It's Monday again. I hope you all had a great weekend! Here's a quiz to quickstart your brain for the week!
See how well you do with this year's GMAC driving test. I got a 80%. I guess the yellow line doesn't mean speed up? Anyway, I still passed!
Monday, July 31, 2006
Friday, July 28, 2006
Rise of the Robots!
Have you ever wondered if Terminator, IRobot or any of those other science fiction films will ever come true in reality? Perhaps you think it'll be cool to have a robot to do your chores or something. Like all new tech however, new moral, social and philosophical dilemmas arise. This article explains some of them.
Video: Chad Vader, Day Shift Manager
Ok, even though I have a ton of backlog of links to give you, I just HAVE to show you this! This is pretty funny film. I hope they make more of them. It's Darth's under-achieving brother, Chad! Check it out!
Thursday, July 27, 2006
True meaning of friendship (Pt 2)
No, this article is NOT late. These aren’t the droids you’re looking for. Don’t believe me? Look at the date! It says, Thurs! Mwuahaha, I can control time and space! (in this blog). I’m the master of this domain, and when I say I’m not late, I’M NOT LATE!
Ok, I was late. Sorry about that. I had a REALLY good excuse. Yeah… oops, I dropped it. Oh no, now it’s mixed up with the bad and never ever use excuses. Oh well.. you just gotta believe that I had a good excuse….
So… anyway. I’m back, and I’m here to tell you the true meaning of friendship. Have you ever seen the movie Desperado? Great movie, I loved it. There’s some sex in there, so you know, not for kiddies. And Salma back then… wow. Muy caliente! Anyway, there’s one scene near the end, the inevitable “Final Showdown”. This is where the Desperado kicks some butt, because he’s mad and looking for revenge! So, what does he do? He uses the telephone and calls up two of his buddies. And all he basically says is, “Get your gear.” And the scene is really cool, because it shows the two buddies, just hanging out, you know, having a tequila. Just sitting back and re-lax-ing. And as soon as they get the call, they dump everything and pick up their guitar cases. Best scene in the entire movie of really good action scenes.
To me, that’s what a true friend is. He (remember now, I’m using masculine pronouns, but this applies equally to boys and girls) is the type that will drop everything when you need his help. He doesn’t say, why, what happened, how are you feeling, are you sure you want to do this, but what if our moms see this, what about the cops…. No, he gets up, takes the bus, and he’s down with you. No explanations needed. That’s a true friend.
He also, doesn’t tell you to call him back later cause he’s busy. No, he is willing to drop everything for you. Ok, maybe I’m still on that rush of seeing the movie scene again, but, he will at least stop and listen to your troubles. That’s what a true friend is.
And you know what the great thing about this type of friend? You don’t have to see or talk to them every day to make sure the friendship is still strong. I mean, Desperado’s friends, they didn’t hear from him for months. Yet, the Desperado knew, that when he needed his boys’ backup, he got it. Now this kinda relationship just doesn’t happen. Often, it’s forged from being together in the same stressful situation (like wars or Hopkins!). Sometimes it just cultivates from years and years of knowing each other and fully trusting each other. Sometimes, you guys just click. I'm very fortunate to have some friends like that. There's no safer feeling than to know that someone's got your back, you know?
At a recent retreat with my church, which was… AWESOME, btw. This lecture dude was giving us a run-down of one of his favorite verses in the Bible. I think it’s Zeph 3:17. Yeah, it’s obscure, that’s what the link’s for. Clicky-clicky. So, anyway, he was describing the root or what the Hebrew really meant about certain words. One of them he described for us was the part “mighty to save”. And he gave a really good description of it. He demonstrated by having a dude come up, and then showing us what God meant when he said it. He doesn’t mean that He will back you up. As in, he’s behind you, ready to help push you past any obstacles. No, God will step in front of you, while saying to you, “I got this.” Put another way, He’s not a backsupport, He’s your chest protector.
I can honestly say, Jesus is a true friend as well. He’s everything I said and more. When you need him, you just call him up, and he’ll bring the firepower. And even better, he’ll stand in front of you, saying to the toughie, “You want him, you’ll have to go through me.” And, while I do not advocate not talking to Jesus for a while, he’s still cool with that. This may sound sappy now ( I know, it’s been sappy for a while now) but I truly am glad that Jesus is one of my true friends. I don’t know how I’d live without him. Peace!
Ok, I was late. Sorry about that. I had a REALLY good excuse. Yeah… oops, I dropped it. Oh no, now it’s mixed up with the bad and never ever use excuses. Oh well.. you just gotta believe that I had a good excuse….
So… anyway. I’m back, and I’m here to tell you the true meaning of friendship. Have you ever seen the movie Desperado? Great movie, I loved it. There’s some sex in there, so you know, not for kiddies. And Salma back then… wow. Muy caliente! Anyway, there’s one scene near the end, the inevitable “Final Showdown”. This is where the Desperado kicks some butt, because he’s mad and looking for revenge! So, what does he do? He uses the telephone and calls up two of his buddies. And all he basically says is, “Get your gear.” And the scene is really cool, because it shows the two buddies, just hanging out, you know, having a tequila. Just sitting back and re-lax-ing. And as soon as they get the call, they dump everything and pick up their guitar cases. Best scene in the entire movie of really good action scenes.
To me, that’s what a true friend is. He (remember now, I’m using masculine pronouns, but this applies equally to boys and girls) is the type that will drop everything when you need his help. He doesn’t say, why, what happened, how are you feeling, are you sure you want to do this, but what if our moms see this, what about the cops…. No, he gets up, takes the bus, and he’s down with you. No explanations needed. That’s a true friend.
He also, doesn’t tell you to call him back later cause he’s busy. No, he is willing to drop everything for you. Ok, maybe I’m still on that rush of seeing the movie scene again, but, he will at least stop and listen to your troubles. That’s what a true friend is.
