it’s tuesday.

do you know about positive post tuesday?

despite his presence on the very last entry, today’s positive post is for mr. sean munoz, who is still receiving a link even though he hasn’t updated his blog in more than 3 months.

i first met sean in a somewhat embarrassing way.

see, i was in college and he was in high school. he was previewing the university and was sitting in on a music theory class in which his brother and i were enrolled.

after a quick hello, we sat and prepared for our lecture. for the following 75 minutes i sat in dejection as sean outperformed the lot of us in all things music.

fast forward a couple of years and sean was on my worship team playing a variety of instruments. i’m sure my less-than-inspired drum ‘ideas’ were pretty comical to him.

“hey, do you think you could like…play the toms more?”

staying in the montage spirit, we then find ourselves in 2006 where sean stood with me as a groomsman at my wedding, followed by last year when i stood with him as one myself.

we stay pals and enjoy making each other laugh. in fact, sean once almost killed me via a youtube-induced asthma attack.

last week i got to hang out with mr. munoz for a day while we worked on a little project that will be coming your way as soon as possible.

as always, i was blessed and encouraged to hang out with him, and was inspired by his grasp of music and instrumental proficiency. i am convinced that if i want to better my own musicianship, i need little more than to challenge myself by partnering with him and his perfect pitch-edness.

so thanks sean. i appreciate your friendship and your excellent musicality.

please don’t destroy my respiratory system ever again.

it’s tuesday. be positive.

and now, we close with a picture of sean’s strat:

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we’re making you a present.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJyW55AXJAk[/youtube]

if you hadn’t seen this yet, it was high time you did.

on wednesday mornings we have a men’s study @calvaryhanford.

a while back i taught through a series called Battle Ready, where we took a look at some of the battles of the Old Testament and attempted to pull out some personal application for our daily lives.

the fourth stop in the series was the battle in the wilderness of Edom, where we saw that one of the keys to victory there was to be exhaustive.

audio and transcript below.

blessings.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

pdf transcript

just hear the sleigh-bells jingling!

it’s already been a week, so it’s time for another installment of Christmas Caroling.

quite fittingly, plug number 2 goes to A Concord Jazz Christmas 2.

this little hidden gem is another staple in our christmas playlist. 17 different tracks from various collaborators, mixing instrumentals and carols alike.

though the songlist has a lot of standards, this album is remarkably surprising when you hear it. the arrangements are unique and fresh, with that very jazzy feel that you would expect from a jazz album.

it might have a skipper or two, depending on your tastes, but let’s be honest…it’s almost twice as long as the average album, so we can extend a little forgiveness if need be.

so, bottom line: why is this one of our favorites?

couple of reasons…

#1 – we are suckers for jazz. if you’re not into the genre, i suggest you give it an honest try some time. matter of fact, this might be a good place to start.

#2 – there are many times when we’re driving along listening to this album and we hear something and think “wow…that was unexpected!” either in the melody, arrangement or interpretation of the songs.

so, there you have it. a great, easy cd to have on in the background, but challenging enough to bring a smile to your face when you discover something new from a song you’ve heard thousands of times.

get it on amazon or itunes.

as always, love to hear what some of YOUR favorite christmas albums are.

it’s tuesday.

do you know about positive post tuesday?

mrs. p always brings home wonderful surprises from the store.

a staple surprise is canada dry ginger ale soda, which i first encountered on a flight to honduras many years ago.

other times it will be some delectable treat like mallowcreme pumpkins or jordan almonds.

how can a regular staple still be categorized as a ‘surprise’ you might ask? well, that’s the wonder of being married to a sugar-addict.

my name is gene. and i love sugar.

glad that’s over.

monday was shopping day.

to my delight, when we got home i discovered that my wife had thoroughly exhausted WinCo’s cereal sales, scoring some of our favorites…PLUS HONEYCOMB!

that’s right, honeycomb!

it had been a very, very, VERY long time since i had a bowl of Post’s bee-themed breakfast.

i poured a hearty serving today and was reminded that breakfast can be a good thing.

thanks honey. i love you.

and thanks honeycomb. i love you too.

what is one of YOUR favorite breakfast cereals?

it’s tuesday.

be positive!

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{photo by}

on wednesday mornings we have a men’s study @calvaryhanford.

a while back i taught through a series called Battle Ready, where we took a look at some of the battles of the Old Testament and attempted to pull out some personal application for our daily lives.

the third stop in the series was the battle in the valley of Rephaim, where we saw that one of the keys to victory there was boldness.

audio and transcript below.

blessings.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

pdf transcript

you know, christmas isn’t all that far away.

i know, i know. some of you out there are naysaying my recent rash of christmas-themed posting, but the truth is that christmas is just a very special season in all pensiero households.

a few posts back i confessed how the mrs. and i listen to christmas music starting october 1. in one of the comments it was suggested that a weekly pick be promoted for lovers of yuletide cheer.

so, without further disclaimer, welcome to:

Christmas Caroling @ genepensiero.com!

our first selection is one of my very favorites:

The Sounds Of Christmas: Christmas Symphony by the City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.

this album is a perfect background companion to decorating, wrapping presents, driving to the in-laws’ or even just working at your desk. the orchestration is beautiful and creative, while never losing any of the stately and formal charm that you’d expect from a philharmonic.

the album has some very popular favorites like Joy To The World and We Three Kings, but also has some less familiar tracks like In Dulci Jubilo and Still, Still, Still, which is part of a ‘manger-medley’.

what i like most about this album is that when it’s on you feel like you’re walking around Disneyland in December. it’s just big and grand and lush and musical. it puts a smile on my face every time.

bad news: this album is not available on iTunes.

good news: it’s available here for $6.98 (cd)

so get in the spirit: cook up some cider, grab a new song or two and let us know what christmas albums make you ready for december 25.

UPDATE

ok…so it seems that they’ve discontinued this album, reworked it and are now selling it under the name Christmas Violin. the song list is a little different, but they’ve added a few tracks to fill out the list.

the best part is that you can get the mp3′s off of amazon or iTunes.

let me know if you get it. and, most importantly, let me know about any christmas music you think i might be missing!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QqzdCdiclA[/youtube]

not exactly a positive post tuesday, but makes me smile all the same.

animals are fun.

(ht: my sister)

this was our sunrise friday morning.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
{ Lamentations 3.22-23 }