Back in September I mentioned that Smiley had started pretending. His imagination has passed two more milestones.
First, he now clearly cares about his stuffed animals in ways he did not before. He not only hugs them for his own comfort, but he pretends to feed them, gives them a blue cloth to hold, takes them for rides in his doll stroller, and becomes distraught when they fall down as if they could get hurt.
Second, he today did his first pretending that involves imagining an object is something completely unlike what it really is. Before he would drive toy cars on the ground, pretend a bowl had food in it, etc. Today he pretended two of his wooden blocks were bottles of lotion, and used them to put imaginary lotion on my cheeks as we do after I shave.
He also used grammar for the first time today.
As a bit of preface, I need to share that during the past few days he changed how he said "yummy" from yurm-yurm to nyum-nyum and his usage also broadened. Yurm-yurm always meant precisely yummy: "that is something am looking forward to eating, or am enjoying eating." But now nyum-nyum can describe anything he enjoys: for example, yesterday afternoon he said it repeatedly while being happily reunited with two of his stuffed animals after his nap.
This afternoon I had to interrupt him playing with his duplo train to change his diaper. Before taking him off the changing table, I asked him, "Do you want to go back to your train, or do you want to help me with laundry downstairs and climb on the bed?" (I fold laundry after bringing it up to my bed, and being allowed on the bed is an unusual treat.)
He replied, "Nyum-nyum choo-choo." I'm not sure if that involved an adjective or a verb ("enjoyable train" or "I'll enjoy the train"). But either way, I think it was his first spoken syntax.
This morning he also did something new with toys. He had built a tower of duplo squares (at his age we've restricted his duplos to train cars and 2-by-2 cubes to minimize his frustrations) but wanted it to be even taller. So he went into his cupboard and took out three pieces of wood. He appeared unsure exactly what he wanted, but using gestures he asked me to add the wood to his tower. I stacked the wood on the floor and set the tower on top of it, which pleased him.
Except for using some toys as containers and other toys as items to put inside, this is the first time I can think of that he combined types of toys to do something.
Finally, he still cannot do color matching.
He owns a bunch of eight-sided dice of different colors. These were initially merely things nice to put inside containers, or share with people. Then they became small blocks to stack. Later they also became small things that work well as cargo for his toy dump truck and front loader to carry. Eventually we can use them to help learn numbers (both counting how many dice and looking at the numbers on the dice) and colors.
Anyway, today when he asked me to read his book about colors I wondered if he could match the dice to the colors shown in the book. He did much better than randomly, picking the green and yellow dice when looking at those pages in the book. But when I repeated the experiment with colored blocks he no longer made any correct matches. He must have been lucky.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Monday, December 07, 2009
Monk Puns
Jewish humor has the village of Chelm.
I propose a new archetype: the pun-fortunate Monastery of Mendelian Monks.
In its early days, the Abbey of Saint Theodore was only famous as a place where heretics were judged. In 1822 a violent, midget warlock was caught speaking with the dead. He was brought to the abbey in chains, to be sentenced by the abbot, but the next day escaped. The abbot hired a boy to run through the nearest town to warn people about a small medium at large.
Many monasteries are known for their practical yet beautiful gardens, and the Abbey of Saint Theodore was no exception. However, in the late 1800s its location near the sea allowed that abbey, during the life of Brother Bruno, a monk with particularly brilliant culinary ability, to also be famous for its fish and chips. Bruno's fame lasted nineteen years, until a scandal happened when a food critic from Prague visited the abbey and discovered that it was actually the chef's assistant, Brother Alvin, that prepared the fish so exquisitely: Bruno himself only had skill with potatoes. Soon all of Prague was gossiping about Alvin and the Chip Monk.
Brother Alvin the fish chef also became famous for his failed theory that a meditative trance could prevent pain during surgery. (All other Mendelian Monks used special herbs they had developed, which could numb an area quite well.) Alvin tested this idea himself while having a tooth pulled. The trance did not lessen the pain; he could not transcend dental medication.
After the Order of Mendel was established in the early 1900s, the Abbey of Saint Theodore became a hub of biology research. Initially the monks only had success in developing new kinds of plants. Their attempts to breed lizards were all disastrous cases of reptile dysfunction.
