it's Friday, so time for a tune. This time from that band that was too good to last, I just can't pronounce their name...
Am I boring you?
I could say more
we were destined for somewhere
but that was before you traded in your peace sign for a finger
And I don't believe it's the way you were raised
or the cards you were dealt
or a poor self-image
I think you love yourself too much
Just 'cuz it's Friday...good day to relax with some music from one of my favorite bands:
Listen carefully to what our Commander in Chief says...
Boise State University has turned down a request from veterans for a 21-gun salute on campus Monday to mark Veterans Day, saying it might scare bystanders still spooked by school shootings in other states.Translation: Administrators consider BSU students too stupid to read the flyers/signs/etc. that would be inevitably posted about the event.
The national symptoms roll on. The United States is in the middle of a portentous abandonment, rapid now, of the ideas that led to the founding of the country, and certainly of what were previously regarded as the purposes of a university. It is the strangest damned thing I have seen. Americas never lived up to its ideals—who or what does?—but it actually tried to and at least said it wanted to. Often it succeeded. Now it deliberately reverses all it stood for.
Curious. Usually it is a government that imposes control over the population. Extreme governments of the right seek absolute control over behavior, and those of the left, over thought. But it is usually the government.
Presbyterian Thoughts' Sabbath a'Brakel posts are always worth a read (and usually a re-read), but this one in particular struck me. I grant you, most of my friends (particularly those from #pros) will roll their eyes at the thought of me being this way. But believe it or not, I actually've been trying to live this way for awhile--I just never put it as well, or succienctly, as a'Brakel.
If you are desirous to live in peace:
(1) Crucify your desire for money, honor, and love; it is neither possible to have a peaceable heart nor to maintain such a disposition without self-denial.
(2) Keep to yourself and let others govern their own matters. Do not appoint yourself as a detective and judge concerning the deeds of others; close your ears for backbiters. Do not listen for what is being said about you. "A whisperer separateth chief friends" (Prov. 16:28); "Where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth" (Prov. 26:20).
(3) Be always the least--both in your own eyes as well as in your conduct toward others. Endure being wronged, and forgive such deeds (Col. 3:13). In all things yield to the will of others insofar as this is not contrary to the will of God.
(4) If someone else encounters you in an unpleasant manner, or if you perceive the first motion of displeasure within yourself, arm yourself at once and resist strife at the very outset; be completely silent (IV: 100-101).
to Don and Manuela as they tie the knot today.
May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings, slow to make enemies and quick to make friends. And may you know nothing but happiness from this day forward.
A writer is somebody for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people.- Thomas Mann
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He's got radioactive blood |
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he really lets it down |
from msn:
Parents are taking a more active role in raising their children than they did a decade agoActive parenting? What is this world coming to?!?!
"Whether it’s a realistic panic or not, things like school shootings or child abductions or pedophile predators, that has a certain group of American parents pretty worried," said Angela Hattery, a sociology professor at Wake Forest University.
"We’ve really moved into this cultural expectation that this is what good parents do," Cooksey said. "It’s more a cultural consensus, that if we are going to be parents, we are going to have to put time into it."You have to put time into parenting? Why didn't somebody warn me? Is it too late to get out of this??!?!
After Betray-Rod's little stunt during Game 4 this weekend, Hank Steinbrenner asked, "Does he want to go into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee, or a Toledo Mud Hen?"
The Mud Hens jumped on that idea:
Dan Royer, a graphic designer for the team, created a mock Hall of Fame bust, with Rodriguez wearing a Toledo hat.
The Mud Hens also prepared a letter that they plan to mail to Rodriguez’s agent, Scott Boras.
Writing everyday is a way of keeping the engine running, and the something good may come out of it.- T. S. Eliot
Okay. It's November 1. The beginning of NaNoWriMo.
Wha?
That's National Novel Writing Month, for those who haven't heard of it before.
Because between co-rebuilding my marriage, homeschooling, holding a full-time job, my SAHD duties, etc. I don't have enough going on. So I've elected to write a 50,000 word novel between now and Nov. 30th (roughly 1667 words a day).
I'm such an idiot.
Nevertheless, I'm gonna give it a shot.
Feel free to ask me about it...as the NaNoWriMo Powers That Be say:
Tell everyone you know that you're writing a novel in November. This will pay big dividends in Week Two, when the only thing keeping you from quitting is the fear of looking pathetic in front of all the people who've had to hear about your novel for the past month. Seriously. Email them now about your awesome new book. The looming specter of personal humiliation is a very reliable muse.It's up to you now...make sure I feel the pressure :) You can visit my profile and track my progress, etc at http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/user/235890
Endurance finally paid off, and Netflix delivered Transformers this afternoon. This DVD is probably the best argument I've had for buying a plasma TV--my (very nice) laptop screen just didn't do it justice. The F/X were great--if Lucas had these tools back in the 70's...but I digress.
I absolutely understand all the great press LaBeouf got over the summer. Kid's good. Real good. (not that I'm going to run out and get the Even Stevens DVDs or anything. Didn't think any of the other performances were really stand out--pretty solid work throughout (no stinkers that I recall).
The catchphrase: "No sacrifice, no victory," isn't quite as catchy as "With great power comes great responsibility," but it works.
