Friday, February 17, 2012

Eye Update!

So, many of you have been asking me via email and private message (yes I do check that still...when I remember...*cough* *cough*) how my eyes are doing, since it has been several years since I last posted or recorded about it. Well, I am excited to report, that I DO have an update - a HUGE praise in fact. For the story, keep reading!

For those who don't remember, in 2007, I was diagnosed with a pituitary lesion/tumor, and they think that may have been what caused my peripheral vision loss. Lots of people prayed for me, and I am so thankful for each and every one of you. God heard your prayers! Here is how I know:

Since then, I have met only two other people who have had a pituitary tumor and lost their peripheral vision. The difference? Both of these people lost ALL of their vision save for a tiny sliver in the middle of their eyes. The first person I met was a young lady named Sarah Harris back in 2008 in Colorado Springs, CO (at the 20th Birthday Bash). She was very nearly blind from it, but was so joyful even in that suffering. The second person I heard about yesterday in the ER.

I went to the ER yesterday (November 8) for the worst migraine I've ever had (first time having to go to the ER for a migraine), and my doctor thought the tumor might be bleeding so he sent me to the ER for a CT scan (came back clean btw). While there, getting treated for the migraine, my nurse was asking me to describe my symptoms, which I did. When I got to the part about the Pituitary tumor, he interrupted me and asked if I had peripheral vision loss because of it. I was slightly surprised he would ask that, but answered that yes, I have lost some. When I asked him why, he told me that his 7 year old son had the exact same thing as me, except he lost all but a pinprick of his vision. I explained that I had only list the side periphery and that I was still able to see front periphery and forward. I then asked if I could pray for his son, and he told me I could. I prayed for him on and off the rest of the day in the ER.

The point of this story is this: GOD ANSWERED OUR PRAYERS FOR MY VISION!!!!!!!!! I don't know how common this tumor is, or the peripheral vision loss with it, but the only other people I have ever met with this problem lost nearly everything. For some unknown reason, I did not. I only lost about a quarter of it, and then it stopped progressing. I am so thankful right now. It could be a rare thing for people to lose all of it, I don't know, and at the moment, I don't care. I didn't lose it all, and I firmly believe it was by the grace of God and through the prayers of all of you. So Thank You!

I love this! I love that for all this time, I thought that God had not really answered my prayers because my vision never came back and I lost vision to begin with. All this time, I was seeing things the wrong way (pun intended). Instead of worrying about what I didn't have, I needed to focus on the fact that God allowed me to keep the majority of my eyesight. That he stopped it from progressing. That He DID answer my/our prayers! How Great is Our God?!

Thank you Father, for knowing the truth even when we are too blind to see it! Thank you for showing me this nugget of truth, and helping me to realize that you do love me and are looking out for me! Amen

Love you all, and thank you again for your prayers!

Sarah

Hello again!

Wow, so it has been FOREVER since I last posted. I apologize everyone! My life has gotten insane! I have tons of news to share with you!

AIO NEWS:

~ Album 54 has aired, and we are anxiously waiting for the release of Album 55 (The Deep End). This album has at least a three part-er that wraps up the story with Jason and Mr. Grote from The Green Ring Conspiracy. It should be available for download in March and should air on the radio sometime after that.

~ There will be another AIO live show this summer! YAY! This year it will be June 16 in Dallas, Texas. We know for sure that Townshed Coleman, Katie Leigh, Jess Harnell, Will Ryan, Andre Stojka, Zach Callison, Kimmy Robertson, and Chris Anthony will be there. This show will not be recorded so your only chance to hear it is in June 16! For more information see
  http://whitsendblog.org/birthday-bash-faq/

For those who are curious, I am not sure if I am going at this time, or not. I'd like too, but financially it is looking iffy for me. I'll try to keep you posted though!

~ You can now listen to AIO 24 hours a day, 7 days a week online! check out http://den-a.plr.liquidcompass.net/player/flash/audio_player.php?id=AIOIR&uid=622 and give it a listen!

~ Finally, have you ever wanted to act on AIO? Well if you are between the ages of 6-15, now is your chance! AIO is running a contest called "Get in the Show" and three lucky people will be chosen to fly to Colorado Springs to audition for a part in Album 58! For more info, check out http://whitsendblog.org/getintheshow/ and see if you too can GET IN THE SHOW!!!!


Ok, moving on to other things

LIFE!