Inspired by their success in creating new and beautiful plants, some of the Mendelian Monks began selling flowers. The abbot was horrified at monks using their order's secret knowledge for personal financial gain, and ordered a stop to all selling of plant material. But one monk ignored the decree. The abbot could not discover which monk was rebellious until he hired a detective named Hugh Hurvl. In gratitude the abbot proclaimed that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.
In the 1920s the Mendelian Monks found how to breed marine mammals that could live forever if fed seagull meat. An immoral monk participating in that project began to trap seagulls on a nearby private beach owned by a nobleman named Count Rulf. Rulf noticed footprints on the beach and thought robbers were visiting the beach at night to plan a burglary, so he purchased two trained lions to patrol his property. The next day the monk encountered the lions, but used his secret Mendelian animal lore to put them to sleep. However, after trapping another seagull that monk was seen by the Count and arrested for transporting gulls across sedate lions for immortal porpoises.
Another famous Mandelian Monk was Brother Hiltguard, who by day saw genuine, glorious visions of his Lord but by night was plagued by nightmares in which his Savior spoke to him with urgent words impossible to understand because the Son of God had steaming, putrid breath. Brother Hiltguard always walked barefoot, even in Winter, and the soles of his feet grew so tough that he could walk comfortably on snow. The rest of his body was not as resistant to cold, however, and he died of pneumonia: a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
I propose a new archetype: the pun-fortunate Monastery of Mendelian Monks.
In its early days, the Abbey of Saint Theodore was only famous as a place where heretics were judged. In 1822 a violent, midget warlock was caught speaking with the dead. He was brought to the abbey in chains, to be sentenced by the abbot, but the next day escaped. The abbot hired a boy to run through the nearest town to warn people about a small medium at large.
Many monasteries are known for their practical yet beautiful gardens, and the Abbey of Saint Theodore was no exception. However, in the late 1800s its location near the sea allowed that abbey, during the life of Brother Bruno, a monk with particularly brilliant culinary ability, to also be famous for its fish and chips. Bruno's fame lasted nineteen years, until a scandal happened when a food critic from Prague visited the abbey and discovered that it was actually the chef's assistant, Brother Alvin, that prepared the fish so exquisitely: Bruno himself only had skill with potatoes. Soon all of Prague was gossiping about Alvin and the Chip Monk.
Brother Alvin the fish chef also became famous for his failed theory that a meditative trance could prevent pain during surgery. (All other Mendelian Monks used special herbs they had developed, which could numb an area quite well.) Alvin tested this idea himself while having a tooth pulled. The trance did not lessen the pain; he could not transcend dental medication.
After the Order of Mendel was established in the early 1900s, the Abbey of Saint Theodore became a hub of biology research. Initially the monks only had success in developing new kinds of plants. Their attempts to breed lizards were all disastrous cases of reptile dysfunction.
Inspired by their success in creating new and beautiful plants, some of the Mendelian Monks began selling flowers. The abbot was horrified at monks using their order's secret knowledge for personal financial gain, and ordered a stop to all selling of plant material. But one monk ignored the decree. The abbot could not discover which monk was rebellious until he hired a detective named Hugh Hurvl. In gratitude the abbot proclaimed that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.
In the 1920s the Mendelian Monks found how to breed marine mammals that could live forever if fed seagull meat. An immoral monk participating in that project began to trap seagulls on a nearby private beach owned by a nobleman named Count Rulf. Rulf noticed footprints on the beach and thought robbers were visiting the beach at night to plan a burglary, so he purchased two trained lions to patrol his property. The next day the monk encountered the lions, but used his secret Mendelian animal lore to put them to sleep. However, after trapping another seagull that monk was seen by the Count and arrested for transporting gulls across sedate lions for immortal porpoises.
Another famous Mandelian Monk was Brother Hiltguard, who by day saw genuine, glorious visions of his Lord but by night was plagued by nightmares in which his Savior spoke to him with urgent words impossible to understand because the Son of God had steaming, putrid breath. Brother Hiltguard always walked barefoot, even in Winter, and the soles of his feet grew so tough that he could walk comfortably on snow. The rest of his body was not as resistant to cold, however, and he died of pneumonia: a super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
Busy Outings
Today was a very busy day!