It's a fun action flick--nothing more, nothing less. Thankfully, that's all it sets out to be. Some laughs, some tension, lots of explosions, wicked cool robots. Worth watching if you like that kind of thing.
One thing the last few years have taught us is how vital comedy shows are to the political process. Which I think says a lot about our process...
ANYway...Ron Paul is going to be on the Tonight Show tomorrow, 10/30. So check your senses of humor at the door, and tune in!
Hope Dr. Paul's message gets out just a little further.
and because I'm not sure I've put the link up enough lately: http://www.ronpaul2008.com; http://www.ronpaul2008.com; http://www.ronpaul2008.com; and http://www.ronpaul2008.com!
While on hold today, I clicked on that link to your lower right that says "» Blogs that link here" and it pulled up the usual suspects--#prosapologian folks, the Real Life friend or two that still remembers my name...--and a something in German.
That, naturally, got my attention, (it was also the top entry). So I click on over. It takes me a couple of minutes to figure out what's going on, but I couldn't figure out why. This blog had taken my post about the last field trip, translated it into German and posted it there.
Huh?
One of my smarter-than-me friends explained it thusly: "its like some aggregator blog...pulling "excursion" and "travel" or something." And "a 'travel blog' in German...basically a clearing house for 'travel related' blog posts and screaming ads for pills."
Am not quite sure why anyone thinks that reading about my kids and a helicopter is going to make anyone want to buy Ciallis or Valium...but hey, more power to 'em, I guess.
it is not necessary for me to be rich, but it is necessary for me to make my peace with God; it s not necessary that I should live a pleasurable life in this world, but it is absolutely necessary that I should have pardon of my sin; it is not necessary that I should have honor and preferment, but it is necessary that I should have God as my portion, and have my part in Jesus Christ, it is necessary that my soul should be saved in the day of Jesus Christ. The other things are pretty fine indeed, and I should be glad if God would give me them, a fine house, and income, and clothes, and advancement for my wife and children: these are comfortable things, but they are not the necessary things; I may have these and yet perish for ever, but the other is absolutely necessary.
- Jeremiah Burroughs
For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
the Lord bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does he withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
blessed is the one who trusts in you!
- Psalm 84:10-12
Battlestar Galactica has pushed back it's final season to start in April rather than January.
Now, it's better than the geologic age that Sopranos fans had to endure between seasons, I realize. And it's almost guaranteed to be worth the wait. But that extra wait time...that's longer than a season for some USANetwork shows.
Maybe there's a support group I can join . . .
and thankfully, I don't have to, with people like my favorite critic Alan Sepinwall on the job and writing about my favorite comedy (and the genesis of my non-gay Zach Braff crush). His column about the Scrubs' premier tonight is so right that it's scary.
Because it debuted in the waning days of NBC's comedy empire (even briefly airing after "Friends," but so irregularly that it didn't help build an audience), overlapped with several other laugh track-free comedies that got bigger ratings and/or more award show love ("Malcolm in the Middle," "Arrested Development"), and comes to the end of its run with so many other shows having cribbed from it, "Scrubs" never got and probably never will get the credit it deserves. But at its best, it was as funny as any other comedy on television, as moving as any drama.
Few weeks back, Samwise gave his brother a Sea-Monkey Ocean Zoo for his birthday. Frodo's done much better with his Sea-Monkeys than I ever hoped to 20+ years ago. We've got quite the little colony of 'em going now--prolific little critters.
Couple days back, Frodo, TLomL and I are peeking in, and see a couple of them...um...being prolific. Reflexively, I start to worry. THAT question is just seconds away. What am I gonna say? Why haven't I gone to bed yet? It's after dinner, need to be sleeping...work's only a few hours away...
Thankfully, there's no need to fear. Frodo's uptightness saves me. The Sea-Monkeys came with a healthy dose of documentation--lots of tiny print, in red ink I believe. And Frodo loves instructions, warnings, whatever sort of documentation that comes with this toys, games, etc. Whether it be a FurReal pet, a MiltonBradley game, or the stupid little wind-up thing from a Burger King Kids Meal--he'll know it the way that I knew the liner notes to "Even Worse" in 1988. I swear, there are times he enjoys carrying around and reading the instructions to something more than the thing itself.
How's that help me? Well, somewhere in that tiny red print, it addresses the subject of reproduction and says "try to give them some privacy." So what's Frodo do? He quotes that to us (not really ordering us, merely letting the authority of the instructions weigh upon us) and turns and walks away, giving his little shrimp all the privacy they need.
Phew.
I'm assuming by now you've all heard that J. K. Rowling outed Dumbledore in Australia last week. Now obviously, I'm not going to be excited by this--but I'm not going to use this an excuse to rant about the morality of a fictional character. One of the strengths of the series was that every character was flawed, they all did heroic things (well, except You Know Who and some of his cohort), and they all acted foolishly and immorally. Dumbledore was no exception to this at all. So adding one more sin to his list really doesn't affect what I think of him.
And that's what bothers me the most about what Rowling did--it doesn't really add to, or detract from, the character. There's one attraction in his youth, apparently unrequited, which has really no affect whatsoever on the events in the series. So was this just Rowling needing to get her name in the headlines again? (not sure I buy that) Her trying to make some sort of political statement? (eh, maybe). I'm not sure, it seems so purposeless, senseless to do this.
