February 22, 1980. A day that will live forever in history, especially for hockey fans.
Do you believe in miracles?
{edit -- it's not Al Michaels, but it's a great commentary. AND it's got every US goal scored in it.}
One of the really fun things I've found in studying history (and yes, there are several) is reading letters. When someone is writing for publication, they are much more polished. There's a sense that 'this is going to last. People are going to read this years from now. I'd better make it a good one.' There's good material in those kinds of writing, to be sure, and you can learn a lot. They are valuable resources, and important to doing history.
But in letters you get much more personal. You meet the writer as they are -- they're not worried about people reading the letter decades from now, they're not thinking about the public record. They're just putting some words on paper for someone they know, giving them advice or telling stories or encouraging them -- whatever the purpose, they're very much in the moment, not concerned about the longevity of the letter. Some of my favorite books are collections of these letters -- these things people never thought would be widely read. I find myself learning a LOT more about the writer, and their time, when I read their letters.
This post at the Thinklings blog got me thinking. Actually, it got me thinking again about something that I've discussed with my wife (the American Revolution scholar). "What are historians going to do with the late 20th-early 21st centuries?"
We don't write letters much any more. (Of course, my wife will tell you that I never write letters BEFORE I got the computer and Internet access, but I digress). We email, and email is a very fragile thing. All I have to do is hit one button, type one command, and it's gone. DELETED, as StrongBad would say. Computer forensics could find some of them, but fifty years from now they'll be gone, unless we save them all. And I don't know many people that keep all their email -- I've even deleted email from my "bottomless account" at Gmail.
Will historians of the future wonder about us? Or will they be so used to electronic communications that they won't think twice about it? Will they be amazed at the amount of paper correspondence that we still do have? Or maybe they'll just spend a lot of time poking through server records, wondering why the ruler of Nigeria spent so much time trying to get people to hide his money.
... is a date I am looking forward to. REALLY looking forward to.
Why?
Speed Racer was must-see-TV for me when I was a kid. They tried to revive the series in animation not long ago, but it just didn't work for me -- I've missed the original ever since MTV aired it and then dumped it. Speed, Pops, Mom, Trixie, Spritle, Chim-Chim, Sparky, and (of course) Racer X were a huge part of my childhood. And now it's coming to the big screen.
Speed's brother Rex didn't run away in the movie -- he died (at least according to the synopsis -- I'm still holding out hope for a Racer X/Rex Racer connection). So far, everything else seems very faithful to the original, so I'm optimistic.
It seems like Hollywood is taking '70s and '80s properties and trying to revitalize them, to get the Boomer crowd into theaters. So far, I've not bee impressed with their efforts. They'd better not mess up Speed Racer, too.
Maybe this will become the next blogosphere meme -- and it will have started right here!! Cool, huh?
I'm going to think of 5 numbers, 1-10 (if you're cool, you can roll a D10 for this, but my dice are missing and presumed lost). I'm going to start at my blogroll, count down the first number, and go to that blog. Then count down the next number on their blogroll, and so on. +NOTE -- the numbers CAN duplicate, and you should use the first blogroll on the page as you scroll down.
My numbers are: 3, 8, 2, 9, and 4. So here we go!
Agent Tim was interviewed on the Al Mohler program on Tuesday. He did an outstanding job -- except for not mentioning the SBC aggregator. That's OK, Tim -- I sent Dr. Mohler an email. ;-)
If you haven't read Tim's blog lately -- WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? An invitation from God?
Would you settle for an endorsement by Al Mohler?
So I finally managed to upgrade my computer so that I've got enough RAM to run Google Earth. It's fun, but I've already found some problems.
There are places that they have in the wrong place. {I'm tallking about where the label is and where the actual place is if you select "schools," for example}. Stockbridge High School and Stockbridge Elementary School (in Georgia) are two or three miles away from where they actually are. Southern Seminary is at least five miles further west than it's supposed to be -- looks like they have it at the OLD location (pre 1929!!).
The beauty of the thing is that I can look at the satellite picture and see where these places are. If I was trying to get directions? Forget it -- I'd be in the WRONG place.
Problem is, I don't know who to contact. Anybody know who I need to tell so that this gets fixed??
Briefly for now -- I've been busier than I thought I would be the past couple of days!
I've been noticing a lot of hits through Google that have come because people are asking questions. I know exactly where this is coming from, because I've seen it before -- school's in session, and kids are doing Web Quests.
Web Quests are mini-projects that help students to learn how to do research on the Internet. I did them quite a bit when I taught Computer Apps a few years ago. They can be a lot of fun, but one thing the kids loved to do was simply type the question in to Google or ask.com and find the answer that way. I got burned once, because I copied the Web Quest from a Web site and the whole class found the site (with the answers!).
A tip for Web Questers. Key Words. For example, in the search query "The university was not always called tthe pennsylvania state university. do you know it's original name?" (which this site is the top result for on Google, by the way) the keywords are The Pennsylvania State University. The rest is superfluous.
Your next step is to decide what the question is asking, generally speaking. This question is asking about the history of The Pennsylvania State University, so a search for "The Pennsylvania State University" +history would probably narrow things down a LOT. Make sure you use quotation marks, kids!!
I've gotten this one a lot recently as well -- "What is the number of church of the brethren members in guilford county nc?" Check local census information for that one, kids; I doubt the Google search will give you much there.
That's all the help you're getting out of me -- I don't teach that anymore!! But, seriously, use quotes, and think about general key words that will get you the information you're looking for.
And teachers -- if you want my DHMO lesson plan, email me (the address is on the right). It worked really well, and taught the kids to be critical of what they read on the Internet. AND it can be done in one day.
One of my reviews over at Blogcritics was picked to be sent to advance.net. That means it's been distributed to several different web sites. So far, I've found it at Cleveland.com, NJ.com, NOLA.com, SILive.com (Staten Island), and Syracuse.com. There are more in the advance.net group, but not all of them run the book reviews they get from Blogcritics, but I'm pretty excited that someone out there likes what I've written.
So by now, you've all heard about Google Talk -- Google's entry into instant messaging.
I have it. I've actually stopped using Skype and switched to Google Talk-- there was only one person on Skype that I actually talked to anyway, and I needed to free up some hard drive space (can't believe I've filled 40GB. When I bought the computer, I said we'd NEVER need a bigger drive than that).
I haven't actually talked to anyone on it yet. But I like the software. You can customize the status messages so they say more than just "Off Line" or "Busy." Mine say "Sleeping," "Podcasting," and things like that. The actual instant messaging is easy to use -- I spent a little while talking to Bill Wallo. I'm ready to get rid of MSN Messenger (if my sister would accept my invitation!).
