Dream Dinner 7 - Friends Who Can Sing

This version of Dream Dinner consists of my friends and foes who can actually carry a tune. This would be a highly charged and ego-centric group, with a bunch of energy! These are all friends of mine and I would love to get this group together!

* Lorie Daugherty * Jason Roe * John Nance * Dawn Arnold * Doug Butler * Ryan Hunt * Chris Crump * Sarah E. Adams ( last 2 added 01/14/2013)

...it's a good list to begin discussions.

Dream Dinner 6 - Quarterbacks

If I could have a Dream Dinner (check out my previous five dinners in the archives) with 8 QB's of the NFL, (who played after 1985):

John Elway
Troy Aikman
Peyton Manning
Brett Favre
Dan Marino
Joe Montana
Kurt Warner
Tom Brady

One thing they have in common: they led their teams with ability and confidence to be winners.

Dream Dinner 5 - Actors & Actresses

The ultimate meal with some of my favorite Actors and Actresses:

Sandra Bullock

Morgan Freeman

Angelina Jolie

Denzel Washington


Liv Tyler


Matt Damon


Kate Beckinsale


Dennis Quaid


Catherine Zeta-Jones


Harrison Ford


Ashley Judd


Tom Hanks

Dream Dinner 4 - Authors & Writers

A table of 10 and my favorite book by each:

* John Grisham (The Testament)
* Peggy Noonan (What I Saw At The Revolution)
* Philip Yancey (The Jesus I Never Knew)
* Max Lucado (Because I Love You)
* Dr. Suess (How The Grinch Stole Christmas)
* Joseph Girzone (Joshua: A Parable For Today)
* Henri Nouwen (Return of the Prodigal Son)
* David Halberstam (The Teammates)
* Jane Leavy (Sandy Koufax: A Lefty's Legacy)
* Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. (A Thousand Days: John F. Kennedy In The White House)

Dream Dinner 3 - Musicians

My 8 Favorite Singer/Songwriters: chewing the fat, shooting the bull, talking shop, showing off pics of family, etc.

• Bob Dylan at head of the table. The voice of the generation of hippies and world changers.
• Bruce Springsteen to his right and Bono to his left. These two have an enormous fan base that transcends age, language, and culture.
• John Mellencamp and Bryan Adams facing each other in the midst of the giants of music.
• Elton John is at the other head and loves being there.
• Billy Joel is at his right (they are very good friends) and Dave Matthews on Elton's left.

This collection of souls and artists have caught my attention and have spoken into my life through the beauty of rhyme, rhythm, and lyrical prose.

Who would you like to see at your dinner table?

Dream Dinner 2 - Presidents and Friends

- Abraham Lincoln sitting beside Biz Gainey. These two can be brutally honest and truthful!

- Thomas Jefferson sitting beside Rod Leupp - these two are so brilliant.

- Ronald Reagan sitting beside me because he is one of my favorites.

- George W. Bush sitting beside my dad, who would love to chat about baseball and farming.


Peggy Noonan (Presidential speechwriter) in her book "What I Saw At The Revolution", wrote of her years writing speeches for President Reagan. She wrote the famous speech at the Space Shuttle Challenger Memorial Service, which has been tagged by many as one of the greatest speeches/moments of any U.S. President. Reagan was tender, compassionate, honoring, and rather pastoral during the speech to the grieving family and saddened country.

Noonan also wrote the famous speech Reagan gave in Normandy, France at the 20th Anniversary of D-Day. It is also considered one of the brightest moments of Reagan's speeches. Again, honoring, compassionate, and pastoral.

It is an awesome book! I recommend it to anyone who wants to get a glance into the Reagan years.

Dream Dinner - Comedians and Friends

I had the brilliant idea to come up with Dream Dinners. These are "fantasy" meals with famous people along with my friends and family.

For instance, the first one is...Comedians (or comical people in my life). I would love to have a fun time eating and listening to these funny people:

- Adam Sandler
-Jason Roe (my brother-in-law who is hilarious)
-Steven Wright
- Peter Hall (friend who acts like me on mega-caffeine)
- Robin Williams
- Tim Cain (the craziest, spazzed-out, ADHD filled friend of mine)
- Jeff Foxworthy
- Luke Bentley (a friend that will make your gut hurt from laughter)

My prediction is that Tim and Robin would hit it off real fast and have their own lingo within 13 minutes. Steven would just watch everyone and make dry jokes on everyone's account. Adam, Peter, and Jason would be friends quickly as they are all three about the same age. And then you got Luke and Foxworthy - making fun of the rednecks that they are.

Let's get the party started!