Now, is Deckard a Replicant or not? That makes a difference. Is Hobbes really alive or a stuffed toy? That makes a difference. This? I just don't see how it matters. No more than knowing what third-world country Fez is from.
Then John C. Wright weighs in on the issue, and helps me see another problem with her announcement (Fabio Paolo Barbieri's comments are great, as well). Potter fans, take a second or and read 'em.
H/T: Thanks, bluewoad for catching the typo.
Some good TV news...Pushing Daisies gets a full season pickup! The Newton Kiss of Death fails again! (this could mean bad things for Chuck or The Reaper...gulp)
hey, while I'm talking about Daisies, anyone know what the deal is with Bryan Fuller and girls with guys' names? Dead Like Me had George, Daisies has Chuck (never watched Wonderfalls so I don't know if he did it there). I'm just curious....
...but it's darn close.
John Francis Daley joins the Bones cast tonight as a...couples counselor? Just what every forensic anthropologist and her FBI partner needs. Starting tonight with a 4-part arc that's going to become a recurring role, Daley's Dr. Lance Sweets, is apparently going to get the two leads to open up to each other.
I've got nothing against Daley--loved him in Freaks and Geeks, he was decent in Waiting. I liked the little shrink arc they did last year with Booth and Stephen Fry. But this is...pointless.
Bones has never been the best show on TV--or even on FOX--but it's been a solid, entertaining, show that brings me back week after week (heck, I even bought Max Allan Collins' tie-in novel--and would buy more). But this leaves me wondering if I'm seeing Booth shopping for waterskis next to those shark-infested waters.
"Lazy Sunday," this ain't. (Chronic(what?)cles of Narnia!) But, if you're jonesing for an Andy Samberg/Chris Parnell type joint, this'll do quite nicely.
hmmm, gotta see if I can get tiredofXX to do a John Owen rap with me...
I was waiting to download the pictures of this field trip before I blogged about it, sadly, all the pictures were blurry, of only a slice of someone's face, or both. So, I'll just write a little bit about it.
Friday, our field trip group went to check out Air St. Luke's, one of the local airborne medical transport companies. This was a great field trip. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming (which is pretty great considering more than a few were in the middle of a 24 hr shift). Gave us a pretty casual, but informative, tour of their facilities and one of their helicopters. The kids were able to crawl into the patient compartment, where an EMT talked to them about what happened there; and then the pilot showed them around the cockpit (each kid got to sit in the pilot seat for a few minutes). And unlike other field trips we've been on--no one seemed concerned the kids would break anything (considering we're talking a $7 million aircraft, that's pretty impressive). Then, on a whim, they took them over to the ambulance and another EMT talked them through that. All the kids had a blast--which was good considering the gray, cloudy, almost rainy mid-50's morning it was.
While the kids were checking out the helicopter, the other pilot called me over and asked me if I wanted to look at the engine. I have no idea why this happens to me (okay, not true, I know exactly why--I'm generally the only man in the group). Last year at the PBS station, the engineers called me over to look at a control panel none of the other parents/kids saw. This time it was the engine (looks smaller and wimpier than my wife's Mercury Villager's--which just made it all the more impressive, IMHO). While he was showing me the bonus stuff we were able to talk about homeschooling--the pilot's moving soon and there aren't any private school options like he enjoys where he is--challenges, benefits, regulations, etc. So we were both able to get something out of the day (I hope I helped him anyway).
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit
To God the Father, God the Son,
And God the Spirit, three in one,
Be honour, praise, and glory given,
By all on earth, and all in heaven.
Now the the Father, and the Son,
And Spirit be adored,
Where there are works to make him known,
Or saints to love the Lord.
Give to the Father praise,
Give glory to the Son,
And to the Spirit of his grace
Be equal honour done.
- Isaac Watts
We're 3 or 4 weeks into the new TV season, and I haven't uttered a word about it yet. I know you're all wondering what's up with that. Never fear, here's my run-down of this year's crop (minus Scrubs which has yet to air).
I know some of you will think that's a lot of TV I'm watching. Let me remind you, I put in a lot of hours in the middle of the night with nothing to do but read and watch TV. I can only check out so many books at a time, not much else to do.
So, on with the TV thoughts...first the returnees, then the rookies:
How I Met Your Mother - okay, the first two episodes were among the flattest this show has ever had. But they were necessary to move the story beyond last year's finale. Am hoping and trusting that things'll pick up quickly. If nothing else, I'm keeping an eye on the countdown (as is Barney).
Smallville - haven't watched an episode yet this year, but am hearing good things. Need to get back on track...(tho last year, didn't watch an episode 'til Christmas, so am still ahead of that)
House, MD - to be perfectly honest, I'd have been content for this to stay in it's nice little formula most of the time like it has in the past. That said, I'm really glad they shook things up--for a little while at least, am sure the status will be quo'd again soon. Yeah, the whole "reality show" thing is annoying and far-fetched in theory, but in practice, it's pretty funny. And it's not like we watch House for realism...