I'll still have a VOIP program, but I'll be using Gizmo Project, pending a test later today. It offers me the one feature that Skype doesn't have, but that I need -- the ability to painlessly and seamlessly record phone conversations. I can do it with Skype, but I have to have separate software to do it -- and the free version of that software doesn't support MP3 encoding (of course, I could just pay the $15 it costs to get the pro version. Have I mentioned how cheap I am?).
Matt Hall. Not only did he get one of those free iPods that you keep seeing goofy ads about, he also got a free Mac Mini from a similar offer.
All I've won online so far is $249 from Blingo. But I'm hopeful, one day, to be as lucky as Matt.
Update on the Christian Post situation. They've posted a correction on their site:
We apologize for the article by Cindy Lee that was posted on Wednesday at 3 a.m. The article was unknowingly posted during the testing of a recently launched section on ChristianPost.com, in which freelancers and trainees were given an open forum to post article samples. We sincerely regret any inconvenience the article may have caused to all those involved. We thank you for your continued support.Sounds like they were teaching people how to use their system, and someone decided to cut and paste a post to see what if they were doing it right. I can understand that -- things like that happen. And they probably didn't know how the story got there, and wondered if the site had been hacked. The author probably had no idea it had published to the site.
I still think an email to the original author is in order, though. The apology sounds sincere to me, though a bit late in coming -- it sounds like the folks at The Christian Post didn't really know what happened, or how it happened. I know at three in the morning, I'm not usually very coherent.
OK, so Nick Queen over at Nick Queen.com runs a blogger fantasy football league each year. I didn't do FF last season at all, but I'm going through withdrawl, especially since there was no fantasy hockey at all this year (no league, no fantasy league). So I'm ready to rumble.
AND since I just KNOW all my readers will be waiting with baited breath to see how well the Pewie Podcasters do in this years action, I'll be reporting RIGHT HERE on all the fantastic fantasy action.
In other news -- posting has been light because of the myriad of other projects I'm working on. I'm reviewing at Blogcritics, and the past week and a half I've also been filling in as books editor since Pat's computer went up in smoke (or something like that, anyway). I've been working on the Pewcast (that podcasting stuff is hard work!). AND I've been invited to contribute to Cinema Veritas (thanks, Bill Wallo). And I've got some things going on in "real life" (whatever that is). I've been busier than I have been in a while, and I've enjoyed it. I'm hoping that this week I can get on a schedule that lets me blog more often here, AND get the podcast done sometime SOON.
Thanks for putting up with that little rant. I WILL have some more intelligent writing coming soon, I promise.
Someone is emailing people telling them they have won a Power Sellers account on Ebay.
Unfortunately, you can't WIN a Power Seller's account, you have to earn it. When you DO earn it, you automatically get the logo, etc.
Also unfortunately, they've sent the email to an address that I don't have registered with Ebay, and isn't attached to my Ebay account.
So be warned -- someone's trying to steal your Ebay information. Probably to buy one of those laptops that people are selling as scams. Wouldn't that be ironic? A scammer gets bitten by a scammer? Sounds like P-P-P-Powerbook to me!
{Incidentally, if you've never heard about the P-p-p-Powerbook thing, you HAVE to read it. There is some strong language (at least in the older copy I read), but it is without a doubt the funniest thing I"ve ever heard about. Click the link and read it.}
I guess I had to get hit with this one sooner or later: The Literary Meme has arrived!!
What is the total number of books you have ever owned?
Wow. EVER????? Easilly over 5,000. Most likely over 10,000. No real idea though. I've probably got over 4,000 just right now, and I've sold/gotten rid of/thrown away/loaned out a lot more than that.
What is the last book you purchased?
Is the New Testament Reliable by Paul Barnett. Got it for five bucks at the bookstore at Southern last semester.
What is the last book you read?
Everyone knows that -- Jesus: an Intimate Portrait by Leith Anderson. It's right over there on the left sidebar!!
What are five books that mean a lot to you?
The Bible.
Mere Christianity
The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind
The Gospel and the Greeks
Armies of the Lamb: The Spirituality of Andrew Fuller
NOW I have to find 5 people who haven't done this one already. I'll have to get back to you on that one -- I'll post an edit here.
It's not even close to being finished, but you can get the basic idea of it here. Let me know what you think, and any suggestions that you have. My HTML is decent, but my CSS needs improvement.
Eventually, each blog in the aggregator will have its own "block." Once I get the design done, it will be pretty simple to add blogs -- just add another div tag or two, and BOOM -- there they are!
{UPDATE}: I will be changing the site URL probably tomorrow. I'm not happy with the banner ads that Bravenet is putting on the page.
{LATEST UPDATE}: The new URL is http://sbcbloggers.witnesstoday.org/ Christian hosting folks that operate as a ministry. I'm still doing some tweaking, but that's where it's going to be for the forseeable future.
I'm working on a new website project. I'm going to improve the look and functionality of the SBC Bloggers aggregator that I set up some time ago.
I found a great tool -- RSS Digest -- that helps newbies like me to insert RSS feeds into a site, pretty much anywhere we want. I'm envisioning a newspaper look for the aggregator. The 5 most recent articles posted by aggregator members will be at the top, and each member blog will have a section that shows the five most recent headlines for each blog. I'm still in the early development stages, but as work progresses, I will update everyone.
I also wanted to remind everyone to check out Blogcritics periodically. I have a post there about Pac Man's 25th birthday, as well as some book reviews. If you just want to look at my stuff, you can go here.
AND -- more of the old archives have been moved over. It's a bit tedious,but I'm getting everything set up here. I'll keep the old site up for a while, just because I still have links to old posts that go back there, and I'm still getting hits there (search engine hits, mainly). Eventually, though, it will go away.
Just to let you all know that the archives from the old site are here. So far, I've published them back to the first of this year; the only things I'm leaving out are things like "Help me leave Blogspot" or "I'm moving" or something like that. MOST have categories that they are listed under as well, so you can cruise through some of my archived posts.
I don't know when I'll get the rest of the archives posted. They'd have posted automatically, but my default setting for new posts is "draft" rather than "publish." Oh, well.
Got this from The Daily Whim -- sort your iTunes list by title, then list one for each letter of the alphabet.
So here goes!!!
"100 Billion Watts" -- Smalltown Poets
"A Million Years" -- This Train
"Battle Hymn of the Republic" -- John McDermott
"Come Sail Away" -- Styx
"Double Shot (of My Baby's Love)" -- The Swinging Medallions
"Enter Sampson" -- ApologetiX
"First Redneck on the Internet" -- Cledus T. Judd
"Grapefruit Diet" -- Weird Al Yankovic
"Hero" -- Steve Taylor
"I Can't Dance" -- Genesis
"Jesus Freak" -- dcTalk
NO K!! I need to fix that ....
