there. Especially my brother Mike. Here's something else that's strange. Emma has taken to calling me by my first name. I don't know how to feel about that.

Our three remaining Neon Tetras have come down with a case of the ich (a.k.a. ick, white spot, Ichthyophthirius). We've been treating them with some Quick Cure loaned to us by Kelly Talley and they're getting somewhat better. This will probably delay us from adding more fish, which we were planning on doing today.

There's a big phat Christian Rock festival at Starlight next Saturday (8-30-03). Be there or be square. Rock the Light IV will feature Audio Adrenaline, Sonicflood, Reliant K, Superchic[k], Rachel Lampa and Souljahz. The cost is $25 at the gate. We'll be taking the new church bus and leaving the church at 2 pm. If you have questions, call me. You can read more about it at www.Rockthelight.comWe had a good time at this last year. FCA went and I got to be their sponsor for the day. We saw Third Day and tobyMac. This year should be fun, too.