Bones - Hey, it's Bones. What can ya say? Little tired of the whole search for Angela's husband story, but figure it's going somewhere. Everything else is jake with me. Glad to see they've got the Federal Prosecutor from Louisiana in a more regular role--just love her reaction shots (even if the character doesn't add much if anything). One note in particular--okay, I know somewhere there's a law that your police procedural has to do at least one episode dealing with a murder involving fetishists, featuring tough cop being weirded out by it, so I can live with the third episode of this year--but wow, that's a straaaaaange one to use. The whole thing is worth it to have Booth describe what love is at the end of the episode. That little speech is a keeper, right up there with House's "no death with dignity" speech from the pilot, Rory's valedictorian speech, the tribute to Buffy that went with the presentation of the umbrella to her at prom, etc.
Back to You - frequently called the savior of/return of the traditional, one-camera sit-com. Um...what about How I Met Your Mother? Not the best sitcom on the air, but it makes me chuckle. The young producer character is funny, even if he's basically just a fat Miles Silverberg. Fred Willard is, well, Fred Willard. Kelsey Grammar and Patricia Heaton (how did two of the most outspoken Republicans in Hollywood end up on a sitcom together on FOX?!?!?) are real pros...pleasure to see them work. The show has a lot of promise.
Chuck/The Reaper - my current favorite 2 hours of TV each week. Let me quote Alan Sepinwall to describe the show/shows (?):
Meet Sam. Sam is in his 20s, an underachieving college drop-out who works at a big- box store and lives with his parents. One day, through the actions of his folks, he develops superhuman powers he doesn't want and has to moonlight for Satan or face eternal damnation.It's tough to say which of these is the better show, overall they're pretty evenly matched. I think Reaper is better with the comedy (barely), Chuck is better with the characters (barely)--I'm pulling more for Chuck to get the girl than I am Sam to get his; Sam's loser friend is better than Chuck's (barely); Chuck's family is more interesting; Reaper has Ray Wise (a perfectly witty, charming, and seductive Devil); Chuck has Adam Baldwin. Frankly, it's a toss-up, and thankfully, I don't have to pick between the two. Hope they both keep it going like they have been.
Now meet Chuck. Chuck is in his 20s, an underachieving college drop-out who works at a big-box store and lives with his sister. One day, through the actions of his ex-roommate, he develops superhuman powers he doesn't want and has to moonlight for the U.S. government or face a quick execution.
Yup, a new TV season is upon us, and that means it's time for the annual case of double vision. [click here to read the rest of this column
Finally got around to picking up Ken Jennings' book, Braniac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs at the library. Only made it through the first couple of chapters before I fell asleep tonight (the main book I'm reading at the moment, Nanny State, has been hijacked by TLomL). This promises to be a very fun read--best first chapter I've read in ages.
Got a hankerin' to start watching Jeopardy! again for some reason...
here's an online cause I can get behind:
Was talking to a friend this morning who's reading through Song of Solomon/Songs for a OT Survey class about some of the tropes used to describe the woman, and how there are some things that just don't translate from culture to culture.
During that convo, I remembered a photocopy that was passed out during a lecture on the poetic books by Rev. David Bass--thankfully, was able to find the image pretty quickly online. It's worth a smile or two if you have the time: The Song of Solomon Illustrated (For our literalist friends)
(yeah, I know, seem to be throwing up a lot of little posts this morning...kids are doing their work, washing machine is churning, dryer is drying, dishwasher is washing...not like I'm being 100% lazy...)
Saw this headline on my iGoogle page this morning:
Craig interview: Senator says he made 'a very big mistake'Haven't read the interview (doubt I'll waste my time), but that's a pretty major understatement there, don't ya think?
Stephen Colbert took over Maureen Dowd's space yesterday. The results were...hilarious, with a capital "HI"
After Jesus was born, the Old Testament basically became a way for Bible publishers to keep their word count up. [Oh, so he's dispensational...]
winning the Nobel Prize does not automatically qualify you to be commander in chief. I think George Bush has proved definitively that to be president, you don’t need to care about science, literature or peace.
Jehovah who created all things is equal to every emergency; heaven and earth are at the disposal of him who made them, therefore let us be very joyful in our infinite helper. He will sooner destroy heaven and earth than permit his people to be destroyed, and the perpetual hills themselves shall bow rather than he shall fail whose ways are everlasting. We are bound to look beyond heaven and earth to him who made them both: it is vain to trust the creatures: it is wise to trust the Creator.
- Charles Spurgeon
One of those rare e-mail forwards that's worth the time. But since I don't have all of your addresses (and I hate doing bulk forwards) I'll just post it here:
HOW TO WRITE GOOD
by Frank L. Visco
My several years in the word game have learnt me several rules:
1... Avoid alliteration. Always.
2... Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3... Avoid cliches like the plague. (They're old hat.)
4... Employ the vernacular.
5... Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6... Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7... It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
8... Contractions aren't necessary
9... Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.
10.. One should never generalize.
11.. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
12.. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
13.. Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
14.. Profanity sucks.
15.. Be more or less specific.
16.. Understatement is always best.
17.. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
18.. One-word sentences? Eliminate.
19.. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
20.. The passive voice is to be avoided.
21.. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
22.. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.
23.. Who needs rhetorical questions?