"Little Drummer Boy" -- Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
"Mamma Rap" -- Dead Alewives
"Never Underestimate my Jesus" -- Reliant K
"Oh Holy Night" -- Trans-Siberian Railroad
"Pipe Dreams" -- Project 86
"Quack Quack" -- The Wiggles (I have a three-year-old!!)
"Rusty Chevrolet" -- Da Yoopers
"Screen Door" -- Rich Mullins
"They're Rioting in Africa" -- The Kingston Trio
"Until Then" -- New Life
"Veggie Tales Theme -- Techno Remix" -- Veggie Tales
"We're Getting Nowhere Fast" -- This Train
NO X
"You Can't Rollerskate in a Buffalo Herd" -- Roger Miller
NO Z.
So there's my list. What does YOURS look like??
We here at View from the Pew realize that it is better to recontextualize transparently than to redefine cyber-holisticly. The re-sizing factor is dynamic. Think vertical. We pride ourselves not only on our feature set, but our non-complex administration and non-complex operation. We apply the proverb "When the cat's away, the mice will play" not only to our Total Quality Control but our capacity to deploy. We invariably strategize front-end partnerships. That is an amazing achievement taking into account today's conditions! If all of this sounds dumbfounding to you, that's because it is! The power to enhance virtually leads to the aptitude to transition globally. Quick: do you have a compelling plan for handling emerging infrastructures? The metrics for convergence are more well-understood if they are not virally-distributed.
Generate your own at http://www.andrewdavidson.com/gibberish/
God is moving throughout the world! Last night I was privileged to witness 12 of those blessings. At my mother's church in Lynchburg, VA, I saw a concert by Children of the World. They wore traditional costumes of their countries and sang in different languages. You could see God's mercy on each beautiful face.
Each child is a professing Christain. Most live in children's homes in their native land. Some have been able to remain with their families by sponsorship through WorldHelp. They are absolutely FILLED with the Joy of the Lord.
I will admit to being a little partial to this charity. It is based in Forest, VA. It's offices were 30 feet away from where I used to work. I have seen it grow from 3 or 4 people to a major mission thrust. They are doing it for all the right reasons.
My Challenge to You: Please pray for this group of evangelical Christians. If you can do more, please do. You can schedule a Children of the World concert, listen to mp3s of their music and buy merchandise from their website at www.worldhelp.net They have sponsorships for $24 per month and an Education Fund designed to send these kids and others like them to college to become missionaries, doctors, nurses, teachers and pastors. Please do as the Lord leads. I assure you they keep their overhead to a minimum and are some of the finest Christians I have ever met.
May God continue to bless His church around the world!
Another repost, but this time it's timely. David over at Jollyblogger has posted You Might be a Presbyterian If ... and has challenged the rest of the blogosphere (or at least our part of it) to follow suit. I like his take on Baptists in that post (he used to be onw, after all), but a while back I added these:
* If you believe that Jesus fed 5,000 people with catfish and hushpuppies, you might be a Baptist.
* If you have never sung the third verse to any hymn in the hymnal, you might be a Baptist.
* If the first question you ask a pastoral candidate is, "Do you like chicken?" and question his salvation if he answers "No," you might be a Baptist.
* If you've ever collected an offering using Kentucky Fried Chicken buckets, you might be a Baptist.
* If you think that a Biblical benediction is seventeen verses of "Just As I Am," you might be a Baptist.
* If, when someone says "AMEN" during a sermon, you look around to see who the visitor is, you might be a Baptist.
* If your definition of "fellowship" involves fried chicken and sweet tea, you might be a Baptist.
* If you believe that the Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be potluck, and leave instructions in your will to be burried with a covered dish, you might be a Baptist.
* If you have a bumper sticker on your car that says, "In the event of Rapture, this car will be unmanned," you might be a Baptist.
Credit for some of these should probably go to Grif.net, though I'm really not sure which ones -- that's the one place I know I've seen a list like this before.
I passed 10,000 hits the other day. Unfortunately, it was on my old blog.
Many of those hits are because of Google searches that turn up things in the archives. I'm going to change my title banner a little bit so that it lets people know that the page has moved here, so that should help.
A LOT of the traffic to the old blog is because people haven't changed their blogrolls. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE change the link on your blogrolls, aggregators, whatever else I'm on, to http://pewview.mu.nu. That way, I'll actually get the traffic that you are so kindly sending my way. Thank you!!
There is a petition to ban the Internet.
Online.
Savor the irony of that for just a moment.
Someone called the UCAWWW has decided that the Internet is the source for all that is wrong with the world.
Our children are being exposed to filth that causes sexual tendencies and drug addiction. We therefore, demand that the internet be permanently banned from American homes. We MUST restore faith in God and steer clear of the devil!WHAT in the WORLD did we do before the Internet? What did we blame all our problems on?
TV
Radio
Minstrel shows and Vaudeville.
What came before that? This is just the latest in a LOOOOONG line of humanity refusing to take responsibility for their own actions. Where did it start?
Adam and Eve. Look at Genesis 3.
God: Adam, did you eat the ONE THING I told you not to eat?
Adam: uuuuuuh... It was HER fault! That woman you gave me tricked me into eating it. She GAVE it to me, after all!
God: Eve, what do you have to say for yourself?
Eve: Uhhhh... it was the SNAKE. The SNAKE tricked me!!!!
God: (to himself) So she got tricked because she trusted a talking snake. Maybe I shouldn't have made her blond.
So why do we do it? Because we all mess up, and we don't want to admit it. Because to admit it would mean that we need help to fix things, and that would lead to Someone who DOESN'T mess up, and that would mean God, and THAT just totally cramps our style. If I believe in God, next thing you know I'll be worshipping Him, and wanting to serve Him, and then I won't be able to play golf on Sunday mornings anymore.
So we decide that we aren't so bad, and when we DO mess up it's because of the TV or the radio or the Internet or those evil books or those godforsaken public schools or the Communists or the Secular Humanists or the .......
{tip o' the hat to Mark Lawson over at PCCBoard for this one}
{UPDATE: After digging, this looks as if it may possibly be (OK, I'm 100% it is) a satyrical look at the evangelical habit of boycotting things. Look at the "interview" here. I am usually NOT the one taken in by this kind of thing -- usually, I'm the one doing the taking in, truth be told. But I got suckered. I thought about taking this down completely, but the RSS feed already has it, so it's staying as a reminder that I can be gullable at times, too.}
Yes, I have succumbed. If you haven't noticed yet, there is a flickr box on the right sidebar. Right now, you can see pictures of my daughter's first dance recital, my daughter and me playing the guitar together, and my wife and daughter on the way to this year's prom (we chaperoned).