Smiley used to have a limit of three stores before he would melt down, frustrated at switching so much between being in and out of the car. But today we managed ten!
I've never heard of "shopping patience" as a developmental milestone, but perhaps it should be.
We went to St. Vincent de Paul's because they are currently accepting donations of styrofoam peantus and we had a big box of those to get rid of. Then we went to REI to return a plastic mug that made tea taste like plastic. Next to REI is a Used Bookstore I have been curious about, so we stopped there and Smiley got two Little Golden Books. Then we went to Hartiwck's to return a strange kitchen gadget I had bought as a joke gift for my aunt, only to have my wife had remind me I had given her one years ago. Then we drove to the local State Tax Office to pay our quarterly taxes so I would not need to do so next month during the busy days as the Winter Term started. Then we went to Toys 'R Us to buy a car window shade for Smiley's window. Then to True Value, where we returned a salt and pepper shaker set we did not need and bought more storage boxes for Smiley's closet. Then to OfficeMax to donate empty inkjet cartridges. Then a snack at the Supreme Bean coffee shop, which was supposed to be a treat for Smiley but he was too busy flirting with another customer to eat. Finally to Safeway, since we needed more organic whole milk before his nap.
Whew!
Can you tell I don't like driving somewhere just to return something? Items to return tend to collect in the car's trunk for a month or more, and eventually I do a bunch at once.
Smiley used to have a limit of three stores before he would melt down, frustrated at switching so much between being in and out of the car. But today we managed ten!
I've never heard of "shopping patience" as a developmental milestone, but perhaps it should be.
We went to St. Vincent de Paul's because they are currently accepting donations of styrofoam peantus and we had a big box of those to get rid of. Then we went to REI to return a plastic mug that made tea taste like plastic. Next to REI is a Used Bookstore I have been curious about, so we stopped there and Smiley got two Little Golden Books. Then we went to Hartiwck's to return a strange kitchen gadget I had bought as a joke gift for my aunt, only to have my wife had remind me I had given her one years ago. Then we drove to the local State Tax Office to pay our quarterly taxes so I would not need to do so next month during the busy days as the Winter Term started. Then we went to Toys 'R Us to buy a car window shade for Smiley's window. Then to True Value, where we returned a salt and pepper shaker set we did not need and bought more storage boxes for Smiley's closet. Then to OfficeMax to donate empty inkjet cartridges. Then a snack at the Supreme Bean coffee shop, which was supposed to be a treat for Smiley but he was too busy flirting with another customer to eat. Finally to Safeway, since we needed more organic whole milk before his nap.
Whew!
Can you tell I don't like driving somewhere just to return something? Items to return tend to collect in the car's trunk for a month or more, and eventually I do a bunch at once.
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Dutch Sheets on Intercessory Prayer
Last week I finally finished reading Intercessory Prayer by Dutch Sheets.
The book took me a very long time to read, because it is exactly the kind of book I cannot stand. Some people find it very readable to learn theology from anecdotes and poor scholarship. But my mathematician's mind prefers a concise set of assertions and supporting facts, and I wince at Biblical word studies formed from abusing Strong's and invoking the "Law of First Mention" (at the very least use the BDB and check on every instance of the word in scripture)!
However, I know many people who are really fond of the book. So, for the sake of discussions with them, I finally finished it.
I was determined to find worthwhile teaching in the book, to talk about with my friends. I extracted about one idea per chapter, which I reorganized and paraphrased below.
I should also add that I do appreciate what the book attempts. The topic of "spiritual warfare" is huge in contemporary Christian circles and certainly deserves a short, readable introduction to the subject. The book, although a poor match for me, has helped many people. As far as I know, no similar but better book is out there. Internet resources are no better: for example, the website Prayer Warrior even lacks its own articles directory!)
I also enjoyed learning a bit more about Duch Sheets. Before reading the book all I knew about the author was from reading his response to the Lakeland scandal last year. (That statement was mentioned by friends in Israel who pointed out that Pastor Sheets, by claiming he must obey God and become a self-appointed spokesman for others, was actually exemplifying the lack of consultation, confirmation, and submission for which he apologizes. It wasn't the most favorable introduction to the man.) I do enjoy anecdotes about how God has used people--just not in the middle of a chapter teaching theology.
