Lots of Snow

September 15

The 15th of September is the day that Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy (2008), US Forces landed in Incheon, Korea (1950), and the first spacecraft that flew around the moon and returned to Earth was launched (the Zond 5 in 1968). Prince Harry of Wales was born (1984) and several other important and not so important things happened.

For me, though, 15 September 2009 was more than just another day. Though never making the news, it marks adding to my family:
171 days previous, I married the love of my life, and 171 days hence is the due date for our first child.

More Semi-senseless information from Mac! Have a great day!

Busy

My life right now is busy. I have work, college, and one other thing going on. Later this month, I marry the love of my life. She's smart, beautiful, funny, supportive, and loving. Neither one of us are nervous about the wedding or marriage, but both are starting to feel the pressures of putting on a celebration... while maintaining a long distance relationship. Next month we wont have either of those two things... and I can't wait!

Future Plans

I'm taking a quick break to update those who don't yet know the changes. Thanks to some news, our wedding date has changed to earlier than planned. It is now 28 March 2009. We've got the ceremony & reception locations, caterer, and DJ chosen (just not all the paperwork signed yet). Still working on a few other things, like the photographer, hotel for guests, and the invitations. It is an exciting time... now where are those phone numbers...

Top 10 Reasons for Limited Postings this Year...

I know that there have been lots of things to occur that I normally blog about. So let me give a few reasons why I haven't

10. I have been on vacation.
9. I have been moving.
8. think I'll just skip to number 1!
1. I am pleased to say that I am engaged to a wonderful woman! And trust me, I'd rather spend time with her than post to this blog! So while this blog will not disappear, the posting count may not be as high!

Important Lesson

I must apologize for being so delinquent in writing.  While I'm sure some of it is due my choices on how to spend my time (watching Lakers' games, spending time with my girlfriend, reading) and not having much to share, some of it is also due to being quite busy lately.  I am in the process of moving and all the fun that goes with that.  I have found a great place to live that I am very pleased with.  That being said, lots of packing is still in order.

Today, however, I learned what can be a very costly lesson.  I got a flat tire on my rental car.  Dutifully I called the hotline, waited for the AAA rep to come out, and then took the car back to the rental company.  There the employee told me that due to the options on my rental, they did not have to collect the deposit on the vehicle, nor report my "car accident."  Stating that if someone declines the CDW, and they have a flat tire, they will be reported to their insurance company as having an accident.  I was and still am shocked.  In my case the car had 340 miles on it.  Neither the AAA guy nor I could find the cause of the flat - no nail, puncture, or anything else.  The only thing we could surmise was a manufacturing error.  The rental employee assured me that I would not be held responsible because of the rental options - but I find it very hard to believe that I could have my car insurance rates rise because of a flat tire!

Anyway - that is an important thing to know.  But it still sounds like a scam to me.  A scare tactic used to get people to pay for the CDW?

Personal News

It seems like most of the time I find myself talking about current events that are reported in the newspaper or some current events blog. I have received requests from some readers to include more personal events. Normally I don't have anything to report. This time, it is different.

News Item #1: College

It has finally occurred: 3 schools, 5 majors, 8 years, and 133 semester hours later, I now have a 2 year degree! Ok, so I have two 2 year degrees. Either way, it is a significant milestone, and now I can pursue my 4 year degree. I'm thinking only one of the those, however!

News Item #2: Girlfriend

Now, before the jokes start, let me address some of them head-on.

1. Yes, she is real - not imaginary
2. Yes, she knows how tall I am (and is taller than I)
3. No, she is not looking for a green card.

I've known Lauren for about three years now. We met over a game of Monopoly during a power outage. Since then we have played multiple games of Chess.

Right now we are geographically separated, but thanks to the magic of the VOIP, IM, and Web Cams, we get to do more than just send mail back and forth. We will be moving to the same timezone this summer. For now, we have to keep track of the hours of difference between us.

Here is a photo of her from her blog.

I'm sure there will be more news to follow!

Prudence vs. Independence

Yesterday I found myself in an interesting situation. Since it was a Sunday and I am still on the road, I looked for a church to attend. I looked up an address online, followed the Google directions, and ended up on the right block. Except I didn't go in - I was scared.

No, not scared of going into the church - scared of getting out of my vehicle. I wanted to reach for a side arm, if not an assault rifle. I grew up in a rough area and have been (visited or worked) in much more worse places. Bottom line, I know how to handle myself -- but I didn't feel comfortable going in. The cars around me were speeding stoplight to stoplight; gang members, prostitutes, drug dealers, were all in plain sight. And no -- they weren't making their way to the church.