You won't see many shots of me, because I take most of the pictures. You WILL see lots of pictures of my daughter, because ... I take most of the pictures.
I'll add to it as I feel inclined.
This is one of those posts that is hard to categorize, so I've dumped it into everything else. It's a little bit Intolerant Tolerance, but it's also a little bit Theology, but it doesn't really fit into those categories at all.
A bunch of us from Mind and Media have joined Blogcritics. Seems to be a perfect fit -- they review books, so do we. Match made in Heaven, right?
Not exactly. In fact, quite a few of the members of Blogcritics were none too happy to see their site "overrun" by a bunch of "fundamentalists." And they made it clear to us in their comments on our reviews.
What do you do in this situation? How can we be salt and light to a group of people who want neither -- or see no need for either? I see three options:
1. Get mad right back at them. Match them attitude for attitude, invective for invective. Call names, question parentage.
Obviously not the best option if the goal is actually having them read you and think about what you've written. I admit, I've done this in other venues, and it does have a sort of hgih to it, as the adrenaline starts pumping and you wait for your opponent's next post. But nobody ever really changes their minds in a "discussion" like this, AND it feeds the stereotype of evangelical Christians as "intolerant bigots" who think that they're always right.
2. Leave. "I don't have to put up with this garbage. You all aren't worth the trouble." OR "I'm in over my head. I need to learn some more before I can hang here." Or any number of other reasons.
This is honorable, to an extent. But it does give "them" a victory -- one more fundamentalist that they've run off from their turf. But we don't have to put up with that kind of garbage.
3. Stick around, pick your battles. Make your stand on ground that matters, but don't let that be your only point of interaction. You have other interests -- use them. Post reviews about the last Grisham novel, or the DVD you just bought. Once people see that we're actually human, they can deal a little better with the fact that we're humans with different theological beliefs.
This is the path I'm following. After a big exchange on the Blogcritics Yahoo! group, I posted a short note defending myself, and others. So far, it's been received better than I expected (and the adversarial side of me was itching for a fight, too!). People there can be reasonable -- they just don't want to be beaten over the head with the Bible. I think I can understand that.
Christianity is a LOT more attractive to others when they realize that we're actual people, and not theo-bots on a mission to rule the world. Take a stand on the Truth that we believe in. But show the rest of your personality. Who knows, your next friend might just be an agnostic former Buddhist from Jersey or something.
I have no idea what to write today, other than to let you know that I've got another review (actually two) at Blogcritics. And the KJVO review has generated a little bit of discussion (more than most of my posts at my own blog -- hmmm). So go over there and read -- and respond!
The real reason for this post is to take a trip back in time. One year ago today, what was I writing about? I was trying to refute the whole "all evangelicals are Reconstructionists" insanity (and probably doing a bad job of it), and I was confounded by the insanity of Christian secessionists who wanted to spark secession by one or two states. I had made a minor change to the blog template (not many people noticed...). But I was also busy wishing Nick Queen a happy birthday. Hmmm. If that was a year ago today -- that means it's Nick's birthday again!!!
Head over to his blog and wish him a happy birthday. Tell him I sent you!
From Rebecca Writes, via Challies.com.
What books are on my desk? Well, my desk is almost too small for the computer I have on it, so I'm including what's stacked up next to it:
So what books are on YOUR desk?
I am now a part of the vast cabal known as Blogcritics. My first post is right here, so go over there and read it, and comment!!
If you blog, and you review things like books or music, or even movies, Blogcritics is the place YOU need to be. Why not apply?
| What military aircraft are you? F/A-22 Raptor You are an F/A-22. You are technologically inclined, and though you've never been tested in combat, your very name is feared. You like noise, but prefer not to pollute any more than you have to. And you can move with the best.
|
| Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests. |
Hat tip to Scott at The Crusty Curmudgeon
I was memed a while ago, and haven't responded yet. I'm sure that Songstress thinks I've forgotten, but I haven't.
You have to pick out 5 different things that you could be from the list below. So here goes:
If I could be a chef ... I'd create recipes that were fun AND affordable, with ingredients that everyone can have or easilly obtain.
If I could be a musician ... I'd bring back the creaming guitar solo!
If I could be a librarian ... I'd have to work at a huge library, or I'd be forever buying books to add to the stacks. One thing that irritates me more than anything -- a small library.
If I could be a linguist ... I'd LOVE studying the differences and similarities in ancient languages, and looking into how each changed and developed over time.
If I could be a writer ... I'd finally write the time-travel novel I've had rolling around in my mind for the past two years.
So NOW I have to tag three people, and add a "If I could be a" of my own. Hmmmmmmm. Scott, Rebecca, and Bobby, you're all TAGGED!!!!
If I could be a scientist...
If I could be a farmer...
If I could be a musician...
If I could be a doctor...
If I could be a painter...
If I could be a gardener...
If I could be a missionary...
If I could be a chef...
If I could be an architect...
If I could be a linguist...
If I could be a psychologist...
If I could be a librarian...
If I could be an athlete...
If I could be a lawyer...
If I could be an innkeeper...
If I could be a professor...
If I could be a writer...
If I could be a llama-rider...
If I could be a bonnie pirate...
If I could be a servicemember...
If I could be a photographer...
If I could be a three-year-old ... (That's mine!!)
I'm changing the blogroll. Some entries are going to be leaving -- NOT because I don't read the blog anymore, not because I don't like them, but because my blogroll is too darn big. The only blogs that will stay on there are blogs that I read every single day, either through RSS feed or by visiting the site itself.
Some blogs that aren't there may show up. I'm going to TRY to limit myself to ten to twenty blogs that are listed there -- right now, there are 51 blogs in my blogroll.
BIG thank yous going out to Amy from Prochein Amy for her work on the new graphics for the new site. She sent me a bunch of potential title graphics, and I picked the one you now see at the top of the page.
She's also working on some sidebar graphics that will replace the titles that are there right now -- I'll be getting those up later on. So head over to her blog and tell her how much these new graphics rock!
I've been given some GREAT looking graphics for use on the site. I'm going to start testing them out tomorrow. I was GOING to do it tonight, but I have a boatload of reading to do for Friday.
Regular blogging will begin here this weekend, once I'm done my finals. Mark study, the ecumenical councils study, and more. So stick around! It will be worth it -- promise.