And you know what the great thing about this type of friend? You don’t have to see or talk to them every day to make sure the friendship is still strong. I mean, Desperado’s friends, they didn’t hear from him for months. Yet, the Desperado knew, that when he needed his boys’ backup, he got it. Now this kinda relationship just doesn’t happen. Often, it’s forged from being together in the same stressful situation (like wars or Hopkins!). Sometimes it just cultivates from years and years of knowing each other and fully trusting each other. Sometimes, you guys just click. I'm very fortunate to have some friends like that. There's no safer feeling than to know that someone's got your back, you know?
At a recent retreat with my church, which was… AWESOME, btw. This lecture dude was giving us a run-down of one of his favorite verses in the Bible. I think it’s Zeph 3:17. Yeah, it’s obscure, that’s what the link’s for. Clicky-clicky. So, anyway, he was describing the root or what the Hebrew really meant about certain words. One of them he described for us was the part “mighty to save”. And he gave a really good description of it. He demonstrated by having a dude come up, and then showing us what God meant when he said it. He doesn’t mean that He will back you up. As in, he’s behind you, ready to help push you past any obstacles. No, God will step in front of you, while saying to you, “I got this.” Put another way, He’s not a backsupport, He’s your chest protector.
I can honestly say, Jesus is a true friend as well. He’s everything I said and more. When you need him, you just call him up, and he’ll bring the firepower. And even better, he’ll stand in front of you, saying to the toughie, “You want him, you’ll have to go through me.” And, while I do not advocate not talking to Jesus for a while, he’s still cool with that. This may sound sappy now ( I know, it’s been sappy for a while now) but I truly am glad that Jesus is one of my true friends. I don’t know how I’d live without him. Peace!
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Best Buildings of the year
According to the American Institute of Architects, here are the best buildings this year.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
True meaning of friendship
I’ve talked before about good friends. What’s it mean to be a good friend. I told you about my HS test, the cliff scenario. Well, it’s time once again, yes, because I’ve procrastinated and I have an hour before Wed comes, it’s time for another quick blurb and story. Here is my other scenario for separating the wheat from the chaff, or in this case, the real friends from the poser friends.
First of all, we all have friends. It’s only natural because God has made us social animals. However, the degree of friendship is not the same for everyone. Some people may have lots of shallow friends, and they like it that way. That’s, oh-kay. If that’s what rings their bell, so be it. Other people have just one or two close friends, and that’s it. If that’s what tugs their boat, so be it for them. I think the average human will have a circle of really close friends, and then a wider circle of friends. But how can you find out for youself, which friend is close and which aren’t? Is it by how often you talk to one another? Is it by how much you can share with them? Getting warmer, but still not quite my definition. Is it how natural you can be around them? As in, you don’t have to hide some flaws. Getting there. Almost.
But first, let’s take a moment (and some blog space to lengthen this otherwise very short column) and discuss the other definitions, and why I think they’re don’t entirely encapsulate the meaning of close friends. First misconception is, the more you talk with someone, the better the friend. This case is simply not true at all. You or the friend could happen to be a great conversationalist. They (or you. In fact, let’s just assume “you” is a part of “they” for the rest of this paragraph…) can talk about anything, any time, any day. You talk cars, they know Ferraris, and how fast they go. You talk about politics, they’ll say things about the president and his foreign policies. They are the trivialists, a Jack of conversations. They know a lot of topics, but are masters of none. Just because the person loves to talk, doesn’t mean they are your best friend. It just means, they love to talk. Sure, the chances are greater that the more you talk to the person, the more comfortable you both feel, and the more likely you open up more. However, if that person has a terrible dark secret, and they can’t trust you, no matter how often you talk, that person isn’t going to reveal it.
Second, sharing a lot about personal lives is definitely a sign of a friend. However, it’s still not enough to say they are your “best” or “closest” friends. Knowing their great fears, or how their spiritual journey, may bring people closer, but it still won’t get you an invite to that awesome bash they’re throwing tomorrow night. Ooh, I heard Ricky Martin will be there. For example, I share a lot of things with some of my co-workers, but I still don’t “hang out” with them over the weekends. Usually, they got their own thang, and I got mine. So we talk about philosophy, and I even try to share the gospel with them, but it doesn’t necessarily mean I get invited to their wedding or to their kid’s birthday party. Also, just like the first argument, some people feel quite natural sharing. They can share their private most thoughts to anyone willing to hear. Maybe they like the attention… who knows?
The final argument, being yourself, while an important Fortune Cookie answer, doesn’t mean “best” friends. It means you have very accepting and open friends. I find that most non-Christian friends are like that. In general, they’re more accepting of your flaws than Christian friends. I dunno why. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they don’t really see sin. Or they never profess to be holy. So if you lie, cheat, steal, they’re like, ok. That’s just Nate being Nate. But if I did that to a Christian compadre, I’m liable to end up in Church Jail or worse, have to attend a prayer meeting! I’m kidding! I kid, I kid! Yes, you shouldn’t have to put on a mask when talking to your friends. And eventually, no matter how hard you try, eventually you’ll let something slip. The longer you know someone, the more your real “you” will be revealed. And once that happens, it’s possible you guys are no longer friends. And that would be a bad thing. I think.
First of all, we all have friends. It’s only natural because God has made us social animals. However, the degree of friendship is not the same for everyone. Some people may have lots of shallow friends, and they like it that way. That’s, oh-kay. If that’s what rings their bell, so be it. Other people have just one or two close friends, and that’s it. If that’s what tugs their boat, so be it for them. I think the average human will have a circle of really close friends, and then a wider circle of friends. But how can you find out for youself, which friend is close and which aren’t? Is it by how often you talk to one another? Is it by how much you can share with them? Getting warmer, but still not quite my definition. Is it how natural you can be around them? As in, you don’t have to hide some flaws. Getting there. Almost.
