Cruncher Chronicles: The Dragon and the Superheroes

by Cruncher

once a fire dragon ruled the world. but ironman saved the day. and he said, "Tony! I forgot to blog your post."

"yeah, but this suit that I made had, like, bad news because he said 'I ... I ... can defeat that dragon and I can pick him up.'"

but the hulk helped him. and wolverine helped him. and then they defeated the dragon. but. he defensed him and he got the hang of it.

the apostrophe was trapped in a villain. dragons that were really evil. but he was a fire-breathing dragon, and he's trying to be in disguise, and then only ironman and hulk was trying to get the dragon. and then they got it. and then he got the people that got the dragon got back to the dragon, and then, this is still not the end.

and he forgot to get his armor on. his special armor, and then he almost got killed, but the hulk saved the day. and then he was looking at the hulk and he said, "you're a good superhero. I wish I had you around. but you still don't need to get me. because you could get somebody else on your own with the other dragons. and then you can rule the world, but not this place."

and then he got a nerf gun and shooted him. PEW! PEW! PEW! and then he had a lot of guns and a cannonball. because he had to get that dragon because one of his superheroes was in it and then the dragon got the superhero and got him out of the dragon. and then the dragon got some soup that he ate, but he still didn't eat it all.

and this is still not the end. still. it's gonna be a long time before this ends.

and then. and then. there's a nerf gun that's here like this. *shoots nerf gun* and then he got back wolverine and then wolverine was trying to get a dragoncat. and then soon he's gonna get a horse by defending his self and his army. and then he had to defend all the droids that were really bad.

and then he haded to do graduation and then he was all done with school and then he got to be a superhero. but. he still didn't have luck because he got the powerful guy in the world and his dark lord.

i know i made up this story, but not the characters. except dark lord.

and then Tony said, "can I please see you on Facebook? soon?" but his horse was really just tired so he got the horse back into the cage and he got to get his own space, but he didn't do it all. he did it by himself. so he got some water and then he turned into a real superhero. and then he got to be a superhero again.

THE END.

In the Beginning...

by Ryan

“We seem to have our best conversations in the car.”

– Me (Ryan)

When I decided to leave Facebook about a month ago, I knew right away I would face a challenge in keeping people in my life up to date with things at our household. This blog — The Sword and the Stein — is Shannon and my solution. This may seem like a peculiar family blog name, but I find the meaning behind this title very appropriate for our lives, as well as the lives of Christians around the world. (More on that in a bit.)

A typically cliché statement when naming a blog might be: “Naming a blog is like naming a baby!” Well, in a way, I think it’s more difficult. That is, unless you are like Frank Zappa, and your children have completely zany names, such as Dweezil and Moon Unit. Anywho, needless to say, we had a hard time naming the blog and went through several ideas before coming to The Sword and the Stein.

One of the more interesting ideas we had stemmed from a visit to St. Charles Borromeo parish in Milan (pronounced: My-len), Indiana. This parish has always felt like home to me. We were attending the 8 a.m. Mass when we heard an announcement that went something like this:

“If you left your rosary at the Resurrection … I mean, The Reservation … (various laughter from the parishioners), it is available for pickup in the Parish Hall.” (The Reservation, by the way, is a restaurant in Milan with cheap Native American-ish décor and a tasty breakfast menu.)

Because of this hilarious instance, Shannon and I long contemplated playing with “If you lost your rosary at the Resurrection…” as a blog name, among others. Shannon and I usually discussed the rationale behind these choices on various car rides, bedtime conversations and other stolen moments.

Hey, girl. Nice mug.

So, I’m guessing you really just want me to tell why we named our blog after a weapon and a drinking vessel. The sword represents the word of God; in Ephesians 6:17, the word of God is “a sword of the spirit.” Hebrews 4:12 calls the word of God “sharper than any two edged sword … and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.” So, while we may wish from time to time to scrutinize the behaviors of our fellow man, we will also look for opportunities to scrutinize our own hearts, since “a good heart is a continual feast” (Proverbs 15:15).

Awkward Family Photos, anyone?

The stein, the well-known drinking vessel of Germanic peoples (and the German word for “stone”), represents the world and all of its pleasures. We all have some pastime, hobby, diversion, etc. that adds dimensions to our lives and perhaps contributes in some way to our uniqueness as individuals.

Some of our blog posts may be more of the “sword” variety, with other posts addressing more “stein”-worthy topics. And then some may be a mixture of the two. I think this is the essence of the devout life, which we try to live with God’s aid. 

Either way, we hope you enjoy our blog.