{edit} I'm trying to decide whether to move the archives over or leave them at the old site. There are some posts I will move regardless -- the Mark study and the councils of the church posts for starters, plus a few of the old ones. There are some that I'd sooner forget ....
Still working on the new template. I'll probably go ahead and move in here, and stop posting at the BlogSpot blog.
I WILL be occupying this space -- promise!
It's the end of the semester at school, and I have a LOT of work to do in the next two weeks. AND I'm setting up a new template to celebrate my new home. I expect to be all moved in by mid-May.
Not for me, this time!
Mind and Media is looking for some bloggers who want to read and write about what they read.
It's really a great gig -- closest thing many of us will ever come to getting paid to blog. You volunteer to read a book, and blog about it. In exchange, you get a free book -- and rumor has it there may be other incentives down the road.
Crossway is using M&M, as is Baker, so you won't be getting self-published books from people you've never heard of. Check out the Mind and Media site to see what books are available.
If you're interested, head here and take the survey -- and tell them I sent you!
I got my first book today (as you can see over on the left side of the page), and I'll be doing a blog entry after each chapter, and one when I'm finished giving my overall impression of the book. I'm looking forward to this one!
Ok, I was looking through my referals and found that someone got here through a search for Chili Beef Ramen. Intrigued, I checked it out to see what other Ramen goodness I could find.
I struck Ramen gold. The Official Ramen Homepage has recipes and everything -- even dessert Ramen!! Go there and check it out -- you'll be glad you did.
Now I have to pick something out for lunch ...
{Edit: My wife has officially dubbed me Iron Chef Ramen. Food Network, here I come!}
Figured I'd post this one while everyone else was napping. TWO Ramen recipes for your culinary pleasure.
Chili Pepper Ramen -- Same as the Jerk Ramen, but substitute chili powder for the jerk seasoning, and add about a half-tablespoon of crushed red pepper close to the end, right before you take the noodles off the stove. NOT as spicy as you might think -- I may put in more chili powder next time.
Lemon Pepper Ramen -- I mentioned this in the comments to the Jerk Ramen recipe, but some of you may have missed it. Substitute lemon pepper seasoning (I used Kroger brand, but I'm sure McCormicks makes it as well) for the jerk seasoning. It tastes great!
Stay tuned -- who knows what Ramen madness I will experiment with next!!!
Thursday, March 31, 2005 marks my one-year blogiversary.
Wow. One year of inflicting my rantings, opinions, and insights-of-dubious-value on unsuspecting readers all over the world. And I do mean all over the world. I think the one thing that has shocked me the most is how many different countries have been represented by visitors to my blog. Obviously, the US and Canada are the most represented, but I've had visitors from as far away as Australia (82) and the UK (162). Kazakhstan, Taiwan, Iran(!), Cote D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) -- 77 different countries all together.
I've been King of the Blogs. I've been in Carnivals and Symphonies. I've been in heated discussions with people I'll never meet. And I've made some friends -- even though I've never seen most of them in real life.
I've noticed that I write more now than I used to. I say more now in one day than I said in a week back in the "old days." I think that isn't going to continue as a trend -- otherwise, my blog will be huge, and nobody will read it anymore.
So, if you want to wish me a Happy Blogoversary, leave me a comment. Better still, buy me something off my Amazon wish list! (hehehe)
There ARE some cheap things on there. Really.
LSU 90
LU 48
LU is still winless against Southeastern Conference teams, but they are still riding high on the heels of a school-first Sweet Sixteen appearance.
Nobody expected them to get this far. In fact, I sometimes wonder if anyone realized that Liberty's women's basketball team had been so dominant in the Big South for the past nine years. And other people question whether any conservative Christian could support women's sports.
Does that sound stupid? It did to me, too. And after I read this article by Mechelle Voepel at ESPN.com, it still sounds stupid.
Apparantly, you have to be in favor of extreme feminism and gay rights to really be in favor of women's sports. And the people who are involved in women's sports apparantly are far more tolerant than Jerry Falwell -- unless, of course, you ask them to tolerate Jerry Falwell. That's just crossing the line, and Voepel won't go there.
And I am FAR from thinking that the majority of fans agree with her. I think the achievements of the LU women's team shows that there are very talented women out there who want to go to a Christian school. Maybe the reason that LU was as big a success as they have been for thepast several years is that there are women who want ot play somewhere where those political opinions aren't an issue -- where people aren't constantly insulting their Christian beliefs. I find it interesting that the Baylor team, which is seeded #2 this year in the Tempe region, is not held to this same criticism. They are still a Southern Baptist school, and the SBC is as notorious in it's "intolerance" as Jerry Falwell is.
I guess all the weight that Jerry has put on has made him an even bigger target than he was before. And I guess that no matter what the women at Liberty achieve, on and off the court, they will always have to deal with the type of intolerance that Voepel displays, that suggests that anyone who doesn't accept "gay people and lesbians (both of whom are a significant part of women's basketball)" is less than acceptable in NCAA womens sports.
So Mechelle Voepel, you are the second person to win the coveted Pewie Award for Conspicuous Intolerant Tolerance. Congratulations.
Today is the day that Christians remember the day that Christ died. It seems that, especially in recent years, Good Friday has stayed a religious holiday while Easter Sunday has been completely commercialized.
Even so, it's easy to miss the importance of the event. In the rush to Easter,and the preparations for cantatas and Passion plays, not to mention the Easter Bunny pereperations, it's very easy to lose focus.
One thing I have tried to do consistently each year for the past five or so is to read and contemplate this. It's a medical account of the crucifixion of Christ that first appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association. I have seen this in several places on the internet, but this site is probably the most complete -- includes illustrations and everything. It has certainly helped keep me focused on the meaning of this season.
This year, more people are focusing on Christ's death because of the movie The Passion of the Christ. I am hoping that those people will discover the good news -- Christ's resurrection on Sunday.
I've been revisiting my undergraduate days lately, and eating Ramen noodles for lunch. Problem is, Ramen noodles are boring. I'm not a boring person.
So I kick my Ramen up a notch or two. Here's a great recipe for Ramen that I just might send to the Carnival of Recipes this week.
Kicked Up Jerky Ramen
Ingredients:
1 package Chicken-flavored Ramen noodles
2 tblspn Carribean Jerk Seasoning (I sometimes use more, it all depends)
Boil 2 cups of water. Add noodle mix. Slowly add seasoning as noodles boil -- only add 1 tblspn before you add the chicken seasoning.
After three minutes (may vary, depending on how al dente you like your Ramen), turn off the heat. Add chicken seasoning packet and the rest of the jerk seasoning. Stir and eat.