So for those who don't know, I have some really awesome news about Chris, our lovely former co-host and editor extraordinaire! This past fall, he got engaged!!!! He and his fiancee are currently serving in Asia as missionaries still (she joined him there in January of this year), and are planning to get married sometime next year. They met on the ToO and in person for real in Colorado for the 20th Birthday Bash. Can I just say I saw this coming before THEY did? Yup, it is true! Needless to say, I am SUPER excited for them both, and I am sure they would both covet your prayers as they are trying to get time together and serve as missionaries at the same time.

The last bit of news I have is from me, but I think I will put it in a separate post as this one is getting too long. Stay tuned!

Sarah 

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Welcome to Summer!

Hi Everyone, Sarah here. I apologize that it has been so long since I updated last. Life has been crazy! Seminary is very intense and is taking up more time than I thought it would. I haven't forgotten all of you, I just have not had time to do much here. I hope you all are well, and while I will try to blog every now and then, I think the podcast itself may be dead for the foreseeable future. :(

A few AIO updates though.

  • The Green Ring Conspiracy aired this past spring, and it was AMAZING! We saw the return of several old characters and even a few actors from the past playing new roles! You can find this album online or at your local Christian bookstore.
  • Album 54 will be coming out this fall. It will be based on 1 Corinthians 13 I'm told and will have more slice of life type episodes again, as well as wrapping up some hanging ends from album 53.  It will be called "Clanging Symbols and the Meaning of God's Love" 
  • The Blackgaard Chronicles are slated for release September 2011, and will contain all of the Blackgaard episodes - 30 in all on 10 CD's plus a secret bonus dvd that contains asumably wesome features that are being kept under lock and key. ;)
  • Finally, next summer is the 25th Anniversary of AIO! They are planning something big for it, but what will it be? I have heard rumors of another live show in Colorado, a cruise with the actors, or even a traveling show, where they preform it in various cities across the country. I wonder what they will end up picking! Whatever it is, I'm going to do my best to be there! (assuming my husband and I can afford it of course)

I hope you are all well and you found this little update fun!

God bless,

Sarah

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Update!

Hi everyone I have a couple updates for you tonight!

1. Chris leaves for Asia to be a missionary tomorrow! Please keep him in your prayers, and if you or your family wish to support him, please let me know!

2. The first three episodes of Album 52 have already aired and the next episode, Stage Fright, airs this Saturday.

3. Focus on the family is running a Christmas contest again to go to the premier of Voyage of the Dawn Treader in London! Check it out at http://www.focusonchristmas.com

4. There is a new AIO Christmas compilation available for download at cbd.com, as well as many AIO episodes! Check it out!

5. I am hoping to come out with a new UAIOP podcast in the very near future. Seminary is eating my life right now, so I am a little behind, but rest assured, a new podcast is in the works!

6. Finally, while you are waiting to hear back from the UAIOP, there is another blog you can check out that is not AIO related, but does have some references to it. It is something I just started tonight and hope to grow in the future. Basically it is a blog (soon to be its own website) of ideas, lessons, and answers to questions asked of me pertaining to Christianity, Apologetics, other religions, morality, and all kinds of stuff like that. (for those who are concerned - I am NOT a Pastor and nothing there is intended to be that way) At the moment, there is a message uploaded that I recorded this morning. God laid it on my heart, and people in my life felt it needed to be shared, so it is. In the future, I plan on adding the other things I mentioned earlier. I want it to be a place where anyone can come and ask questions - not to argue or pick fights - but to be a safe place where people can ask questions that they want answers to but feel they cannot ask in church. I don't want to post too much here as this is the AIO blog, but if you want to know more, head over to my other blog and check it out.

Love ya,

Sarah

Monday, September 27, 2010

Album 52!

Hey everyone! Just a reminder that Album 52 begins airing on Saturday! YAY! Check it out on your local radio station or on www.whitsend.org!

Monday, July 26, 2010

Hi!

Hello everyone! This is Sarah! Don't take us off your favorites yet! I'm still here and I hope to try to keep you updated with some of the latest news, AND come fall when the new episodes air, I just *might* be back with a co-host! I'm seriously considering doing a rotating co-host until I find one who is a good fit. Tell me what you think!

Also, there has been lots of news about the upcoming albums. Jacob Isom over at www.odysseyscoop.com has posted the potential new covers for Album 52 Cause and Effect as well as the Lost Episodes. Check them out! Album 53 is in the process of being recorded as well. The cast and crew were in California last week recording the episodes for the 12 parter written and at least partly directed by Paul McCusker. The title has already been released and is The Green Ring Conspiracy. It sounds great, and I've heard whispering about some surprises in store in the album - YAY!