Without further caveats, here is the "good parts" version of the book.
We are distributors of good things God provides in Yeshua's name (pages 41-42, chapter 3). What do we distribute?
When praying, we can benefit from God-given timing (pages 82-83, chapter 6) and aim (pages 96-98, chapter 7). To paraphrase, we must actively follow directions to distribute those good things from God.
Part of distributing good things from God is to pray for the removal of what prevents the distribution from being received. Prayer itself accomplishes much; prayer is more than merely asking God to accomplish something (pages 200 and 208, chapter 12). Similarly, the words spoken by prophets themselves accomplished much and were not merely a declaration of what God was accomplishing (page 225, chapter 13).
People resist perceiving God and receiving from God when they exalt themselves, their plans, or philosophies (pages 168-175, chapter 10). Counters to these three exaltations were carried in the Ark (Aaron's rod proclaiming God's authority, mana that reminds us of God's provision, and the tablets of the Sinai covenant) and should similarly be visible in the lives of Yeshua's followers (page 192, chapter 11).
The Adversary, despite lacking the authority to do so, still attempts to use his power to oppose what God is doing (page 153, chapter 9). God does not automatically protect his people from the Adversary; we are told to stay alert because God often prefers to warn us about opposition so that we may participate in resisting it (page 237, chapter 14). Therefore, a fifth good thing we distribute is warnings about and prayers against the Adversary's attacks.
The book took me a very long time to read, because it is exactly the kind of book I cannot stand. Some people find it very readable to learn theology from anecdotes and poor scholarship. But my mathematician's mind prefers a concise set of assertions and supporting facts, and I wince at Biblical word studies formed from abusing Strong's and invoking the "Law of First Mention" (at the very least use the BDB and check on every instance of the word in scripture)!
However, I know many people who are really fond of the book. So, for the sake of discussions with them, I finally finished it.
I was determined to find worthwhile teaching in the book, to talk about with my friends. I extracted about one idea per chapter, which I reorganized and paraphrased below.
I should also add that I do appreciate what the book attempts. The topic of "spiritual warfare" is huge in contemporary Christian circles and certainly deserves a short, readable introduction to the subject. The book, although a poor match for me, has helped many people. As far as I know, no similar but better book is out there. Internet resources are no better: for example, the website Prayer Warrior even lacks its own articles directory!)
I also enjoyed learning a bit more about Duch Sheets. Before reading the book all I knew about the author was from reading his response to the Lakeland scandal last year. (That statement was mentioned by friends in Israel who pointed out that Pastor Sheets, by claiming he must obey God and become a self-appointed spokesman for others, was actually exemplifying the lack of consultation, confirmation, and submission for which he apologizes. It wasn't the most favorable introduction to the man.) I do enjoy anecdotes about how God has used people--just not in the middle of a chapter teaching theology.
Without further caveats, here is the "good parts" version of the book.
We are distributors of good things God provides in Yeshua's name (pages 41-42, chapter 3). What do we distribute?
- meetings of God's mercy and God's justice (page 51, chapter 4)
- experiences of God's presence (page 52, chapter 4)
- the Holy Spirit hovering over a person or place (pages 122-123, chapter 8)
- removing evil through our helping bear its pain and suffering (pages 66-67, chapter 5)
When praying, we can benefit from God-given timing (pages 82-83, chapter 6) and aim (pages 96-98, chapter 7). To paraphrase, we must actively follow directions to distribute those good things from God.
Part of distributing good things from God is to pray for the removal of what prevents the distribution from being received. Prayer itself accomplishes much; prayer is more than merely asking God to accomplish something (pages 200 and 208, chapter 12). Similarly, the words spoken by prophets themselves accomplished much and were not merely a declaration of what God was accomplishing (page 225, chapter 13).
People resist perceiving God and receiving from God when they exalt themselves, their plans, or philosophies (pages 168-175, chapter 10). Counters to these three exaltations were carried in the Ark (Aaron's rod proclaiming God's authority, mana that reminds us of God's provision, and the tablets of the Sinai covenant) and should similarly be visible in the lives of Yeshua's followers (page 192, chapter 11).