For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me."For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. (1Co 11:23-26 ESV)Maundy Thursday is the traditional celebration of the day that Jesus shared His final Passover with His disciples. We actually get the name from the Latin phrase mandatum novum, which means "new commandment," in recognition of Christ instituting the New Testament of His blood.
In the Middle Ages, Maundy Thursday services included the washing of feet, in commemoration of Christ washing His disciples' feet at the Last Supper.
Unfortunately, most Protestant churches have lost the celebration of Maundy Thursday. We've tried so hard to distinguish ourselves from the Roman Catholic church that we've done away with the good as well as the bad. I think that a Maundy or Holy Thursday service, focused on partaking of the Lord's Supper, would be an outstanding way to focus people on what exactly this season is all about. Especially in our consumeristic age, it would do us good to remember exactly what these holidays (which are holy days, after all) are celebrated for, and to remember that Christians celebrated the resurrection of Christ long before there was an Easter Bunny or Paas egg coloring kits.
... I decided to cruise through my blogroll, looking at some blogs that I normally read through my RSS reader, and some I hadn't been to in a while.
This post touched me. Especially this quote:
So what is a Christian to do? One answer seems to be that we eschew the entire mess and crawl into an enclave somewhere. We only buy from companies that have a fish symbol on their logos. We homeschool our kids. We get rid of the television. We only listen to Christian radio and Christian music. We isolate. This is the Protestant form of monasticism.This, I think, sums up the problem with American Christianity. It's an option, not a lifestyle. We live in the buffet line -- a little of this, a little of that, a side order of Jesus and some fries. There is no committment at all. There's no walk, and if you're paying any price for your faith you're probably one of those "fanatics" that the talk shows make fun of so much.Another answer is to try to blend in. Dress, shop, talk, act like them but all the while we have a secret joy in our hearts. We can make our churches compete with whatever they have going on a Sunday AM or Saturday night or whatever. Worship as concert, preacher as entertainer.
The most common way is neither of those, as surprising as that seems. The most common way amongst American Christians is to just live in the midst of it as if it is all normal. Oh sure, we'll avoid Abercrombie and Fitch because they're immoral. We don't listen to rap or heavy metal but K-LITE radio is fine, nothing there is too offensive. We shop just like everyone else: we shop as if owning stuff defines us. Jesus is a option in the American lifestyle. A little Blockbuster, some Claire's, a touch of Pier One, gotta have some Gap then sprinkle it with Jesus when we get home.
The disciples understood what following Jesus meant. They were in this for the long haul, even though they had their "down moments" when they lost sight of what Christ was teaching them. But when they were powered by the Holy Spirit, there was nothing they couldn't do -- or weren't willing to do. They all paid the ultimate price -- they died. Even John, who simply died of old age by most accounts, spent his last years in prison. But it was worth it to them.
What are we willing to sacrifice for our faith? Many of us aren't even willing to miss the Super Bowl for a church service. Can you imagine what would happen if the Christians in the United States got serious about their faith?
Lightning has struck twice. The Lady Flames are going to the Sweet Sixteen.
My favorite stat -- 21/21 from the line vs. 13/18 for DePaul. That could have made the difference. One or two misses from Liberty, and more made for DePaul, and it's a different ballgame. But the Lady Flames won it.
And now they have to face #1 LSU. The nice thing is, there's no pressure on LU. They're not supposed to be there. LSU isn't supposed to lose.
So we got Duke and the Great Pie War from my Mom today. Halfway through, I'm a little disappointed, and a little upset.
Story of Moses -- Miriam is an irresponsible kid who leaves her brother in the river because she has to get out to let the princess swim. TOTAL mischaracterization of Miriam, and a rather large rewrite of the story. All to make it fit with the theme -- loving your family.
Seems to me they could have done the story right, and still made it fit the theme. And it seems like they are simply tacking a Bible story on with the video anymore -- the Bible isn't the focus. Maybe that's to make the videos more "accessible" to "main stream culture," I don't know. I'm not thrilled.
That said, the "main story" is (so far) pretty good. Overall, I'd give this one a 8 out of 10. (Jonah was a 10, The Ballad of Little Joe was a 9.5, just for comparison purposes.) Once I finish watching the movie, I'll talk a little more about it -- I'll just edit this post.
{Edit} == OK, now that I've seen the whole thing, it's pretty clear that the "main story" is Ruth and Boaz. That's what I get for starting my review while Larry Sings the Blues is still on. And that segment was pretty good, but the old Silly Songs were funnier. And I still don't like the characterization of Miriam. I have edited my original rating from 7.5 to 8. I definitely recommend watching the video with the director's commentary.
My best efforts failed me. Well, I can't really say they were my best efforts, but in any case, I didn't get the crown back. Congrats to the new King of the Blogs, GMs Corner. I didn't even get close this time -- I came in dead last.
Voting wouldn't have saved me. Trackbacks wouldn't have saved me. The new layout would probably have saved me -- I got gigged for my site design by one of the judges.
But it's a fun competition -- I encourage everyone to try it out. If nothing else, you get blog hits from it, and maybe some new readers.
I get a lot of grief at times about my love for history. Not even just church history -- that has only started in the past five years or so. I've always loved history. People wonder what good it could possibly be to read things written by dead men. A quote from Andrew Fuller:
It becomes Christians to bear positive good-will to their country, and to its government, considered as government, irrespective of the political party which may have the ascendency. We may have our preferences, and that without blame; but they ought never to prevent a cheerful obedience to the laws, a respectful demeanour towards those who frame and those who execute them, or a ready co-operation in every measure which the being or well-being of the nation may require.That's from a sermon that he delivered over 200 years ago, when Britain was at war with France. It is no less true today.
Of course, Fuller was a Baptist, so that automatically disqualifies him from having anything relevent to say politically, right? Especially from the pulpit, and especially if it's motivated by Scripture, right? Isn't that what Americans United teaches us?
The Feast Day of St. Patrick. Today is known more now for drunken revelry than any celebration of the actual life of St. Patrick, so I figured I'd post something historical and devotional -- even though most scholars say that it's too late for it to be attributed to Patrick. It definitely reflects his spirituality, and so I include it today. Besides, it's an awesome example of devotional poetry, and I think more people need to know about it.
There are a number of great translations available; I've chosen the one I found here, since it seems the most complete. It also begins "I bind unto myself" rather than "I rise today" -- the more accurate translation.
The strong name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
I bind this day to me for ever,
By power of faith, Christ's Incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan River;
His death on cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom;
I bind unto myself today.