I still wonder if I shouldn't have gone it -- have I gotten to the point where I am now so suburbanized that I make a distinction along economic lines? Or did I really need to be armed or go in with backup? I don't know. What I do know is that I wouldn't want any child walking alone through that neighborhood.

Yet, when I do have a child of my own, I don't want to be a helicopter parent. You know, the type that always hover nearby (or above) and never let their children have any independence: the helmet wearing, gps tracking, leash holding, decision strangling, growth suffocating, coddling parent.

A week ago, a Newsweek article discussed a mother's decision let her 9 year old son take the NYC Subway alone. Since her column, the mother, Lenore Skenazy, has had to defend herself left and right. Clearly Ms. Skenazy knew the risks, knew her son, and felt it was safe enough.

Now lots of people are Monday morning quarterbacking her decision. Even on a fast connection, downloading the Newsweek page of comments takes forever. Some rain down threats to call child protective services and others shower her with praise. Contentious is hardly the word - Divisive is more like it.

Would I let my (future) son or daughter take public transit in a large city? I don't know. I would like to believe I would. But should that involve going through the neighborhood I went through yesterday, the answer would be emphatically no. Sometimes prudence outweighs independence.

Benevolent Leader

At least that's what my personality is according to PersonalDNA.com.

The most curious thing to me is that I am in the 98% percentile for masculine traits and the 54% percentile for feminine traits. How can I be both more masculine AND more feminine than most people?

Masculinity

Low                                                                                         98    High    

Femininity

Low                                              54                                              High    

Oh yeah... you can also rate how you see me using psych you / psych me. Give it a shot... I'd love to see if how I see myself is how others see me.

Merry Christmas

Christmas 2007

I know Christmas 2007 is at an end.  Most people are getting ready to go back to work and school.  New Year's plans being made, lights coming down, trees put away (or mulched for you old fashioned real tree folks)...

I had a good time.  I had a nice couple of dives recently:

This year I put up lights:

A tree:

And baked apple pies:

More

But there is more to Christmas than lights, presents, trees, and dinners.  This is a dedicated time to celebrate when God invaded this planet with His plan of redeeming humans.  Angels made the announcement and told shepherds the good news.  By most accounts that was 2011 years ago.  (Using 4 B.C. as the date).  Since AD 29 or so, Christians have had the task of telling humans around them the good news.  Who did you tell today? Yesterday?  Last Week? 

If you told someone, great, if not, what was the reason?  Was it fear of persecution? War? Both of those are on the rise.  In fact, the number of Christians in the Middle East is on a very sharp decline.

It is still possible to find shops decorated for Christmas like this one in Iraq:

But do you see anything related to the true reason for the season? Perhaps this is the reason:

Several churches were bombed in Baghdad, and a priest in the northern city of Mosul was kidnapped and later found beheaded. This year, Sunni Arab militants began knocking on doors of Christians living in Baghdad's Dora neighborhood, demanding that they pay a "tax," convert to Islam or leave. In April and May alone, an estimated 500 families fled Dora. - Los Angeles Times

And it is no excuse to say that the end of the world is just about to happen.  The asteroid rocketing through space is headed to Mars, not Earth.  There is still time.  For those in the US, you have it easy:  an estimated 91% of households have a copy of the Bible.  All you have to do is live in such a way that they will read it (or hear it) and believe.  If nothing else, it now comes in pink:

Conclusion

This was not a chew-out session.  Rejoice with family and friends.  Enjoy the music of the season (I know I did).  Just don't forget what it is really about.

Merry Christmas!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope everyone is having a great Thanksgiving. Remember not just what you are thankful for, but to whom those thanks go! Ok, time to go enjoy this pie!

A Twist on the Prodigal Son

Surely at some point we all feel like the elder brother.  I am referring to the parable of the Lost (prodigal, if you prefer) Son in Luke 15.  The story is a familiar one, as it shows the love and care God has for each of us.  We all have sinned and therefore were like the younger son.  Yet, at the same time, because of that sin, we can also identify with the one who didn't leave.  Jedi Guini mentions a not-so-unique feeling in her latest blog.  She points out the feelings that can at times plague the single person, who striving to be like Christ, still finds themselves single.  At those times it can appear like the good gift of a spouse is being "wasted" on the wrong people.  Sometimes it feels like everyone else is being blessed but me.  Why is it that it seems like the love of God is so far away?