But first, let’s take a moment (and some blog space to lengthen this otherwise very short column) and discuss the other definitions, and why I think they’re don’t entirely encapsulate the meaning of close friends. First misconception is, the more you talk with someone, the better the friend. This case is simply not true at all. You or the friend could happen to be a great conversationalist. They (or you. In fact, let’s just assume “you” is a part of “they” for the rest of this paragraph…) can talk about anything, any time, any day. You talk cars, they know Ferraris, and how fast they go. You talk about politics, they’ll say things about the president and his foreign policies. They are the trivialists, a Jack of conversations. They know a lot of topics, but are masters of none. Just because the person loves to talk, doesn’t mean they are your best friend. It just means, they love to talk. Sure, the chances are greater that the more you talk to the person, the more comfortable you both feel, and the more likely you open up more. However, if that person has a terrible dark secret, and they can’t trust you, no matter how often you talk, that person isn’t going to reveal it.
Second, sharing a lot about personal lives is definitely a sign of a friend. However, it’s still not enough to say they are your “best” or “closest” friends. Knowing their great fears, or how their spiritual journey, may bring people closer, but it still won’t get you an invite to that awesome bash they’re throwing tomorrow night. Ooh, I heard Ricky Martin will be there. For example, I share a lot of things with some of my co-workers, but I still don’t “hang out” with them over the weekends. Usually, they got their own thang, and I got mine. So we talk about philosophy, and I even try to share the gospel with them, but it doesn’t necessarily mean I get invited to their wedding or to their kid’s birthday party. Also, just like the first argument, some people feel quite natural sharing. They can share their private most thoughts to anyone willing to hear. Maybe they like the attention… who knows?
The final argument, being yourself, while an important Fortune Cookie answer, doesn’t mean “best” friends. It means you have very accepting and open friends. I find that most non-Christian friends are like that. In general, they’re more accepting of your flaws than Christian friends. I dunno why. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they don’t really see sin. Or they never profess to be holy. So if you lie, cheat, steal, they’re like, ok. That’s just Nate being Nate. But if I did that to a Christian compadre, I’m liable to end up in Church Jail or worse, have to attend a prayer meeting! I’m kidding! I kid, I kid! Yes, you shouldn’t have to put on a mask when talking to your friends. And eventually, no matter how hard you try, eventually you’ll let something slip. The longer you know someone, the more your real “you” will be revealed. And once that happens, it’s possible you guys are no longer friends. And that would be a bad thing. I think.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Chicken or Egg
The debate over which came first has finally been solved! Scientists agree it was: haha, you think I"m going to tell you? Go find out yourself! Here!
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Circular Logic (Pt 2)
I can think of another instance where circular logic is used in Christian circles. Again, it fundamentally deals with God’s view versus our view. Have you ever wondered about God’s specific will in your life? We all know God’s general will, which is that all men may believe and be saved. And for the big, broad 150-foot view, as it were, we know God’s will as well. It’s been banged into our heads by well-meaning friends, Bible Study leaders, and pastors. “Just read the Bible.”, they say, “God’s will is contained within his Holy Book.” Really? So the Bible tells me whether I should get the 4Runner with the Sports Package or the 4Runner with the GPS or, maybe even both!
Knowing that kind of will has more impact on our lives than God’s General Will, I believe. It’s good to know that God has a general redemption plan, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for saving people, and getting them into Heaven. The more, the merrier, I always say. Well, unless the party is at my house, then my saying becomes, “The cleaner, the merrier… for ME”. However, it’s the specific will that impacts us most on a day-to-day basis. Should I date this person? Should I take this job? Should I buy a house now or rent and buy later? Should I get the Xbox 360 now, or wait for the inevitable price drop even though MS has indicated it will not drop their price by the end of this year?
These questions, sad to say, aren’t in the Bible, no matter how much we pray, close our eyes and just jump to a passage in the Bible. It’s not going to “speak” to you like that. It’s not how it “works”. You can’t use the Bible like Ouija Board, and expect it to give answers like that. So what do we do? How do we as Christians fumble around with our lives without clear direction from God? Well, I mentioned a little about it in a previous column, Will or Coincidence. But now, I’m talking about the flip side of it.
Here’s how Circular Logic plays out. I pray to God and ask for a Red Nissan Z, with the Touring Package and 18” rims. I go to the 5 nearest Nissan stores, and they all have every other Nissan Z except the Red one. I therefore conclude that it was God’s will I didn’t buy the car. But, what if I was able to buy the Z, now I conclude it was God’s will. Ok, that was a stupid example, let’s try a harder more complicated one.
Let’s say, just for the sake of this argument, again with no real basis in Real Life at all, let’s say I meet a girl. And so I pray about it. And then I say to God (and myself), “Ok God (and me), if I invite this girl to a movie this Friday, if she says yes, then it’s your Will be done.” However, if you ascribe to this logic, the fact that she can’t make it this Friday, must mean that it isn’t God’s Will. But what if she happens to be out of town that week, and she asks for a raincheck? Or she says, not Saturday, but how about Sunday? Nope, can’t do it. I specifically asked God for Saturday, so if it’s Sunday, it’s not His Will. Does that sound a little stupid to you?
Bottom line is, you can’t ascertain God’s will based on forecasts and predictions. You’re limiting God. And He doesn’t answer to you, you answer to Him. That’s how it works. And if it really is God’s Divine Will that you or I be with a certain someone, He’s going to keep ramming it down our throats until we say, “Ok, ok we get it! Now get us out of this whale!” (That is a reference to, you know, Jonah. And the WHALE! It’s always Jonah and the Whale, just like Eve and the apple.)