I bind unto myself the power
Of the great love of the Cherubim;
The sweet 'Well done' in judgment hour;
The service of the Seraphim,
Confessors' faith, Apostles' word,
The Patriarchs' prayers, the Prophets' scrolls,
All good deeds done unto the Lord,
And purity of virgin souls.
I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the starlit heaven,
The glorious sun's life-giving ray,
The whiteness of the moon at even,
The flashing of the lightning free,
The whirling wind's tempestuous shocks,
The stable earth, the deep salt sea,
Around the old eternal rocks.
I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, his shield to ward,
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.
Against the demon snares of sin,
The vice that gives temptation force,
The natural lusts that war within,
The hostile men that mar my course;
Or few or many, far or nigh,
In every place and in all hours
Against their fierce hostility,
I bind to me these holy powers.
Against all Satan's spells and wiles,
Against false words of heresy,
Against the knowledge that defiles,
Against the heart's idolatry,
Against the wizard's evil craft,
Against the death-wound and the burning
The choking wave and the poisoned shaft,
Protect me, Christ, till thy returning.
Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.
I bind unto myself the name,
The strong name of the Trinity;
By invocation of the same.
The Three in One, and One in Three,
Of whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
salvation is of Christ the Lord.
We need to bind to ourselves daily the power of God. Patrick is claiming the power of God on his life, to protect and sustain him through any difficulty. And Patrick had difficulty in his life and ministry. According to legend, Patrick used this prayer (or lorica) to excape druids who were trying to kill him. As he passed, all the druids saw was a deer -- for this reason, the breastplate has also been called The Deer's Cry. The dating of the prayer makes this story a bit of a problem (since it claims to have been written "in the time of Loeghaire, son of Niall," which puts it well after the time of Patrick. It is obvious, though, from a study of his life that St. Patrick was protected time and again by God.
{edit}For a great biographical sketch of Patrick, go here.
And I'm NOT talking about the Cap'n, either. I'm getting clobbered in the KotB voting, and though I didn't need those points in the past, I WANT them this time. I lost the last time by something like a half a point, so I want some cushion.
So I come to YOU, my loyal readers, with hat in hand, to ask, implore, and otherwise BEG you to go to the KotB site and vote for me. AND post something nice about me on your blog, and trackback to this post (the trackback is http://blog.mu.nu/cgi/mt-tb.cgi/70912, just to make it easy on you all).
Make me the first King to ever serve two non-consecutive terms. Just like my idol, Grover Cleveland.
He WAS the guy on Sesame Street, right?
So, I'm planning this dinner party to celebrate my return to the KotB competition (a la Teddy Roosevelt) and my subsequent victory (a la Grover Cleveland). And I'm going to invite a few people, and we're going to have a great time -- dinner, conversation, dessert, all that. Now all I have to do is figure out who to invite. . .
I'd invite Songstress, but I'll probably be serving one of her recipes, and I know it won't be nearly as good as it is when she makes it at home. Pietro is probably working late to keep us all safe, or he'd be a definite invite. Harvey isn't judging anymore, but I'd invite him just for the chicks he'd draw. And I need to kiss up to the new guy (who is a new addition to my blogroll, by the way!), so the Ogre would be at the top of the list, too. And you know, they all deserve to be there. But having them all over to my place, and feeding them the wonderful cuisine that my wife and I can prepare would be just SOOOOO unfair to the other pretenders .... Heck, I'll do it anyway. Oh. We only have place-settings for four. Sorry guys. Maybe after I win the crown, we'll go buy some more Chinet.
Let's face it; the point of this dinner is networking. I want to get attention and hits. Who should I invite? The man who wrote the book on blogging, of course -- Hugh Hewitt himself. Pointers AND probably a link -- what could be better?
Since this is clearly fiction (like Hugh Hewitt would show up at my house for dinner. He can get beanie weenies anywhere!), and since I'm really looking for some publicity, I'd probably get in touch with the guy who came up with Apple's 1984 commercial. Think about it -- the commercial says nothing, never even shows you what it's advertizing, and 20 years later is still shown every time they talk about Super Bowl commercials. This guy is a genius -- if he could con people into buying Macintosh computers, he can get people to read my blog.
I've got one more place setting left (unless you count the Dora the Explorer bowl, cup, and silverware as a place setting), so I'm going to go all out and pick someone unexpected. Someone who has never heard of a blog, but would have put them to great use if they had been available in his time -- Thomas Payne. Yea, I don't agree with his outlook on everything -- he's a deist, after all -- but can you imagine what he'd have done with the Internet and a blog? Even the Instapundit his own self would be playing second fiddle to Payne.
And of course they would all tell me how fitting it is for me to be the first King to leave the throne and then return, just like Arthur.
This has been a hectic week, with midterms coming up at school and everything, so I've been abit slack. NOT all of it is my fault, though -- had a great post done on the Ten Commandments, and Blogger ate it. I was so frustrated that I stopped and went to sleep. Maybe I'll repost it this weekend.
I plan on having something up this evening; I have two or three things rolling around in my head, and I still have to do some more on the Mark study.
Just got back from hearing David Ring at First Baptist Ironton, OH. If you EVER think that you can't do something God has called you to do, or start feeling sorry for yourself because of some problems you are facing, go hear him speak. In fact, even if you don't ever feel that way, you should hear him speak anyway.
From the website:
Few individuals have felt the crushing blows that have besieged David Ring since birth. He was born to lose. On October 28, 1953, in Jonesboro, Arkansas, David was born with cerebral palsy. Orphaned at age 14, he was cast about from family to family, with nowhere to call home. He endured constant physical pain, humiliating public ridicule and constant discouragement. Yet in the face of these seemingly insurmountable obstacles, David emerged not victimized...but victorious! Life was worse than hopeless to him until his relationship began with Jesus Christ who taught him self respect and an acceptance of his physical challenges. To most, physical challenges of this magnitude would prove to be a tombstone. For David, his coming of age was and remains a milestone.I've heard a lot of motivational speakers in my life. David Ring is the best. And as far as preaching goes -- there's not a lot of theology in his message, but you will leave revived and ready to do whatever you are called on by God to do. And every time you come up with an excuse to NOT do something, you'll hear David Ring in the back of your head, prodding you. "I have cerebral palsey -- what's your excuse?"
It sure has taken them long enough!!
And it's a pretty fair assesment of the religious blogosphere, including references to Jewish, Muslim, and Mormon blogs in addition to the Catholic and Protestant blogs.
SmartChristian gets a plug for GodBlogCon2005, meeting at Biola this year. WISH I could go, but it's going to be in the middle of school season, so I'll either be teaching (actually substituting) or in class myself at Southern. Maybe next year.
Joe Carter is mentioned, of course, as is Blogs4God.