Challies' giveaways are never anything to sneeze at, but this month's takes the cake. Do yourself a favor and enter now.
Do me a favor and enter by clicking below (cuz then I get another entry) :)
Don't try to write a nice inscription on a gift book, say...a Bible, while answering a question from an inquisitive first grader. The results can be quite unfortunate.
From the Father of lights you came
And I know I'll never be the same again
A beautiful gift has been given to me
Your smiling face is all I see
The look that's in your eyes
And your smile that sets me free
Has made me realize
All that you see in me
Together now and forever
You are the one
You are my everything
To me you bring
The love that I have waited for
...when Rascal Flatts is allowed to cover "Revolution"?
That's right, Rascal Flatts--Country Music's answer to 'NSync is covering The Beatles. Heard this on the radio on the way in to work tonight, and naturally, had to listen to the whole blasted thing just to find out who the criminals responsible were. Somehow found the strength not to drive my van into a telephone pole.
If you have to hear the travesty yourself, click here and fast-forward to about 3:18 or so.
All Work and No Play, Makes Orca a Dull Whale
It cannot be over-emphasized that we have not seen the full meaning of the cross till we have seen it... as the center of the gospel, flanked on the one hand by total inability and unconditional surrender and on the other by irresistible grace and final preservation.
- J. I. Packer
R. Scott Clark asks the question I've been asking for years:
Why Should We Care What Jim Dobson Says?
Cushions you in a crash, performs the Heimlich manuver...that's what I call a safety feature.
from mlb.com on 9/19/07:
In honor of International Talk Like a Pirate Day...
For entertain:
It bugs the tar out of me to read bloggers (especially 'prolific' bloggers) who simply copy someone else's post in its entirety (generally w/o a link to the original site, but they put the other blogger's by-line on it for the sake of intellectual honesty or whatever), but if there was ever a time I was tempted to do it...
there's gotta be a specific word describing the kind of panic that sets in when you realize you're out of coffee filters days before your next trip to the store for supplies...anyone know what it is?
I coulda sworn this was in the spring....
International Talk Like A Pirate Day is right around the corner! Thanks, Jules, for the heads up! (and yes, I hotlinked her name mostly as a historical reference...)
been looking for an excuse to finish that other Gideon Defoe novel....
Update: I put the date up on the white board for school, trying to come up with some ways to integrate that into the school day. The Offspring get very excited and (without any prompting from me, mind you) start yelling "Arrrr!" and "scurvy!", etc. And then, in a cockle-warming moment, Samwise starts talking about a book of his that can help them prepare--complete with special pirate words.
The most striking feature of the teaching of Jesus is that he was constantly talking about himself. The self-centeredness of the teaching of Jesus immediately sets him apart form the other great religious teachers of the world. They were self-effacing. he was self-advancing. They pointed men away form themselves, saying, 'That is the truth, so far as I perceive it; follow that.' Jesus said, 'I am the truth; follow me.'
- John Stott
I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.
- Psalm 138:2
...and now Frodo and Sam are laughing and asking to watch it again...good way to cap off a morning of work :)
You ever have one of those weeks where everything--and I mean everything you start or intend to start just doesn't work? Well, I'm having one of those (getting better, tho--I think). So the homeschooling I was so looking forward to getting underway with on Tuesday? Mostly started today. Some parts will start on Monday (Deo Volente)...others will start sometime after that.
We've taken more time off this summer than we usually do, and the kids are having a hard time readjusting (me, too, come to think of it...and because things were so strange this morning, no coffee since we finished the pot at work 'round 4:30!)--particularly the attention-span-deprived Samwise.
We got a little workbook on letters and sounds for Arnold to start using--not a serious preschool curriculum, just something on paper for him to do. He loved it, you could really tell he liked sitting down with the others and have me work on a sheet with him.
Anyhow...we've started. By the grace of God, we'll persevere. Here's the obligatory/traditional first day of school blog pictures--enjoy! (you can really tell that Frodo likes me interrupting his thinking for this, huh?)
(at least twice, including the midnight opening), but I'd buy the Special Deluxe Collector's Edition DVD(s).
You with me, Kletois?
Few weeks back, iTunes Free Single of the Week was the first single from this new artist named Colbie Caillat. Was in the mood for a new tune, so I clicked on it. When the phrase "female Jack Johnson" floated by my eyes, I started downloading.
That was a mistake.
Sorta.
I can't stop listening to it. The song, "Bubbly" is just that--bubbly--a veritable onomatopoeic song. A piece of musical cotton-candy that makes you feel all warm and sunshiny despite your worst, cynical, half-empty glass, is-it-gonna-be-Monday-all-week?, Eeyore-like, I-wish-I-had-a-cat-so-I-could-kick-it mood.
Sweet, simple, catchy--a perfect pop song. Terribly infectious, yet you don't mind getting it stuck in your head all day. The kind of thing you can hear and think "yup, that's why Pop Music exists." You can tolerate (in the sense of not hiring people to kill) Britney, Akon, and whatnot. Last time I can think of a song like this was Sixpence's "Kiss Me," or maybe the aforementioned Johnson's, "Upside Down"--but I don't think that was as widely played.