Monday, July 19, 2010

Unofficial Podcast Ep. 61

07.19.10. The end has arrived... the time has come. All good things must come to an end. It's been an incredible three years and we've enjoyed every minute of it. In this, our final podcast and longest together, we discuss Album 51 and talk about what future lies in store for us.

Right-click and save here to download.

Running Time: 1 hr, 19 min



Sunday, July 18, 2010

The Search is Nearly Over!



Those of you who have been following the Ceiling Fan podcast will be familiar with Ethan and Phil's recent search for Odyssey. After eight long weeks of driving all over America, their search will finally come to an end. Check it out! Then come back on Monday to hear our latest episode!



Monday, July 12, 2010

New Podcast Soon!



We're finally back! After our six month hiatus, we return to give our thoughts on Album 51: Take It From the Top. Plus, a major announcement regarding the future of this podcast!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Album 52 Cover!

Quick update my friends! I am now married and moved back to Virginia - YAY! On the way back here, m husband and I road tripped across the country and stopped in at Focus. I got to see our good friends from AIO while there including Nathan Hoobler, Brock Eastman! Yay! It was exciting! After I got back, i heard from Chris, and he is doing great! Hopefully he will be back soon! I also have several AIO related things to update you about very quickly.

1. For those who love Whit, check out this youtube clip that has all three voices mixed together! It is amazing!

2. Check out the new Official AIO fan page on Facebook!

3. Finally, check out the new cover art for Album 52! (I would have it directly here, but it's too big and I can't seem to shrink it)

Love you all - Sarah!

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Jubilee Singers

Well Friends, time sure flies, doesn't it? The final installment of the Jubilee Singers airs this Saturday and I'm excited for the conclusion! For those who wondered, I have indeed held off listening to my cds until the episode airs on the radio. It's been tough, but I made it! I know I am way behind on reviews, but they will come eventually!

My life has been INSANE the last few weeks. I'll spare you the details, but it has been full of funerals, weddings, wedding planning, hospital visits (my Oma fell down the stairs and broke her wrist) and writing thank you notes. My wedding is in 17 days - YAY! It's coming up fast! After that, my husband to be and I decided to go on a road trip back to Virginia and we are going to stop in Colorado Springs so I can show him Focus on the Family - super excited about that and to see my friends there again!

I'll try to get in a few more updates when I can and hopefully some reviews as well. Thanks for your patience and prayers everyone! They are greatly appreciated!

Sarah

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Album 52!

Hey everyone! Boy have I got news for you today! I just got out of a super secret meeting with my contact at Focus and I have been authorized to reveal some exciting news to you all about Album 52! I know some of you are on the Town of Odyssey and have heard rumors about the new title for 52 as well as cover art for it. Well, have i got news for you! First of all, the title has been officially released and it is...drum-roll please.........

Album 52 - Cause and Effect

Now, on to the cover. The one released is not actually correct, but I can tell you that the real cover contains 3 main characters in a clock tower trying stop something from happening. Dun Dun Dun.

As for the released cover and other information like that, in the future, I'd simply wait until it comes officially from Focus before trusting it, because as we have learned sometimes stuff that is leaked isn't always accurate.

Cause and Effect also contains single part Thanksgiving and Christmas episodes - YAY!!! I don't remember the last time we had a Thanksgiving Episode! Excitement!

Also there is the brand new Family Fun Panel - on each new release/re-release as a short video. Brock and Diane will be in each with a family trying to complete a certain task. Each album has a different challenge and you must buy the album to get the instructions for it. If you complete the challenge let Focus know and you can get a button that has the album name on it and picture and what the challenge was. The challenge in album 3 is based off the episode "Karen" and involves writing a letter or a card to someone who is hospitalized or in a nursing home. Album 4 is building a volcano like Robyn and Oscar.

There is also a new book series called The Imagination Station for ages 6-9 coming out this fall. Books 1-2 will be released Fall 2010 and 3-4 in Spring 2011. Authors are Marianne Hering and Paul McCusker.

Finally, I know some people have been complaining about the new families on Odyssey and how the kids seem disrespectful and whiny. My response to hat is," You mean you dislike them because they are real?" ;) When asked about his thoughts on the matter, Brock Eastman, Product Marketing guy at Focus said,

"If the kids in Odyssey were perfect they wouldn’t be very relatable to the situations you face every day. Plus wouldn’t that just be boring? Let’s hear an example: (Begin episode) Here Mathew I’ll help you clean your room. Oh thanks Olivia. (End episode)"


I heartily agree Mr. Eastman.