That's because the older one was still distant from the Father.  Sure, he may not have been far, but he refused to go inside, which meant he was away from the father.  Many have pointed out that this is the Pharisee in the story (the whole thing was predicated on Pharisees pointing out that Jesus ate with "sinners") because he did not like the father celebrating the other son's return; I do not disagree.  But I find that their major sin is refusing to come inside.  The feelings of frustration and jealousy are natural, but a separation from God-- what is wrong is to refuse to be reunited. 

The Elder brother may have felt offended, but chose to not rejoice in his brother's return.  This, then, looks like the parable of the two sons in Matthew 21 where the one son did not do as the Father wanted.  Does the Elder brother have a solid case?  No.  The fattened calf was not all that the Father had, but that is the tantrum that the Elder son threw.

So where does that leave me?  Well, I know that "a prudent wife is from the LORD" but just because I am not married yet does not mean that God ran out of good gifts to give.  That might seem like the case when I don't even have any prospects, but it is not.  I choose not to remain jealous; I choose not to remain outside the party.  I choose to go in, celebrate and be glad.  Why? Because I have a Father who loves me.  When I leave town, He looks anxiously for my return; when I do not feel like coming in, He comes to plead with me.  Nothing that I have earned, done, or said, but because of who He is.

Cool Picture

I know it's been a while since I've posted.  It may be some time before anything of real interest gets posted:  for the next 8 weeks I'm taking an online English course so I can finally finish my AA.  Since that already involves lots of writing, I doubt that I'll be placing much on here.

But anyway, the APOD for today looks really cool!

 

Trying Something Different

I'm trying something different right now.  If you look to the left sidebar, you'll notice that I've greatly expanded my "To Read" list.  I'm attempting to get through all those listed by February 2008.  In order to do so, I've committed myself to not buying any DVDs or Video Games -- at least until I finish the Archaeology Study Bible.

I'm not sure how this personal challenge will end, all I know is that I'm going to try it.  I may have selected too many books to read, but we'll see.

Life Chapter Close

There are some moments in life that you know are intrinsically important.  For many of those we create expensive or fancy looking pieces of paper - graduations, marriages, births.  They certify for everyone else to see that something special occurred.  Other times we document the event in other ways - yearbooks, photographs/portraits, memoirs, speeches.  Every event is both a begining and an ending - the start or close of a chapter.

For me, that is what these last two weeks have been - the close of a chapter.  A very important, big, transformational chapter.  I've had to say goodbye to some of my closest friends, pack-up, and move.   I honestly hope to keep in touch with them; technology is great for that.  But I also know that I may never see some of them again - that's just the way life is.

Some might wish that life didn't have changes: no goodbyes, no sadness, no leaving; I am not one of those.  I find stasis to be more boring than watching paint dry (at least paint changes from a viscous liquid to a flaky solid).  We can't move on to greater adventures and chapters if we don't close the current one.  Neither can we forget the preceding parts of the story.  The best part, though, is that God is the author and finisher of our faith.  And that is what life really is: the story of our faith.

Hebrews 12:1-3

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Well, I have a plane to catch; it's time to turn the page...

Photos Updated

I've finally uploaded pictures of my recent vacation.

Photos are of

My Sister's High School Graduation

A trip with my youngest brother

And Mothers' Day 2007

Five Love Languages

Gary Chapman has a great book on how to communicate love between individuals.  The basic premise is that people communicate love through five ways:  Quality Time, Physical Touch, Acts of Service, Words of Affirmation, and Receiving Gifts.  Some people "speak" the languages with differing degrees of fluency.  And we don't "hear" in the same "language."  Gary says that we default to speaking the language that we listen to best.  But that doesn't mean our feeling of love is communicated effectively.

Reading the book would get you a better idea of the concept, but you can see the rough sketch if you take the quiz.

My Primary Love Language is Quality Time.  What is yours?

My Detailed Results:
Quality Time:	10
Physical Touch:	9
Acts of Service:	8
Words of Affirmation:	2
Receiving Gifts:	1

Ring Fingers and Suicide Bombers

Finger Length

Look at your fingers.  Which one is longer, your ring finger or your index finger?  According to a new report released, if your ring finger is longer the odds are that you have a more natural talent in mathematics.  If your index finger is longer you have a more natural talent in language and reading.  By the way, mine are just about the same.

American Muslim support for suicide bombers

A recent poll shows that just about 80% of American Muslims do not agree with the use of suicide bombers to defend Islam.  That's the good news... the bad news is that 25% of the American Muslims under 30 DO think that suicide bombings are justified.

My Brother's Video

My brother, "Catalina Guy," has posted one of his movies online. 

The Fight of the Century

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Pictures

These are starting to become not recent, but I figured I'd add them before they were history.