Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award 2010

It’s time once again to award the annual and highly, highly coveted Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award for Christmas presents.

The prestigious award for the bestest present goes to once again, drum roll please….. my favorite niece Valerie for giving her Uncle Frank a hug on Christmas day. Valerie being saddled with huge student loan debts after completing the deaconess program through Concordia University Chicago (with very little in the way of prospects of actually serving as a deaconess due to a variety of factors that plague our beloved synod) knew that all her uncle has ever wanted or needed was a hug from his favoritest niece to make Christmas merry.

As I stated last year, Valerie is always the favorite for Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award since she is my favorite niece. Thank you Valerie for the hug which I loved almost as I do you.

The Favorite Niece Teaches Her Uncle

My favorite niece, Valerie, finished up the high school’s kid's Sunday school class on the Book of Jonah yesterday.

Boy howdy she did a great job in wrapping up the book with the contrast of Jonah’s temper tantrum outside of Nineveh and Yahweh’s patience, mercy, and grace with his rebellious and sinful children. The students, while a little slow to wake up, did a great job of participating with thoughtful answers that would make any Board of Education superintendent or parent proud!

At the beginning of the class, playing the part of the troublemaker, I asked what exactly were Valerie’s credentials and what gave her the right to teach. Taking her uncles tomfoolery in stride she told everyone that she is a deaconess, a highly trained professional church worker, in the LCMS.

All my favorite niece needs now is a call to a congregation (if anyone knows of a parish looking for a confessional deaconess? Give me a shout if you do) Until she does get a call, I’m gonna recommend that she replace that clown that normally teaches the high school class on Sunday morning because this girl rocks!

And just so ya’ll know; I’m not just saying that because she is my favorite niece but rather because it was real treat to hear a class taught by someone who is so solidly confessional. It’s a rare treat these days to see a class taught to youth that does not pander to the lowest commen denominator but instead seeks to elevate catachetical instruction by engaging the students on a level that parents, at the very least, demand from them in their secular high school even if such is not expected on Sunday morning.

Great job Valerie!

Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award 2009

It’s time once again to award the annual and highly, highly coveted Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award for Christmas presents.

The prestigious award for the bestest present goes to, wait for it….. my favorite niece Valerie for her schӧn icon of the Last Supper. As she did last year, Valerie once exploited her uncle’s love of fine religious art and added to growing collection in his home office.

As I stated last year when she gave me an icon of St. John the baptizer: “By taking advantage of her uncle’s fondness of art that would give any smiling, purpose driven, evangelical convulsions as it wasn’t produced after 1966 and isn’t saccharine sweet and cute, she was clearly the favorite from the beginning”.

At the end of the day, Valerie is always the favorite for Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award the because she is my favoritest niece. Thank you Valerie for the wonderful icon!

For previous years winners go here and here and here and here.

Valerie Graduates!

On Saturday my absolute favorite bestest niece, Valerie, graduated from Concordia University Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts. Ain't that cool?

Her major is in theology with the minor being psychology. Valerie hopes to get a placed as a deaconess soon as she has all but completed her internship at Bethany Lutheran Church up in Naperville, Illinois.

Valerie, your aunt and I are so proud of you for all the hard work it took to get your degree. As they say in these here parts, you done good! Love ya!

Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award 2008

It’s time for the annual and highly coveted Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award for Christmas presents. This annual post is a bit late as the missus and I needed to return to the Haut South to open those presents that arrived after we left for our Texas Christmas visit with my in-laws. Well, return we did and opened and unwrapped all our cool gifts in preparation for the bestowing of one of this website’s most coveted awards. So without any further delay…

And the winner this year is, drum roll please… a rocking Saint John the Baptist icon from my niece Valerie! A big thank you to my favorite niece!

The icon is NOT a Christmas tree ornament. To get a decent picture I tried several times with a variety of poses, with no luck whatsoever at getting a decent shot. Then my missus recommended that the Christmas tree with its dark background might make the picture work. In addition to holding the icon in place and providing a decent backdrop, the tree has the added benefit of being an alternative to a picture of my missus holding the icon. She’s a little camera shy and doesn’t want her picture out on blogosphere so the tree worked out well.