It starts in my toes
makes me crinkle my nose
where ever it goes
i always know
that you make me smile
please stay for a while now
just take your time
When I became a man, I put away childish things, including the fear of being childish, and the desire to be very grown up.- C. S. Lewis
yeah, yeah, I know...been away for a bit (fighting off a death plague of some sorts [TLoML calls it a cold, but I know better]). Got a few things in the mental hopper, tho. Hopefully can find time for them to pop.
Anyway...Jeff Gordon (not that one) has some nice things to say about this summer in sports--it's not all ugly (and yeah, I'm lookin' at you Balco Barry).
We'd watched the team he mentions winning the Little League World Series lose horribly in the early rounds--heartwarming to see they recovered...I felt so bad for them. Incidentally, the LLWS is probably the best televised baseball each year period. The pros can match it occasionally--but it takes things like Game 3 of the 2001 ALDS to do it.
Back on June 6, it was noted that I hadn't been talking a lot about the Yankees lately. Now, I'm sure that Joel was trying to goad me at the time because the Yankees were falling apart--and if not for A-Rod, would've been mathematically eliminated from the rest of the season. That, believe it or not, wasn't the reason for a lack of baseball/Yankee posts. It was simply that I hadn't been watching any baseball then.
Actually, I haven't watched any baseball (save a couple of innings of the All-Star Game) since early May this year. Only keep up with a couple of Yankee blogs regularly (Pete Peter Abraham's Lohud Yankees blog is a 6-day a week read, ditto for Yanks Blog), barely have a clue about anything else going on in the League (did I hear something about a SF Giant hitting some home runs?)
But a good friend of mine realized he wasn't using his mlb.tv account while I'm at work. And the Yankees hosted the Red Sox today. Sooo....this is gonna be fun!
ahh....1-2-3 7-pitch first inning by Andy Pettite. What more do you want?
Update: (fixed spellings above--didn't want to verify them earlier 'cuz I'd probably accidentally get news on the game)
Now, that's the game to break a drought with! Pettitte rocked, Matsuzaka was good but not great (so, so glad the Yankees didn't overpay for him like some other team did), Jeter broke a slump, everyone looked solid, Damon was good in LF, finally got to see this Joba kid everyone's raving about--and now I can start raving about him (and, I know how to pronounce his name)--and the Yankees beat the Sox! Loved it!
This is a pretty cool video.
(I guess you could call this a veritable rouges' gallery)
Hard to know where to begin--or stop--commenting.
From Newsweek's Beliefwatch:
China Regulates Buddhist ReincarnationNow, the impulse here is to chuckle at those crazy commies, maybe make a joke about how long it'll be before our Congress tries it, while noting how interesting it is that the Chinese at least take religion seriously enough to try that.
China has banned Buddhist monks in Tibet from reincarnating without government permission. According to a statement issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the law, which goes into effect next month and strictly stipulates the procedures by which one is to reincarnate, is "an important move to institutionalize management of reincarnation."
By barring any Buddhist monk living outside China from seeking reincarnation, the law effectively gives Chinese authorities the power to choose the next Dalai Lama, whose soul, by tradition, is reborn as a new human to continue the work of relieving suffering.It's likely that the monks will pick a Tibetan-exile, maybe even from the U.S. (like what almost happened to Bobby Hill), where Gallup tells us 20% of adults believe in reincarnation.
At 72, the Dalai Lama, who has lived in India since 1959, is beginning to plan his succession, saying that he refuses to be reborn in Tibet so long as it's under Chinese control. Assuming he's able to master the feat of controlling his rebirth, as Dalai Lamas supposedly have for the last 600 years, the situation is shaping up in which there could be two Dalai Lamas: one picked by the Chinese government, the other by Buddhist monks.
Recent surveys by the Barna Group, a Christian research nonprofit, have found that a quarter of U.S. Christians, including 10 percent of all born-again Christians, embrace it as their favored end-of-life view. (emphasis mine)Granted that Barna's definition of born-again is a bit loose, and his respondents are self-identified as such, his numbers are generally seen as close to reality. We've got 10% of supposedly regenerate people disagreeing with the principle that:
it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgmentIt's disturbing enough that they believe in it, but I can live with that. It's the idea that it's their "favored end-of-life view." Favored. Ten percent of those who name the name of Christ would prefer coming back and doing this all again (including acne, high school, and driver's education) to passing immediately into glory and being with their Lord and Savior. Thankfully, the majority still agree with Paul.
to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain...My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Sorta predictable, but still a good point.
Michael Vick should have invested his money into killing babies instead dog fighting
Think I've stumbled upon some new method of torture--cops, MPs, counter-intelligence agents might want to consider using this (I know many, many of those read this blog, after all).
Poppped one of those "single serving" microwave popcorn bags in the microwave a few minutes ago (incidentally, the existence of those bags is probably proof that Satan is Alive and Well on Planet Earth)...and got two or so kernals popped when I followed the directions. So I cooked it double the time it's supposed to be. Couple more pops.
That's it.
At that point, I figured I'd better stop before I blew something up, or burned something (who needs that smell?).
However, now our work area smells like popcorn, and there's not any to be had.
The aroma is driving me crazy. I'm perfectly willing to tell anyone all the secrets--state or otherwise--that I know. Just give me the chance.