The Adversary, despite lacking the authority to do so, still attempts to use his power to oppose what God is doing (page 153, chapter 9). God does not automatically protect his people from the Adversary; we are told to stay alert because God often prefers to warn us about opposition so that we may participate in resisting it (page 237, chapter 14). Therefore, a fifth good thing we distribute is warnings about and prayers against the Adversary's attacks.
Fleming, Mocking
It's been a long time since I wrote about any audiobooks.
Lately I have been listening to James Bond books from the local library. They are great as audiobooks: not too many characters, fast pace, and pleasant balance of plot and setting.
I especially enjoyed one I recently finished, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
It had the normal elements of a James Bond novel: our hero has to travel, falls for a beautiful girl, is menaced by a thug of stereotyped nationality, gets captured but escapes, and returns for an exciting final clash with the evil mastermind. (Note the lack of gadgets, car chases, and other traits found only of the films. Also, in this novel the beautiful girl is a genuinely strong woman and Bond gets happily married, which would never happen with the film Bond.)
Moreover, the novel also contains a terrific parody of the College of Arms that must have been the inspiration for Pratchett's similar scene in Feet of Clay. Besides being entertaining, this chapter was encouraging because Ian Fleming was clearly mocking his own country and enjoying doing so.
As I mentioned above, part of the formula for a Bond novel is a henchman to the evil mastermind whose merciless thuggishness is "explained" by invoking a racial-national stereotype, the spy story equivalent of how in a fantasy setting Tolkein has Saruman employ orcs that are inherently brutish. This literary device is unquestionably out of date and politically incorrect. But I'm willing to go along since the author also enjoys fictional parodies of his own culture and leaves no evidence that he himself believes any of his novels' insulting generalizations.
My next audiobook is Anathem by Neal Stephenson. I hope it works. I have only read Snow Crash by that author, which I enjoyed, but that is no evidence that the new novel will work well as an audiobook.
Lately I have been listening to James Bond books from the local library. They are great as audiobooks: not too many characters, fast pace, and pleasant balance of plot and setting.
I especially enjoyed one I recently finished, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
It had the normal elements of a James Bond novel: our hero has to travel, falls for a beautiful girl, is menaced by a thug of stereotyped nationality, gets captured but escapes, and returns for an exciting final clash with the evil mastermind. (Note the lack of gadgets, car chases, and other traits found only of the films. Also, in this novel the beautiful girl is a genuinely strong woman and Bond gets happily married, which would never happen with the film Bond.)
Moreover, the novel also contains a terrific parody of the College of Arms that must have been the inspiration for Pratchett's similar scene in Feet of Clay. Besides being entertaining, this chapter was encouraging because Ian Fleming was clearly mocking his own country and enjoying doing so.
As I mentioned above, part of the formula for a Bond novel is a henchman to the evil mastermind whose merciless thuggishness is "explained" by invoking a racial-national stereotype, the spy story equivalent of how in a fantasy setting Tolkein has Saruman employ orcs that are inherently brutish. This literary device is unquestionably out of date and politically incorrect. But I'm willing to go along since the author also enjoys fictional parodies of his own culture and leaves no evidence that he himself believes any of his novels' insulting generalizations.
My next audiobook is Anathem by Neal Stephenson. I hope it works. I have only read Snow Crash by that author, which I enjoyed, but that is no evidence that the new novel will work well as an audiobook.
Wrapping MP3s
There is a now-standard Linux utility for merging MP3 files named mp3wrap.
Unfortunately, it often plays havoc with the duration of the resulting file. I finally found what fixes this.
The utility ffmpeg is the needed tool, and the command is:
(While searching for the solution I also came across Ubutnu hotkeys and themes, which I do not care about but some of you might enjoy.)
Unfortunately, it often plays havoc with the duration of the resulting file. I finally found what fixes this.
The utility ffmpeg is the needed tool, and the command is:
ffmpeg -i FileName.mp3 -acodec copy NewFileName.mp3Then delete the old file.
(While searching for the solution I also came across Ubutnu hotkeys and themes, which I do not care about but some of you might enjoy.)
Smiley's Early December Words
In mid-November, Smiley had two vocabulary-related developmental breakthroughs.