Well all, that's all I have for you today. I hope you enjoyed it! ohh also be sure to check out the brand new AIO page on Facebook!

Sarah

Saturday, April 17, 2010

The Inspiration Station Part 2 Review

Finally! It's here! Sorry it took me so long to do this guys, but here it is. Hopefully I'll have the others up soon too.

Oooh - Eugene on coffee - scary thought.

I love the scene with Whit and Eva. Reminds me of the old episodes where parents came in to talk to Whit about things.

So apparently only Whit, Connie, and Eugene work at Whit's End anymore.

Connie's addiction reminds me a lot of the Twilife zone episode about the chicken - what was that? Addictions. Also Zachary in A Touch of Healing (I think that's the ep I wanted)

Ok So we learn who Whit's friend is - Mortimer - a man/character in Whit's new invention. I have to admit, I was shocked when I heard this character because he sounds EXACTLY like Finnian Jones from the Lamplighter Theatre broadcast - down to the big library and fast train. I'll hold back most of my thoughts on this for now and explain why in a future blog. However, I will say that while at first I felt cheated that it was the same character with the same voice by the same actor as lamplighter, I was informed by my sources that basically if there were such a thing as coincidences then this would count. Once I found that out, I liked it much better - he is a great character!

Also the scenes with Mortimer are extended on the cd.

The Thomas Alva Edison reminded me of the Potential in Elliot. :) I also like that they made the story different though. I never knew the connections between some of these inventors. :) Mortimer did a great job encouraging Matthew to keep inventing. The blank book idea was cool.

Heehee a Whit messing up the town clock. The team really has a thing for the clock. The videos, Malachi's Message, and I'm sure there are others.

Good lessons for Matthew - if God has given you a talent or a gift, keep at it even if you mess up. You never know where that mess up might take you.

I love Connie's backtrack about people asking her to talk - that is something I do too - accidentally exaggerate then catch myself and have to backtrack down to reality.

It really is depressing to see who you can be then have it not last and feel like you can never be that person. This whole segment with Connie really reminds me of me. Everyone knows or thinks they know who they should be - at least what they think other people think they should be - but very few of us (like none) are actually capable of living up to that expectation. We have to remember that the only expectation that matters is God's. I struggle with this so much at times always feeling like a failure, and God reminds me that I'm not. That and everyone else before me felt that way too. Isaiah, Peter, David, and so on. It also reminds me of the Relient K song Who I am Hates Who I've Been.

Great redemption scene with Matthew and Eugene as well as Whit and Connie.

I love how they worked in all the people from the "Get Your Voice on AIO" promo from a while back. *tear*


Overall, I like how they wrapped up together and the messages presented. Very applicable to real life. Classic AIO in my opinion. 4/5

Friday, April 9, 2010

Thoughts on Act Like Odyssey Entries

Ok people, here are my thoughts on each entry!

1. Broken Window - Rodney is great! I love the British Whit! Great job and I love the flashback to Connie's date! It's sad that I know the episode so well, I can tell where they skipped lines! lol. Rating: A

2. Snow Day - Alex reminds me of the kid who plays SJ in the Blind Side. I love Snow Day and they did a good job getting the whole episode in! A-

3. Jumbo Fork - LOL! That was cute! I loved the rake! :) B+

4. Real Time - LOL!!!! They pulled an e-Trade stunt!!!!! AAAAHH!!!! I love the talking baby! And the little boys are just too CUTE!!!!! Also, the Captain sounds great! Ok the cuteness factor totally has me in tears - EEK!!!!! (wow I used a lot of exclamation points for this one lol) Loved the recap they give. So minus the fact that they totally played to the viewers cuteness meter, it was great! A

5. By Dawn's Early Night - really long intro. Lucy is actually pretty good though. B

6. Young Guns Bonanza - Good job. This is one of those shorties that I've heard too many times though. They did good! B+

7. Dadenstein - fun special effects. Dadenstein was good but the rest was kinda eh. B

8. Sam Maritan - Lucy is cute and it's pretty well done. A-

9. Champ of the Camp - Actors are great! I liked this one! A-

10. Fairy Tale Action News - sheep and shepherd boy are cute! ok Correction: Shepherd boy is ADORABLE!!!!! Good video! I liked this one a lot! A

Well I'm heading over to cast my vote. To keep from swaying you in a certain direction, I'll keep my vote a secret until after voting has closed. Head on over to Whit's End to vote!