Knowing that kind of will has more impact on our lives than God’s General Will, I believe. It’s good to know that God has a general redemption plan, don’t get me wrong. I’m all for saving people, and getting them into Heaven. The more, the merrier, I always say. Well, unless the party is at my house, then my saying becomes, “The cleaner, the merrier… for ME”. However, it’s the specific will that impacts us most on a day-to-day basis. Should I date this person? Should I take this job? Should I buy a house now or rent and buy later? Should I get the Xbox 360 now, or wait for the inevitable price drop even though MS has indicated it will not drop their price by the end of this year?
These questions, sad to say, aren’t in the Bible, no matter how much we pray, close our eyes and just jump to a passage in the Bible. It’s not going to “speak” to you like that. It’s not how it “works”. You can’t use the Bible like Ouija Board, and expect it to give answers like that. So what do we do? How do we as Christians fumble around with our lives without clear direction from God? Well, I mentioned a little about it in a previous column, Will or Coincidence. But now, I’m talking about the flip side of it.
Here’s how Circular Logic plays out. I pray to God and ask for a Red Nissan Z, with the Touring Package and 18” rims. I go to the 5 nearest Nissan stores, and they all have every other Nissan Z except the Red one. I therefore conclude that it was God’s will I didn’t buy the car. But, what if I was able to buy the Z, now I conclude it was God’s will. Ok, that was a stupid example, let’s try a harder more complicated one.
Let’s say, just for the sake of this argument, again with no real basis in Real Life at all, let’s say I meet a girl. And so I pray about it. And then I say to God (and myself), “Ok God (and me), if I invite this girl to a movie this Friday, if she says yes, then it’s your Will be done.” However, if you ascribe to this logic, the fact that she can’t make it this Friday, must mean that it isn’t God’s Will. But what if she happens to be out of town that week, and she asks for a raincheck? Or she says, not Saturday, but how about Sunday? Nope, can’t do it. I specifically asked God for Saturday, so if it’s Sunday, it’s not His Will. Does that sound a little stupid to you?
Bottom line is, you can’t ascertain God’s will based on forecasts and predictions. You’re limiting God. And He doesn’t answer to you, you answer to Him. That’s how it works. And if it really is God’s Divine Will that you or I be with a certain someone, He’s going to keep ramming it down our throats until we say, “Ok, ok we get it! Now get us out of this whale!” (That is a reference to, you know, Jonah. And the WHALE! It’s always Jonah and the Whale, just like Eve and the apple.)
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Joke!
Stop me if you heard this one... oh wait.
Ok, skip it if you've already read this one....
A young boy had just gotten his driving permit. He asked his father, who was a minister, if they could discuss the use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, "I'll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your Bible a little and get your hair cut and we'll talk about it." After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father's study where his father said, "Son, I've been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you've studied your Bible diligently, but you didn't get your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I've been thinking about that. You know, Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair...." To which his father replied, "Yes, and they walked every where they went!"
Ok, skip it if you've already read this one....
A young boy had just gotten his driving permit. He asked his father, who was a minister, if they could discuss the use of the car. His father took him to his study and said to him, "I'll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up, study your Bible a little and get your hair cut and we'll talk about it." After about a month the boy came back and again asked his father if they could discuss use of the car. They again went to the father's study where his father said, "Son, I've been real proud of you. You have brought your grades up, you've studied your Bible diligently, but you didn't get your hair cut!"
The young man waited a moment and replied, "You know Dad, I've been thinking about that. You know, Samson had long hair, Moses had long hair, Noah had long hair, and even Jesus had long hair...." To which his father replied, "Yes, and they walked every where they went!"
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Circular Reasoning: A Christian's Best Friend
30 minutes before the deadline, and I'm not sure what to write about today. I figured I would go with my old standby, something that's been bugging me since I learned about Free Will and all that jazz.
There is a verse in the Bible that puts forth that once you are saved, you are always saved. Forgive me if I don't point out the verse, but as I've stated before, I'm under a certain time pressure. Just pretend for a second I know what I'm talking about. This verse causes a lot of problems, because we see a lot of times, firsthand, how someone professes to believe in Jesus, and then later on either stops caring about Jesus or altogether rejects him. This obviously goes counter to the Bible, and since the Bible is always right... we're in a quandry. What to do? Oh no! The sky is falling!
So, theologians and learned people use a special type of logic to appease the uneasy crowd. It goes something like this:
Statement A: Once you are saved you are always saved.
Statement B: Someone was saved, but has now fallen away.
Conclusion: Therefore that person was never saved in the first place.
Result: Both statements are now true.
So, if you look at each statement, by itself, they are all logical and true. However, the proof of the conclusion is contained within statement A. That makes it circular. Now, if someone was saved, and dies still believing in God, one would conclude that he was always saved. So basically, as people, we cannot know if someone was truly saved until they're dead. If a person believes in God, then falls away, then believes in God again, then falls away, then believes and dies... a person would say he was always saved. Does this make sense to you?
Now, I'm not saying that the Bible was wrong. This verse is hundred percent correct. What I am saying is that, we can't judge a person as saved or unsaved. That's not up to us, because we can't see into each other's hearts, and we can't see into the future. So what that means is, we need to take it on faith when someone says they're saved. If they prove you wrong, then you were wrong, not God. Or you could go the total opposite way, and not believe in people's salvation until they're at their deathbed, coughing up a lung. But that way leads to cynicism and isolation. It's not the way I would like to go, personally. My boss once said, "Trust is given, not earned." And that is something I believe.
There is a verse in the Bible that puts forth that once you are saved, you are always saved. Forgive me if I don't point out the verse, but as I've stated before, I'm under a certain time pressure. Just pretend for a second I know what I'm talking about. This verse causes a lot of problems, because we see a lot of times, firsthand, how someone professes to believe in Jesus, and then later on either stops caring about Jesus or altogether rejects him. This obviously goes counter to the Bible, and since the Bible is always right... we're in a quandry. What to do? Oh no! The sky is falling!