First, he began saying many more words repeatedly and correctly. Before then he understood many words but used few himself.
Second, he began the toddler habit of recognizing that certain words had two syllables but incorrectly saying the word by repeating the first syllable (for example, pup-pup for puppy).
Here is a list of the words he uses repeatedly and correctly at this time, for anyone who is curious...
He has favorite bits from the alphabet and counting songs. He says "8, 9" and "w, v" a lot while playing or in the car. Less frequently he'll say "a, b, c" or "2, 3" or other letters or numbers. (He gets w and v out of order because I often sing the alphabet song backwards.)
His apparently bizarre version of butterfly is a blend of the English butterfly and the Hebrew parpar. That word is one of the few my wife realizes she knows in English, Hebrew, and Spanish and she enjoys quizzing him with all three when reading picture books ("Where's the mariposa?").
First, he began saying many more words repeatedly and correctly. Before then he understood many words but used few himself.
Second, he began the toddler habit of recognizing that certain words had two syllables but incorrectly saying the word by repeating the first syllable (for example, pup-pup for puppy).
Here is a list of the words he uses repeatedly and correctly at this time, for anyone who is curious...
bir (bird)Smiley probably does not know any colors yet, but he does enjoy repeating the color names after we say them while pointing to objects. He may be using blue correctly more often than not, or that might be a string of coincidences.
bike
boot
bottle
boow (bowl)
Bubba
bubble (bubbles)
burmp (bump)
bu-par-par (butterfly)
bye
bus
ca (car)
cheeze
co (cold)
cup
da (dad)
dah (dark)
die (diaper, dice, drive, dry)
dog
egg
eye
go
ha (hot)
ice
joo (juice)
key
knife
ight (light)
mama
mine
tay (okay)
outside
no
no (nose)
po (pillow)
pum-pum (pumpkin)
pup-pup (puppy)
shoe
sta (star)
table
tea
up
up high
aye (yes)
yurm-yurm (yummy)
He has favorite bits from the alphabet and counting songs. He says "8, 9" and "w, v" a lot while playing or in the car. Less frequently he'll say "a, b, c" or "2, 3" or other letters or numbers. (He gets w and v out of order because I often sing the alphabet song backwards.)
His apparently bizarre version of butterfly is a blend of the English butterfly and the Hebrew parpar. That word is one of the few my wife realizes she knows in English, Hebrew, and Spanish and she enjoys quizzing him with all three when reading picture books ("Where's the mariposa?").
Smiley's Favorite Catalog
In December we receive even more catalogs in the mail than usual.
For about two months Smiley has been old enough to enjoy looking at them with mommy. The household item catalogs are useful for his vocabulary practice. The clothing catalogs are useful for practicing color names. But his favorite catalog is the Heifer gift catalog with all of its photographs of animals.
Board books tend to have illustrations of animals, not actual photos. They almost never have llamas or water buffaloes. They are smaller, too: he likes turning the bigger pages.
We have not used that gift catalog in a couple years. But the charity does good work and is well ranked, so I expect we will use it again sooner or later.
For about two months Smiley has been old enough to enjoy looking at them with mommy. The household item catalogs are useful for his vocabulary practice. The clothing catalogs are useful for practicing color names. But his favorite catalog is the Heifer gift catalog with all of its photographs of animals.
Board books tend to have illustrations of animals, not actual photos. They almost never have llamas or water buffaloes. They are smaller, too: he likes turning the bigger pages.
We have not used that gift catalog in a couple years. But the charity does good work and is well ranked, so I expect we will use it again sooner or later.
Logo++
Usually the Rochester Review that my wife receives lacks articles of interest to me. But this month's edition had a fun article about a class that teaches the Python programming language using little robots.
I fondly remember Logo from my elementary school days. I'm glad the modern version is even cuter and includes enhancements like obstacle detection.
Of course, when I was a kid the classroom computers were Apple IIe, and the teacher had one of my nerdy classmates hack the Logo disk to make it able to be copied...
I fondly remember Logo from my elementary school days. I'm glad the modern version is even cuter and includes enhancements like obstacle detection.
Of course, when I was a kid the classroom computers were Apple IIe, and the teacher had one of my nerdy classmates hack the Logo disk to make it able to be copied...