Head over there and read it -- encourage the NYT to interact with our community!
I'm being interviewed by Nick at NickQueen.com (formerly Patriot Paradox). If YOU want to be interviewed HERE, leave me a comment, and I'll ask the questions -- I'm taking the first three. Answer them on your site, and offer to interview people too!
I'd describe myself as a complete geek. Roleplaying games (pencil and paper with real dice, thankyouverymuch), Star Trek (all of them!), computers, the works. I'm also a devout reader -- given a choice between reading and watching a movie, I'll read any day. I'm also devoted to my family, especially my daughter.
My wife would say about the same thing, but she'd probably add something about how obnoxious I can be, and also how lazy I can be.
hmmmmmmmmm.
Q. How many KJVOnlies does it take to change a light bulb?
A. "That's the problem with these liberals today. They want you to think that that light bulb -- the one that was good enough for Paul and Barnabas, needs to be changed. They want to take away your light, friends! WHy, I was in the hardware store the other day, and you should have SEEN the number of different light bulbs that they had there. You know why they want you to change that bulb? It's simple -- money. Not ME, friend! I'm NOT CHANGIN' that old light bulb."
My very first job, I worked at a kennel. BIG one, had something like five different buildings for the dogs to stay in. 8 AM every day, I was there shovelling out what the dogs had done the night before. Did that until noon. THEN we had to walk the dogs. ALL AFTERNOON. The walking wasn't bad -- it was the cleanup in the morning that really got to me.
To the poor, twisted individual who ended up here after searching for Christians and Speedos in Yahoo. I don't know what you expected, but I know you didn't get it here. It frigtens me that you might have found it somewhere else ...
... the more they stay the same. Consider this quote, taken from Andrew Fuller's letter to the chairman of the East Inia Company concerning Christian missionaries in India:
I have observed with pain, sir, of late years, a notion of toleration, entertained even by some who would be thought its firmest advocates, which tends not only to abridge, but to subvert it. They have no objection to Christians of any denomination enjoying their own opinions, and, it may be, their own worship; but they must not be allowed to make proselytes. ... They do not propose to persecute the Christians of India, provide they would keep their Christianity to themselves; but those who attempt to convert others are to be exterminated. Sir, I need not say to you that this is not toleration, but persecution.This was written in 1807, when the East India Company was protesting the missionaries in India -- accusing them of fomenting revolution and rebellion after some of the company's sepoy troops mutinied. Thomas Twining, of the famous tea Twining family, wrote to the chairman of the East India Company urging him to not allow missionary activity in India any longer. British Baptist missions were under attack, and unjustly so.
But it could have easilly been written yesterday. As long as Christians keep our faith to ourselves, we are allowed to exist. When we start obeying the command of Christ to teach the nations to obey His commands, we need to be eliminated. In many parts of the world, Christians are eliminated in the most precise meaning of that word; they are killed. We have not reached that point in the US yet, though many things I have read on the Internet show me that many people are not opposed to that idea at all. Here, we are told simply that our beliefs have no place in the public forum, since they are religious in nature.
This is not tolerance. This is not simply an issue that Christians should be involved in. This is an issue that people who are interested in true tolerance of all beliefs should pay attention to, and protest against.
Everyone is taking this Geek test. I rated a 46%, Geek Interpreter, and I wanted a second opinion, so I went here. There I scored 44%, Major Geek. I think the Innergeek test is more comprehensive, but they both seem pretty good.
Surfing aimlessly through the BlogExplosion links so I can get some more visitors gives me a lot of time to ponder the State of the Blogosphere. Since I AM in the running for the King of the Blogs crown, I figured I'd issue a State of the Blogosphere Address.
Ahem.
My fellow blogospherians (like that word? Me too. Think I'll keep using it.). The blogosphere is a huge place, and each of us is trying to carve out our own little space in it. I have been roaming my (future) kingdom, and several things have attracted my attention...
And now, the State of the Pew:
Actually, I've got some great suggestions out of the KotB competition, so even if I don't win, it's been worth it. I'm going to have to do something about the overall design of the site, and improve my CSS abilities. I was hoping to do it over Christmas, but I don't know if I will or not. Soon, though -- promise.
Next week will be in Florida on the 2004 Kelly Family Christmas Tour, so the blogging will be done through the laptop (not quite Lappy 486 vintage, but close). The Faith - Reason series will continue, as will TWiCH and the Mark study.
Let me know if you know of any worthwhile blogs that should be in the blogroll. I'm about to prune it again, and I don't just want to get rid of stuff -- I want to get some new stuff. I've already added a few from my BlogExplosion roaming (see, it DOES work).
I mentioned this in another post, but I wanted to elaborate a little bit. I was inspired by this at Wheat and Chaff and this at the Evangelical Outpost. Both make great points.
I am sick of the commercialization and secularization of Christmas. I worked retail, and spent a LONG time actually dreading the Christmas season, simply because of the long hours, the bad attitudes, and the stress. Now that I'm out of retail, I'm getting better, but it still takes me until December 23 to really get into Christmas. Of course, the Christmas spirit usually lasts me until after my birthday (January 26 -- put it on your calendars now!!), so maybe I should observe the Orthodox Christmas on January 6.
Maybe we all should. All Christians, I mean. Let the secularists and the rest of the world have their holiday in December. They can call it Santaday, or something like that. Even call it Yule -- I don't care. They can celebrate it on December 25. Have their truely secular holiday.
We can still participate in it -- that's the beauty of the idea. We can still, if we want to, go out and spend ourselves into a huge debt buying things for everyone so they can exchange them on the 26th for what they really want. But on January 6, we have Christmas to do what you are supposed to do on Christmas -- celebrate the birth of our Savior.
I found it interesting that Christmas wasn't on December 25 until about 350 AD. Before then, the birth of Christ was supposed to be celebrated by a solemn feast. We've lost the solemnity of the day.
I doubt we'll ever change the day we celebrate Christmas. But maybe we should think seriously about celebrating it our way. Buy presents for people -- but don't blow the budget for the next two years. Decorate -- but don't take out a substation with all the lights you put out. And maybe, when we remember that Christmas celebrates the day when God, in His infinite mercy, sent His Son with the ultimate goal of dying in our place, for our sins, we'll remember the true meaning of Christmas AND of Easter. Because when we look at the manger, we should see the cross as well. And we should never forget that without that baby in the manger, nothing that we can do could ever bring us closer to the goal of reconciliation with God. Not because of what we've done, but because of who He is. And maybe we'll remember what the last words Jesus spoke were:
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.And that's the true meaning of Christmas, Charlie Brown.
Acts 1:8, ESV