So, theologians and learned people use a special type of logic to appease the uneasy crowd. It goes something like this:
Statement A: Once you are saved you are always saved.
Statement B: Someone was saved, but has now fallen away.
Conclusion: Therefore that person was never saved in the first place.
Result: Both statements are now true.
So, if you look at each statement, by itself, they are all logical and true. However, the proof of the conclusion is contained within statement A. That makes it circular. Now, if someone was saved, and dies still believing in God, one would conclude that he was always saved. So basically, as people, we cannot know if someone was truly saved until they're dead. If a person believes in God, then falls away, then believes in God again, then falls away, then believes and dies... a person would say he was always saved. Does this make sense to you?
Now, I'm not saying that the Bible was wrong. This verse is hundred percent correct. What I am saying is that, we can't judge a person as saved or unsaved. That's not up to us, because we can't see into each other's hearts, and we can't see into the future. So what that means is, we need to take it on faith when someone says they're saved. If they prove you wrong, then you were wrong, not God. Or you could go the total opposite way, and not believe in people's salvation until they're at their deathbed, coughing up a lung. But that way leads to cynicism and isolation. It's not the way I would like to go, personally. My boss once said, "Trust is given, not earned." And that is something I believe.
Monday, July 17, 2006
How to cheat gooder
Happy Monday! Hope ya'll had a good weekend. Mine was pretty action-packed, with a wedding on Sat and a BBQ on Sun.
Here's a tongue-in-cheek list on how to avoid the sophisticated cheat-detection programs that University professors employ. Some of these tips are so good, it makes me wish I was back in college.... No, not really.
Here's a tongue-in-cheek list on how to avoid the sophisticated cheat-detection programs that University professors employ. Some of these tips are so good, it makes me wish I was back in college.... No, not really.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Game: Trivial Blitz
A very hard trivia game. 11 of the 16 answers on the board are correct, however if you get even one wrong, you lose the money and the round. See how much you can get! I got up to $2500 once. Plus I won a new car!
No Sleep Pill
A while ago, I had a post about a new type of sleeping pill. Now, there's a pill that does the opposite! It supposedly can suspend sleep for up to 36 hrs, without the usual mega-crash at the end! This could be the new "viagra" for students! (Or churchgoers... ha ha! Just kidding!)
Video: Why Macs suck
Happy Friday!
I gotta tell you, I get really upset with the new Mac Ads, that show how Macs are sooo much better than PC. Of course, they twist the truth, but that's advertising for you, eh?
A video in the style of the previous Apple ads. It's very funny when he gets all flustered.
Warning: There is some profanity.
I gotta tell you, I get really upset with the new Mac Ads, that show how Macs are sooo much better than PC. Of course, they twist the truth, but that's advertising for you, eh?
A video in the style of the previous Apple ads. It's very funny when he gets all flustered.
Warning: There is some profanity.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Great White Whale (Pt 2)
Zeal for God is good. Jesus tells us we need to love Him more than life itself. He wants us to spread the Good Word. In fact, contrary to his usual MO, Jesus flat out says it. “I will make you fishers of men.” “Go out and baptize the world.” But we can’t let this goal be the most important thing. It should be our passion, but it shouldn’t be our sole focus. When it does become our obsession, then that fat whale becomes the center of our lives, not Jesus. The ends don’t justify the means.
Lemme give you an example. China is a communist country that is often thought of as a religious oppressor. They don’t want any religion, only utter obedience and allegiance to the government. Decades ago, Christian missionaries, with good intentions, began to smuggle Christian tracts and Bibles into China to distribute. They say it’s to plan the seeds of Christ into a country with a quarter of the world’s population. Forward it to the present and people still have the same notions, to smuggle Bibles and Christian tracts into the country. But little do they know, that they don’t have to do that anymore. China produces and sells the Chinese Bible. Of course, you may be saying, China probably put some commie ideas into the Bible, further strengthening the devil government while weaking the power of Christ. Well, I don’t know what to say, but you probably need to step into the 21st century… Now, I don’t read the Chinese Bible, but I’ve heard from very reliable sources that the State-run Bible is the same as the Chinese Bible over here, not that the Chinese Bibles here are very accurate either.
But my point is, you can’t use the ends “spreading the Good word” to justify the means: “breaking the rules of a sovereign nation.” It’s not ok to break the rule to further your (yes, it’s yours! God never will ask you to break one of his own commandments) own agenda. As Peter says, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men.” (1 Pe 2:13). And if you don’t like to listen to the first pope of the Catholic Church, here’s something from Paul: “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good…” (Tit 3:1) And if you think Paul is nothing but a big bag of wind, listen to the big J-to-the-C. “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Mat 22:21)In other words, obey the Government! Believe it or not, all rulers and authority has been ordained by God. So when you subject yourself to its rule, you’re subjecting yourself to God’s rule. And if you do break the rules, prepare to accept the punishment that results.
Let’s take this example a step further. Ok, so perhaps China is more amenable to Christianity, but what about countries where it is more hostile to the Christian religion in particular? Countries with theocracies, most notably Muslim nations, such as Iran, what about them? Places where even talking about Christianity is subject to death. Is it alright to break the law then? Hrmm… good question. Stay tuned next week to find out! Or maybe not. Depends on where the Spirit leads.
Lemme give you an example. China is a communist country that is often thought of as a religious oppressor. They don’t want any religion, only utter obedience and allegiance to the government. Decades ago, Christian missionaries, with good intentions, began to smuggle Christian tracts and Bibles into China to distribute. They say it’s to plan the seeds of Christ into a country with a quarter of the world’s population. Forward it to the present and people still have the same notions, to smuggle Bibles and Christian tracts into the country. But little do they know, that they don’t have to do that anymore. China produces and sells the Chinese Bible. Of course, you may be saying, China probably put some commie ideas into the Bible, further strengthening the devil government while weaking the power of Christ. Well, I don’t know what to say, but you probably need to step into the 21st century… Now, I don’t read the Chinese Bible, but I’ve heard from very reliable sources that the State-run Bible is the same as the Chinese Bible over here, not that the Chinese Bibles here are very accurate either.