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Smiley's Thanksgiving Non-Dinner
Thanksgiving day is going very nicely. Smiley is especially excited and entertained by playing with two of his cousins.
He took a long nap this afternoon (after yesterday being four hours deficient compared to his normal sleeping). We woke him up at the end of dinner. By then his cousins had finished their meal and so they were quite distracting to him while he was eating. He ate very little of his dinner, even though he likes yams, stuffing, and especially cranberries mixed with carrots and orange juice.
Wanting to avoid waking up hungry in the middle of the night we let him have a special treat at dessert time: his first ice cream from a bowl. (Previously he has had frozen yogurt in a bowl once, many months ago, and an ice cream on a stick more recently.)
Ice cream for Thanksgiving dinner is certainly not traditional, but it was a nice treat on a day not renown for normally healthy eating.
He took a long nap this afternoon (after yesterday being four hours deficient compared to his normal sleeping). We woke him up at the end of dinner. By then his cousins had finished their meal and so they were quite distracting to him while he was eating. He ate very little of his dinner, even though he likes yams, stuffing, and especially cranberries mixed with carrots and orange juice.
Wanting to avoid waking up hungry in the middle of the night we let him have a special treat at dessert time: his first ice cream from a bowl. (Previously he has had frozen yogurt in a bowl once, many months ago, and an ice cream on a stick more recently.)
Ice cream for Thanksgiving dinner is certainly not traditional, but it was a nice treat on a day not renown for normally healthy eating.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Winter Food
During the Summer my family ate a lot of my wife's yummy and spicy tofu cabbage salad.
Now it's nearly Winter. Previously, this cold season was the time I felt most restricted by needing to live in a gluten-free house. Growing up, Winter mornings almost always had oatmeal, and often also had English muffins.
But this Winter will be better. My wife has developed a yummy quinoa porridge recipe that can replace oatmeal as a delicious warm breakfast, and she has found a great gluten-free English muffin recipe at the blog of Gluten Free Girl.
We're still working on modifying the English mufin recipe to use our healthier flours. So far our attempts have produced a tastier muffin but it is a bit too dense and chewy.
Now it's nearly Winter. Previously, this cold season was the time I felt most restricted by needing to live in a gluten-free house. Growing up, Winter mornings almost always had oatmeal, and often also had English muffins.
But this Winter will be better. My wife has developed a yummy quinoa porridge recipe that can replace oatmeal as a delicious warm breakfast, and she has found a great gluten-free English muffin recipe at the blog of Gluten Free Girl.
We're still working on modifying the English mufin recipe to use our healthier flours. So far our attempts have produced a tastier muffin but it is a bit too dense and chewy.
Updated Toddler Nutrition Log
Back in June I shared the toddler nutrition log we were using.
We no longer use it, but I finally got around to "finishing" it by adding a note that explains how large is each serving size.
It was quite useful for a few months. It helped my wife and I got used to the different nutritional needs of our growing boy, and made it easier to keep track of what he was eating on days when both of us spent time at home with him while the other was at work.
We no longer use it, but I finally got around to "finishing" it by adding a note that explains how large is each serving size.
It was quite useful for a few months. It helped my wife and I got used to the different nutritional needs of our growing boy, and made it easier to keep track of what he was eating on days when both of us spent time at home with him while the other was at work.
November Economy Summary
Two articles posted today on Fidelity's website summarizes the November economy:
The stock market tends to form V bottoms and rounding tops. Perhaps we're beginning to map out such a top now.Also note that the nation's change in unemployment has entered a new stage:
The hardest hit [in October] were younger workers and those with high school or lower education. Workers younger than age 24 lost nearly half a million jobs, while adults (those over age 24) with less education (high school or lower) lost 508,000 jobs. On the other hand, adults with more than a high school education gained 463,000 jobs.It appears that my Math students, seeking a community college degree, are doing the right thing.
Monday, November 16, 2009
The Messianic Vision in a Gentile Church
Two weeks ago a friend from the IAMCS wrote a nice e-mail to me. One thing he said probably deserves a blog post.
I certainly did miss the Messianic Vision. But my family has recently found a nice church named The River that allows us to continue being part of all six points within this plan of God.