Got the Bauer books this weekend--it looks even better than I remembered. Hadn't looked through the Activity book before, and am very impressed with it--think about getting it, Mist. Still have some more books to get, but am getting closer... :)
Not sure how long ago it was that my older sons learned their first Knock-Knock joke. It wasn't long after that when they learned their second, their third, etc. And they quickly started writing their own. The results were, as most parents can attest, disastrous. They simply didn't get what made a joke funny, and would frequently just replace one word in a joke they heard with one of their own--"Orange" for "Gorrilla", etc.--and laugh hysterically at each other's. (we laughed at their first attempts, and then stopped...only way they're gonna learn they're not funny is to be met with silence. Just wish Carlos Mencia's parents had felt the same way). Not only were they not funny, they frequently just didn't make sense.
Which brings us to this morning. Taking TLoML to work and we hear this behind us:
Arnold: Knock-Knock.
Princess: Who's there?
Arnold: Samwise.
Princess: Samwise who?
Arnold:Samwise and I can't open the door!
Made sense, was kinda funny in that he really can't open the door. We may have struck comedic gold with this kid!
I enjoy Gerald So's blog a lot, particularly the weird celebrity birthdays he notes. Today's is:
Do we still call him Short Round?Short Round's 36? Is it possible to feel older than I do right now?
Jonathan Ke Quan, who played Indy's sidekick in Temple of Doom, is 36 today. Did you know his brother actually auditioned for the part, but the producers picked Ke instead?
bonus thought today as I didn't get one out last week while recovering from a night in the ER
What fitter day to ascend to heaven, than that on which He arose from earth, and fully triumphed over death and hell. Use your Sabbaths as steps to glory, till you have passed them all, and are there arrived.
- Richard Baxter
Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion;
shout, O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;
he has cleared away your enemies.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
you shall never again fear evil.
Zephaniah 3:14-15
Started reading a new book this morning, and I'm really enjoying it. This annoys me greatly.
You see, the author is a not-notorious-enough heretic. And while she's not writing on anything theological in this particular book--so far the only reference to God is a borderline 3rd commandment violation--it bugs me that she's writing so well.
In theory and, generally, in practice, I have no problem with the unbeliever/pagan/false religion adherent producing thoughtful, useful, enjoyable work. A quick look at my bookshelves; CD/DVD collection; list of doctors/nurses/medical technicians/pharmacists; technology a depend on; or non-homemade food I eat will testify to that. To put it another way--I do not look at the cow's statement of faith before sitting down to my Oreoes and 2%.
Call this a firm conviction in Common Grace (if only to annoy PRC-types), a perception of the marred, but present imago Dei (to tip the cap to Van Til), noticing the borrowed capital of the Christian worldview (to echo Bahnsen), or simply an acknowledgment that the rain does indeed fall on the just and unjust alike (because the speaker of those words trumpse those--and all other--authorities). Whatever label you put on it, I typically have no problem listening to and gleaning from the non-Christian (unless their voice is annoying, like Carl Sagan's).*
So why does this gal being right annoy me so?
Part of it, I think, has to do with truth in labeling. It bugs me when G. W. Bush is dubbed a conservative, Dominos Pizza is called tasty, or Jay Leno is described as funny. So when reviewer after reviewer (whether it be a New York Times-type or TrendianityChristianityToday-type) calls this gal a Christian, my dander gets up. This probably colors my read of her.
Maybe a little closer to the real issue is how inside-my-head this book feels. I know that even after almost 2 regenerated decades my perceptions, understanding and reasoning embody Romans 3:23, but for this book to resonate so with me, maybe it indicates that my sanctification hasn't progressed as much as I like to think it has.
Maybe it's something else altogether. The fact that I can't quite put my finger on it is almost as annoying as the fact that I'm enjoying it so. Anyway, back to my book.
Why is it that "All You Can Eat" so frequently translates into "Eating 3x What You Normally Would?"
(this is purely hypothetical, of course)
Apparently August 16th is True Love Forever Day--so say the electronic greeting card companies anyway, and you know me, a slave to the sentimentality industry...
To my true love--
Given all the thesauri known to man, woman, muggle, dolphin or Alpha Centaurian, I couldn't come up with the words to tell you how I feel about you. Given the rest of my life, I doubt I'll be able to demonstrate it either.
Thank you for the second chance, I won't squander it. Because I know now how true Westley's words were, "This is true love. You think this happens every day?" Don't want to lose any more opportunities to enjoy it.
Samwise is proudly displaying his award-winning picture and his award for placing first in a local restaurant's Back-to-School coloring contest. (that's an unnecessarily convoluted sentence, but, eh...) That backpack is chock full o' school supplies (yay!)
He was so excited when we got the phone call today--and rightly so--he literally shook with excitement as he told the news to his Grammy and Mom on the phone. :)
Way to go, pal.