But my point is, you can’t use the ends “spreading the Good word” to justify the means: “breaking the rules of a sovereign nation.” It’s not ok to break the rule to further your (yes, it’s yours! God never will ask you to break one of his own commandments) own agenda. As Peter says, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men.” (1 Pe 2:13). And if you don’t like to listen to the first pope of the Catholic Church, here’s something from Paul: “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good…” (Tit 3:1) And if you think Paul is nothing but a big bag of wind, listen to the big J-to-the-C. “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Mat 22:21)In other words, obey the Government! Believe it or not, all rulers and authority has been ordained by God. So when you subject yourself to its rule, you’re subjecting yourself to God’s rule. And if you do break the rules, prepare to accept the punishment that results.
Let’s take this example a step further. Ok, so perhaps China is more amenable to Christianity, but what about countries where it is more hostile to the Christian religion in particular? Countries with theocracies, most notably Muslim nations, such as Iran, what about them? Places where even talking about Christianity is subject to death. Is it alright to break the law then? Hrmm… good question. Stay tuned next week to find out! Or maybe not. Depends on where the Spirit leads.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Best Buy Secret... Exposed!
Well, I apologize for the lack of links the past week. I was on vacation, and amazingly enough, didn't have a chance to do any real blogging stuff. So to make up for it, here's an interesting article on how Best Buy numbers work.
While walking out of Best Buy (or Fry's Lite as I like to call it), have you ever noticed these wierd numbers they place on the wall above (or near) the doors? Well this guy explains it all to you. Read it, memorize it, and amaze people at parties!
While walking out of Best Buy (or Fry's Lite as I like to call it), have you ever noticed these wierd numbers they place on the wall above (or near) the doors? Well this guy explains it all to you. Read it, memorize it, and amaze people at parties!
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Great White Whale (Pt 1)
Hunting the great white whale
You might have heard this phrase before… hunting the great white whale. It’s from Moby Dick, a book oft analyzed by high school students on the cusp of intellectual discourse, who think it’s cool or mature to discuss the “Great Themes” of the book. But just because you can talk about the symbolism of the dumb whale and his broadly-written obsessed captain without sounding stupid, doesn’t mean you’re ready to discuss the finer details of “Tropic of Capricorn”. It’s like saying just because you can trace your hand on a piece of paper it doesn’t mean you’re ready to paint a classic like “Dogs playing poker”. Likewise, I hate poetry classes. Not poetry writing classes, of course. But those inane freshman required courses like “Introduction to Poetry.” I want to know, how the reader can guess as to what the poet is really trying to say, without the poet telling you what he’s trying to say. Maybe he’s using a ABBA scheme because he happens to like Abba, and wants to use his poems to reflect that. Or maybe the reason the poet uses the word “banana” instead of “fruit” is because he likes to type the word, and it has a lot of a’s.
What I hate is when a class is analyzing a poem, and then start randomly BSing about how the poet uses this rhyming scheme because it represents her childhood when in France, she probably tread grapes as a girl. The worst thing is when I hand in poems, and along the border, the college TA (pretty much a senior that managed to get an “A” in the course 4 years ago) writes about how he likes the word choice I use, because it evokes the feeling of summer. When in reality, I used the word “verdant” because I was tired of writing “green”, and that’s what the Word Thesaurus suggested. Sometimes a rose really is a rose!
Sorry about the rant. Let’s get back on topic, shall we? (C’mon readers, you need to let me know when I start rambling. This is a two-way street.) “Hunting the great whale” means that we’re all searching for something we can’t have. Either because it’s impossible, or because it’s rare and elusive. So, for me, hunting the great white whale might mean, that I’m searching for a supermodel when the best I can hope for is “a girl who occasionally washes herself once a month”. But it’s human nature to always want things we can’t get. It’s called ambition, and it’s what drives us humans to discover, invent, and analyze. God gave Adam ambition, otherwise, Adam would have been bored in the Garden of Eden. Instead, he went around naming things. (I mean, how cool is that job? I would love to be in charge of naming things. If I had that power, I would give things names similar to banana. So instead of watermelon, it would be called, “watamala”. And pumpkin would be called pamapaka. I mean, would you rather eat broccoli, that’s hard to spell because who knows if it has one c or two l’s, or would you like to eat a bracala? It just sounds so much more festive!)
In general, a little ambition is a good thing. But this quote actually has a negative connotation. It’s when ambition consumes a person, that’s when this quote is applied. When all the person can think about is getting that object, and is willing to sacrifice everything to get it, that’s when it becomes bad. Most often in this case, the person’s philosophy changes to “ends justify the means”. Someone so consumed with ambition, will often do anything (most often illegally) to obtain the object. Going back to the supermodel idea, it might start innocently enough, googling her, and finding out her interests. You know, so you can strike up a conversation with her. But that can easily slide into “stalking” where you follow her around all the time, so you can see her secret desires. And this can deteriorate rapidly into calling her at odd times of the night and hanging up on her. But what does it matter, as long as she’s mine! Mwuahaha. Umm… not that I would do such a thing. I’m just saying ...