Anyhoo…

To win said prize, Valerie exploited her uncle’s love of religious art, specifically icons. By taking advantage of her uncle’s fondness of art that would give any smiling, purpose driven, evangelical convulsions as it wasn’t produced after 1966 and isn’t saccharine sweet and cute, she was clearly the favorite from the beginning. Way to go Valerie! Can you guys see why she’s my favorite niece?

For previous years winners go here and here and here and here. Anybody see a pattern?

No Valerie, I’m Not Out Of Blogging Ideas

My absolutely favorite niece, Valerie, just sent me a short note with a link suggesting that I might need blogging ideas. That’s why she’s my favorite niece, she’s always looking out for her uncle.

No Valerie, I’m not out of ideas for blogging. I’ve just been a little busy at work (a pleasant change) and was on vacation last weekend. The boss took all his employees and their significant others to the beach. The missus and I got a chance to go ocean kayaking for between four or five hours just north of Myrtle Beach.

With the short getaway and picking up two new customers, Uncle Frank has just been a little busy, but not too busy to see that email from his favorite niece. And I certainly saw that email from LCMS, Inc. highlighting increased revenues while losing market share. (sorry for that folks but sometimes ya got to talk the right lingo to be understood by corporate types)

Thank you Valerie for making sure I gots me some ideas, that’s why your Aunt and I love ya.

Oh, that’s a picture of your Aunt playing in the ocean.

Jesus Action Figure

I just got done listening to yesterdays episode of Issues, Etc. where Pastor Todd Wilken discussed his Jesus action figure with gliding action. Too funny!

Here's the product description from Amazon;

Product Description

Everyone has a different take on Jesus. Muslims saw him as a prophet. Buddhists say he was enlightened. Hindus consider him an avatar (the incarnation of a deity in human form), while Christians hail him as the Son of God. But, wherever your theological compass points, you will agree that this is the coolest action figure ever made. Each hard vinyl Jesus Action Figure stands 5" (12.7 cm) tall with posable arms to reach toward the heavens and wheels in his base for smooth gliding action!

Yeah...smooth gliding action, just like in Matthew 29:10-22.

And Valerie, before you even think about it, I don’t think you would win the coveted “Uncle Frank’s Christmas Present of the Year Award” by getting me this. Just so you know...

For those of you who are new to Putting Out The Fire, Valerie, my favorite niece, is a three time winner, in fact...she's the only winner of the prestigious award. See what my favorite niece got me for 2005, 2006, and 2007.

Valerie Update

Well, this about two weeks overdue…

My favorite niece, Valerie, has completed all the full length courses necessary for her to be placed in a parish as a deaconess intern. She’s been placed in a wonderful congregation just outside Chicago and is really looking forward to all the new challenges of the upcoming year.

But before she moves into her new digs, she’s home with her family for a quick break. Her and her uncle have been getting yelled at during the Friday night for disrupting the Bible study with snide comments and tomfoolery when they should have been quite and listening. Oh well, but I really have to wonder where she picked that kind of obnoxious behavior, hmm, who knows...

Anyhoo, next weekend she’ll be out of town going attending a wedding, but the weekend after her aunt and I have Valerie for an unsupervised Saturday extravaganza!

Depending on how the day goes we, her aunt and I, may just seek full custody of Valerie for the remainder of her time here. It’s our opinion that the family shouldn’t be bogarting Valerie, that’s just wrong, it’s wrong! I’ll keep ya’ll updated.

Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award 2007

Well, it’s time for the annual and highly coveted Uncle Frank's Favorite Gift Of The Year Award for Christmas presents. And the winner this year is, drum roll please… a PETA t-shirt from my niece Valerie! A big thank you to my favorite niece!

To win said prize, Valerie turned once again to an old faithful, the t-shirt. By exploiting her uncle’s love of eating cute, tasty animals, she was clearly the favorite from the start.

For previous years winners go here and here.

Valerie's Back

One of the highlights of my weekend was my deaconess in training niece Valerie coming back from Concordia University Chicago on Friday. While I wasn’t able to see her right as she got home, I did swing by on Saturday for the sole purpose of giving her a big hug. Her aunt and I missed her a bunch and look forward to spending time with her over the summer. Welcome home Valerie!