One of the best pieces of advice we ever got on Homeschooling was to remember who's in charge--the parents, not the materials used. Expressly, this dad (who graduated 2 HS'ers before it was cool) said, "Take dominion over the curriculum." (I'm sure his expression and devotion to Rushdooney are purely coincidental)
Especially after watching several friends slavishly follow along with the book/video/whatever and wondering just what role the parents were playing in their education beyond flashing their MasterCards, we've always striven to do just that. Usually just in minor ways, because the stuff we bought was pretty good to begin with, but sometimes we seriously deviated (which was always a lot more fun for me)
Well for Frodo's work this coming year, we've stepped up our dominion taking and have come up with a totally custom-built package that should play to his strengths and chop away at his weaknesses. And, as an added plus, should save us $400 or so (while giving him the same amount, if not more, work).I've just placed the first order, The Story of the World: History for the Classical Child by Susan Wise Bauer. This is so much more promising than the anemic Bob Jones text he's used before. Can't wait 'til Sept. 4th!
from Kelly Ling's Christian Quote of the Day email (which almost never elicits a laugh from me, I've got to note the exceptions...esp. when they're right as well as funny):
Well doth David call children "arrows"; for if they be well bred, they shoot at their parents' enemies; and if they be evil bred, they shoot at their parents.- Henry Smith
of why I do what I do.
(If only all the Christian bloggers encouraging people to use GRTF schools would move beyond their bogus "salt and light" arguments and deal with this issue...)
'American Idol' Contestant Auditions While She's in Labor
For the first time in "American Idol" history, an auditioner went into labor while waiting with 3,500 hopefuls for her chance to become the next singing superstar.
On Monday, nine-months-pregnant Antoria Gillon arrived at Texas Stadium with hopes of becoming the next "American Idol." However, as she waited patiently for her melodic moment, the 20-year-old hair stylist started making moves of a more "contractual" kind.
"I didn’t want to turn around after being there all those hours in the heat with people pushing,” said Gillon. "So my friend helped me walk through the line. I wasn’t going to leave without singing."
(which is easy to do when you're largely unsuccessful, and moreso every year)
For the last 13 or so years, I've had a pretty clear vocational goal (and had been leaning that way for 6 or so years before that), and had slowly been working toward that goal--sometimes faster than other times, but always with that goal in mind.
Well, that goal is gone now, and I don't have the foggiest idea what to put in its place--at least not realistically.
I can't stay where I am for too long--not that I have anything against the place, bu this is a grunt-level gig, with commensurate pay and practically zero chance of advancement.
I had a rough idea about something that would get me a step or two closer to having a career, and had an appointment Monday to talk to someone about step one in implementing that. A minor family crisis prevented me from making that meeting, but in the research to prepare for that meeting, I came across a disturbing figure. To get the certificate I was showing for (and then the jobs that certified me for), I'd need to clock 6,000 hours of supervised work after meeting the educational requirements. 6,000 hrs! That's 37.5 months at 40 hrs. a week--and no one I know in the field (those who are certified already) gets 40 hrs a week, so no chance of a grunt getting that time in easily. And again, that certificate was just going to be step one...mostly a way of financing steps two and beyond. But I'm just not sure I'm willing to wait 3+ years after 2-3 of education to complete step one. Doesn't seem prudent at this juncture (read that in a Dana Carvey Bush voice).
So that sorta puts me back at the drawing board (not that I can draw, as my tenure in the architectural drafting field attests). I just got done looking at some graduate programs, and there's one or two options there that might work--next fall. Early August is not the time to try to find your way into grad school. Leaving me feeling all elevated and anhydrous.
Do not get me wrong--I love being a homeschooling dad, and am more than willing to continue to sacrifice career, vocational fulfillment, or whatever, to make sure my little quiver gets the best education I can give. But at some point, sooner rather than later, I'd like to get out of the 1 Tim 5:8 area, I'm not really comfortable falling into the "worse than an unbeliever" category. It's one thing to work entry level stuff in your mid-30s when you've got a lofty goal, it's another if you're not the next Kevin Smith, Quentin Tarantino or Great American Novelist just waiting for their big break.
I just wish I knew what to do.
Not sure if I have a point to this, just getting things off my chest and giving ya'll an update on my so-called life.
Bewilderedly and bemusedly yours,
Hob
Such a heartwarming tale...
A Teacher Grows Disillusioned After a ‘Fail’ Becomes a ‘Pass’
In 1 Corinthians 15:56-57, [Paul] sings with a holy ravishment of joy the praises of God and Christ our Redeemer, by whose achievement this glorious victory over death is won: The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the Law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." This indeed is our David who cut off the head of this Goliath with His own sword. He killed death by falling dead upon it. He unstung this serpent by receiving its sting into His own blessed body. He overcame the great conqueror by submitting Himself for a time to be conquered by it. When Christ lost His life, then His whole army of saints won the day. Death now to them is no death; that which was their punishment as sinners is now their privilege as saints. That which stood among the threatenings of the law, and was the most formidable of them all, has not changed its place and is among the promises of the gospel. “All things are your, whether or life or death” (1 Corinthians 3:21-22). So precious an oil our apostle extracts from this slain scorpion; so sweet a honey comb he finds in this dead lion's breast, and give it into the hand of the saints, to eat it to their unspeakable joy and comfort.
- William Gurnall
Hearty Congrats to Julie and Jason on the arrival of little Kayleigh!
Lady K, God's richest covenant blessings upon you! (especially those mommy and daddy don't believe in)
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Daddy | Mommy |
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Frodo | Samwise |
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Princess | Arnold |