You might have heard this phrase before… hunting the great white whale. It’s from Moby Dick, a book oft analyzed by high school students on the cusp of intellectual discourse, who think it’s cool or mature to discuss the “Great Themes” of the book. But just because you can talk about the symbolism of the dumb whale and his broadly-written obsessed captain without sounding stupid, doesn’t mean you’re ready to discuss the finer details of “Tropic of Capricorn”. It’s like saying just because you can trace your hand on a piece of paper it doesn’t mean you’re ready to paint a classic like “Dogs playing poker”. Likewise, I hate poetry classes. Not poetry writing classes, of course. But those inane freshman required courses like “Introduction to Poetry.” I want to know, how the reader can guess as to what the poet is really trying to say, without the poet telling you what he’s trying to say. Maybe he’s using a ABBA scheme because he happens to like Abba, and wants to use his poems to reflect that. Or maybe the reason the poet uses the word “banana” instead of “fruit” is because he likes to type the word, and it has a lot of a’s.
What I hate is when a class is analyzing a poem, and then start randomly BSing about how the poet uses this rhyming scheme because it represents her childhood when in France, she probably tread grapes as a girl. The worst thing is when I hand in poems, and along the border, the college TA (pretty much a senior that managed to get an “A” in the course 4 years ago) writes about how he likes the word choice I use, because it evokes the feeling of summer. When in reality, I used the word “verdant” because I was tired of writing “green”, and that’s what the Word Thesaurus suggested. Sometimes a rose really is a rose!
Sorry about the rant. Let’s get back on topic, shall we? (C’mon readers, you need to let me know when I start rambling. This is a two-way street.) “Hunting the great whale” means that we’re all searching for something we can’t have. Either because it’s impossible, or because it’s rare and elusive. So, for me, hunting the great white whale might mean, that I’m searching for a supermodel when the best I can hope for is “a girl who occasionally washes herself once a month”. But it’s human nature to always want things we can’t get. It’s called ambition, and it’s what drives us humans to discover, invent, and analyze. God gave Adam ambition, otherwise, Adam would have been bored in the Garden of Eden. Instead, he went around naming things. (I mean, how cool is that job? I would love to be in charge of naming things. If I had that power, I would give things names similar to banana. So instead of watermelon, it would be called, “watamala”. And pumpkin would be called pamapaka. I mean, would you rather eat broccoli, that’s hard to spell because who knows if it has one c or two l’s, or would you like to eat a bracala? It just sounds so much more festive!)
In general, a little ambition is a good thing. But this quote actually has a negative connotation. It’s when ambition consumes a person, that’s when this quote is applied. When all the person can think about is getting that object, and is willing to sacrifice everything to get it, that’s when it becomes bad. Most often in this case, the person’s philosophy changes to “ends justify the means”. Someone so consumed with ambition, will often do anything (most often illegally) to obtain the object. Going back to the supermodel idea, it might start innocently enough, googling her, and finding out her interests. You know, so you can strike up a conversation with her. But that can easily slide into “stalking” where you follow her around all the time, so you can see her secret desires. And this can deteriorate rapidly into calling her at odd times of the night and hanging up on her. But what does it matter, as long as she’s mine! Mwuahaha. Umm… not that I would do such a thing. I’m just saying ...
Saturday, July 08, 2006
God’s Will or Coincidence? (Pt. 2)
Boy, time flies when you're on vacation. I'm sorry this was so late. Although I doubt anyone noticed :P
Oftentimes, even if circumstances seem to tell me one thing, how do I know that it isn’t coincidence? If everything that happens is planned by God, then does that mean coincidences don’t exist? Let’s take a completely fictitious, crazy example that in no way reflects my life. Say… I’m interested in a girl (once again, let me remind you, dear readers, that this is just an example, don’t read into this!). And I pray to God about her. “Dear Lord, if this girl is the one for me, give me a sign!” Now, maybe a couple of weeks later, I find myself serving food to the homeless shelter with that girl. Wow! Is that a miracle or what? This must be a sign from God! Or is it? Couldn’t this just be simply a harmless coincidence?
I’ve read many psychological texts which say basically that when you are interested or paying attention to something, you are more apt to find linkages or coincidences pertaining to that something. It’s like if you like a movie star and then you find out that both of you like the color blue. If you didn’t like the star, you could care less what the star’s favorite color is, but because you are interested, you say to yourself that it’s fate or something. I think that same effect happens when I’m looking for signs from God. If I am interested in my future, I subconsciously start looking for any connections, no matter how tenuous that would support my decision.
But maybe that’s how God works! Maybe for big life-altering decisions, He wants you to look out for any confirmation, no matter how slight. In this case, there are no coincidences, at least with respect to the decision. Does God order every detail of someone’s steps all the time? No, I don’t believe that. That is why God Himself, created rules. These rules aren’t man’s rules like Blackaby’s. No, these are natural rules ingrained in his creation. These are rules like you need a sperm and an egg to create a baby. Or less controversially, rules like everything exerts some force of gravity, and the magnitude of that force is directly proportional to the mass of the object. Therefore since we are massivly smaller than Earth, we are attracted to it, rather than the other way around. So if I were to fall off a building, it’s not God who is pushing me toward the ground, it’s the law of gravity that’s doing it. So when some accidents happen, there may not be God’s hand in it, it’s nature following the rules that God created. But God does order our steps. I truly believe He’s got an idea of what my future self should be. And he creates situations where I can become closer to that future ideal or I can fail in that situation. But luckily for me and you, He doesn’t give up when we fail. Honestly, thank God for his patience. When we do fail, He will set up other situations where I get the chance again to be that future self.
So, how do I know something is God’s will? It’s easy, it occurs through the situations of your life, or circumstances as Blackaby puts it. And even if you do mess up that situation horribly, don’t worry, you aren’t forever on the wrong path. God will simply set up more and more things in your way that will nudge you in the right direction. Another way to look at it is, if you find yourself being challenged with the same types of challenges, and you’ve run away from them in the past, maybe you should stop and re-examine your decision closely. Maybe it’s really a message from God.