Act Like Odyssey Contest

Well the entries are in and the new official podcast is out! Its a video podcast with clips from the top ten entries. Head over to whitsend.org to watch each of them in full and don't forget to vote! I'll post my thoughts on each sometime tomorrow if I get the chance.

I'm still going to review the episodes that have aired as well, I just got slightly busy with wedding planning stuff. Oh and the surprise is still cooking! Thanks for your patience!

Monday, March 29, 2010

News about Album 52

So I have heard from a little birdie that Album 52 is being recorded over the next several days in Burbank! And guess what - there is a Christmas episode! YAY!! Looking forward to it! :)

Saturday, March 27, 2010

New email!

YAY!! Our new email address is officially up and running! It is the same as before just at gmail instead of hotmail. It is

a i o f a n p o d c a s t at g m a i l . c o m

(ignore the spaces. I just put them in so bots can't read it and start spamming everything again). I have not updated the link under contact us yet as I am planning on replacing that link with a security image that bots can't read (also known as a captcha) - like the ones with random letters you have to type in when registering or logging in to gmail or amazon etc. If you have any questions you can leave a comment or send an email. I will check the old email for the next thirty days and after that, we probably won't get anything from the hotmail account.

In other news, I might have a surprise in the works for all of you. Stay tuned.

Finally, Game for a Mystery airs today. Turn on your radio, or hop on over to www.whitsend.org/radio for a listen.

Sarah

Friday, March 26, 2010

Deleted Scenes!

YAY! So I just discovered another GREAT reason to buy Take it From the Top. First, of course is to support Focus on the Family so they can keep making new episodes. Second, the really cool insert about each of the characters in the album and behind the scenes info. Third however, is that there are pretty awesome deleted scenes in the album. So far I've gotten two or three in The Inspiration Station part 1. (you can hear the Parker family discovering Matthew's tinkering as well as Connie having a nightmare leading to her return to Whit's End) Both are worth a listen! Part two has some extended scenes with Mortimer in the Library (which is as far as I am right now)

This discovery has solidified my choice (I hope) to not listen ahead so I can notice the differences.

Reviews are coming soon, I promise, but now that I know there are differences, I want to re-listen to both versions of each show aired so far again.

Feel free to point out any you noticed in the first three episodes of the season!

Sarah

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Clutter

I apologize everyone for my disappearance over the last week. I had a crazy week in Virginia doing wedding planning with my Fiancee, and I had to take a last minute exam which I passed and I am now an official graduate of Liberty University - YAY!!!

I returned home today and had a wonderful surprise waiting for me - Take it from the Top! At the moment, I am not sure if I should listen to all the episodes now, or be patient and wait for each episode to come out. I seem to recall when we first learned that the albums would be released at the same time as the radio episodes, that I was adamantly against "cheating" and listening to the album. I may be able to hold off, but man is it tempting to listen especially since I was not expecting to get it! Some god friends of mine *wink* surprised me and sent it to me, so friends, Thank you! heehee!

In other news, Clutter aired this weekend and if you have not heard it yet, hop on over to www.whitsend.org to listen.

Unfortunately, my fiance ran out of time to show me some of the blogger tricks, but he should be able to do so remotely, so there should be some cool pictures and stuff up for you soon. (and for those who are wondering, I will post a wedding picture of us both after we get married)

Finally, don't forget the Act Like Odyssey contest going on now until March 31! Hurry and get your tape in for the possibility of winning all 51albums of AIO!

Ooh and Chris got back to me while I was away and gave his thumbs up for the new email address. I will make a separate post about that within the next two days and let you know when it is live.

Later all!

Sarah

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Inspiration Station Part 2 is UP!

Hey all, part 2 is up and here it is! listen here or hop on over to whitsend.org/radio to take a listen!

Running Time: 25:28





I took a quick listen but need some time to gather my thoughts before posting about the episode. That and I'm flying to Virginia in the morning to see my fiancee and friends from college for about 10 days - yay! But don't worry - this is actually good for the podcast/blog! "How?" you may ask. Well, I'll tell you! My fiancee is a tech whiz and he has agreed to help me/teach me how to use this silly blog so I can actually post audio stuff and pictures etc - all the smart stuff Chris knows how to do, but didn't get a chance to teach me before he left (sound familiar anyone?) so YAY! Hopefully I will be back and improved in a few days with the help of my amazing fiancee Eli! also, starting sometime at the beginning of next week, we will have a new e-mail address that I will post as soon as everything is settled!

Sound good?

As always, post your thoughts and let us know what you are thinking!

Love ya,

Sarah