Oftentimes, even if circumstances seem to tell me one thing, how do I know that it isn’t coincidence? If everything that happens is planned by God, then does that mean coincidences don’t exist? Let’s take a completely fictitious, crazy example that in no way reflects my life. Say… I’m interested in a girl (once again, let me remind you, dear readers, that this is just an example, don’t read into this!). And I pray to God about her. “Dear Lord, if this girl is the one for me, give me a sign!” Now, maybe a couple of weeks later, I find myself serving food to the homeless shelter with that girl. Wow! Is that a miracle or what? This must be a sign from God! Or is it? Couldn’t this just be simply a harmless coincidence?
I’ve read many psychological texts which say basically that when you are interested or paying attention to something, you are more apt to find linkages or coincidences pertaining to that something. It’s like if you like a movie star and then you find out that both of you like the color blue. If you didn’t like the star, you could care less what the star’s favorite color is, but because you are interested, you say to yourself that it’s fate or something. I think that same effect happens when I’m looking for signs from God. If I am interested in my future, I subconsciously start looking for any connections, no matter how tenuous that would support my decision.
But maybe that’s how God works! Maybe for big life-altering decisions, He wants you to look out for any confirmation, no matter how slight. In this case, there are no coincidences, at least with respect to the decision. Does God order every detail of someone’s steps all the time? No, I don’t believe that. That is why God Himself, created rules. These rules aren’t man’s rules like Blackaby’s. No, these are natural rules ingrained in his creation. These are rules like you need a sperm and an egg to create a baby. Or less controversially, rules like everything exerts some force of gravity, and the magnitude of that force is directly proportional to the mass of the object. Therefore since we are massivly smaller than Earth, we are attracted to it, rather than the other way around. So if I were to fall off a building, it’s not God who is pushing me toward the ground, it’s the law of gravity that’s doing it. So when some accidents happen, there may not be God’s hand in it, it’s nature following the rules that God created. But God does order our steps. I truly believe He’s got an idea of what my future self should be. And he creates situations where I can become closer to that future ideal or I can fail in that situation. But luckily for me and you, He doesn’t give up when we fail. Honestly, thank God for his patience. When we do fail, He will set up other situations where I get the chance again to be that future self.
So, how do I know something is God’s will? It’s easy, it occurs through the situations of your life, or circumstances as Blackaby puts it. And even if you do mess up that situation horribly, don’t worry, you aren’t forever on the wrong path. God will simply set up more and more things in your way that will nudge you in the right direction. Another way to look at it is, if you find yourself being challenged with the same types of challenges, and you’ve run away from them in the past, maybe you should stop and re-examine your decision closely. Maybe it’s really a message from God.
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
God's Will or Coincidence? (Pt. 1)
Have you ever had this happen to you? You are very depressed and you don’t know who to talk to or what to do next. So you pray to God for him to show you the way and you crack open your Bible, and then you randomly flip to a passage and start reading. And the answer you seek is right there! That must be a miracle! Or you’re wondering whether to quit your job that you hate, and start going into full-time ministry. You’ve listed all the pros and cons and put them all in neat orderly rows. And then you pray to God, with the list in your hand. Then you wait. And suddenly the answer comes to you! And you know exactly what to do.
Well, it hasn’t happened like that for me at all. I’m not saying that God doesn’t speak to people nowadays, I still believe in prophets and messengers from God. But so far for me, personally, God never talked to me in a clear manner. There’s always doubt lurking in the back of my mind. Did God really tell me to do that? Or is it just my inner desires talking? How can I know for sure?
According to the author, Henry Blackaby, in his book Experiencing God, there are 5 ways to tell if God wants you to do something. The only reason I remember this is because I led a Bible Study about it. Also, it’s the only thing I remember from my Bible Study. Yeah… it was so boring, even I fell asleep! Anyway, here they are.
Got it? Good! See? I saved you money, now you don’t have to buy the book. Just kidding, Mr. Blackaby! Don’t sue me!
To sum up his book, you will know if God wants you to do something when you receive the same message from 2 or 3 of the above sources. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But it’s never as cut and dried as that. You can’t put God in a cookie cutter, and expect Him to follow your or any mortal’s rules. He’s above that. If everybody always required 2 or 3 confirmations, then some things would never get done. You know, important missionary stuff. (Note to Bob: Have my research staff give some examples here.)
Well, it hasn’t happened like that for me at all. I’m not saying that God doesn’t speak to people nowadays, I still believe in prophets and messengers from God. But so far for me, personally, God never talked to me in a clear manner. There’s always doubt lurking in the back of my mind. Did God really tell me to do that? Or is it just my inner desires talking? How can I know for sure?
According to the author, Henry Blackaby, in his book Experiencing God, there are 5 ways to tell if God wants you to do something. The only reason I remember this is because I led a Bible Study about it. Also, it’s the only thing I remember from my Bible Study. Yeah… it was so boring, even I fell asleep! Anyway, here they are.
- Bible
- Prayer
- Circumstances
- Church
- Direct
Got it? Good! See? I saved you money, now you don’t have to buy the book. Just kidding, Mr. Blackaby! Don’t sue me!
To sum up his book, you will know if God wants you to do something when you receive the same message from 2 or 3 of the above sources. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But it’s never as cut and dried as that. You can’t put God in a cookie cutter, and expect Him to follow your or any mortal’s rules. He’s above that. If everybody always required 2 or 3 confirmations, then some things would never get done. You know, important missionary stuff. (Note to Bob: Have my research staff give some examples here.)
Monday, July 03, 2006
Invisibility Cloak
Well, despite being on vacation right now in Maryland, my blog lives on! Nothing can stop me, mwahahha!
Set phasers on stun! Soon, cloaking-devices may come to the real world! Check the article here. But can you imagine the havok this would cause? People would be able to walk in and rob a bank. Not that I would do that or anything...
Set phasers on stun! Soon, cloaking-devices may come to the real world! Check the article here. But can you imagine the havok this would cause? People would be able to walk in and rob a bank. Not that I would do that or anything...
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