I'm sure there are other churches in Eugene or Springfield that fit the Messianic Vision as much as The River. But for my family The River is best because several gluten-free families go there. So folks there know what precautions to take so gluten-sensitive people stay healthy.
Anyway, back to my friend's e-mail: worship and fellowship.
I still do the Messianic Jewish style of worship dance at home. That's really enough. I also dance in worship at any church I visit; I don't mind doing it alone. I suppose that if I wanted, Eugene has enough young believers that at any church I really joined instead of merely visiting I could probably rally together a group that also enjoyed learning to worship in that way. (I have not yet tried at The River.)
Regarding fellowship, a church is much easier than a Messianic Jewish synagogue. Part of this is the gluten: in a synagogue it is difficult to do anything without challah crumbs everywhere.
The other part of better fellowship is having less arguments. At a church led by the Holy Spirit people ask, "What is God telling us about how to worship?" In my experience, God is able to answer this question a lot more clearly (usually because people hear His answer more accurately) than when Messianic Jews instead ask, "What is God telling us about how to worship Him while using Jewish culture?"
Any of Yeshua's followers can have a more meaningful and sensible walk with God by knowing more about the ancient Jewish background of their faith. It is nice to know what the writers of scripture had in mind when they wrote what they did! But in many Messianic Jewish synagogues more time is spent discussing the ancient and modern Jewish applications: how to act, think, relate to God, and relate to other people.
As someone who grew up Jewish I love that culture immensely, yet at the same time it has been so refreshing to live a year almost without any discussions of what a rabbi said. Those discussions about applications were always much more divisive to community than helpful to spiritual growth.
So do I miss the Messianic Jewish worship? Only a little. Dancing in a group in unity is indeed part of why that type of movement is worshipful. Do I miss the Messianic Jewish fellowship? Not yet.
Would I miss the Messianic Vision? Tremendously, but I still get to be a part of that even without a Messianic Jewish synagogue.
It must be a great loss to have no Messianic community for worship and fellowship.Actually, it isn't.
I certainly did miss the Messianic Vision. But my family has recently found a nice church named The River that allows us to continue being part of all six points within this plan of God.
- As a church, it naturally can't be a synagogue. But two of the local synagogues are happy to have Messianic Jews visit, so my family can still participate as much as we desire in local synagogue life. (Sadly, this is currently quite limited by my wife's extreme gluten sensitivity.
- The group is big on discipleship and making our lives appropriately like Yeshua's.
- The pastor is knowledgeable about the Jewish roots of his faith and the significances of Yeshua's Jewish identity.
- It is a good place for Jews and Gentiles to be worshiping together.
- The group was expressly founded to be welcoming and helpful to people with big life-problems. Eugene, like many medium-sized cities, has its share of churches whose members look and act respectable to an extent that people struggling with addictions, poverty, family problems, etc. do not feel like they fit in. The River is not one of those. Because of this church purpose, the natural human aversion to God's difficult refining is talked about and not tolerated.
- The River does little for Israel, but is at least more pro-Israel than the city's biggest synagogue!
I'm sure there are other churches in Eugene or Springfield that fit the Messianic Vision as much as The River. But for my family The River is best because several gluten-free families go there. So folks there know what precautions to take so gluten-sensitive people stay healthy.
Anyway, back to my friend's e-mail: worship and fellowship.
I still do the Messianic Jewish style of worship dance at home. That's really enough. I also dance in worship at any church I visit; I don't mind doing it alone. I suppose that if I wanted, Eugene has enough young believers that at any church I really joined instead of merely visiting I could probably rally together a group that also enjoyed learning to worship in that way. (I have not yet tried at The River.)
Regarding fellowship, a church is much easier than a Messianic Jewish synagogue. Part of this is the gluten: in a synagogue it is difficult to do anything without challah crumbs everywhere.
The other part of better fellowship is having less arguments. At a church led by the Holy Spirit people ask, "What is God telling us about how to worship?" In my experience, God is able to answer this question a lot more clearly (usually because people hear His answer more accurately) than when Messianic Jews instead ask, "What is God telling us about how to worship Him while using Jewish culture?"
Any of Yeshua's followers can have a more meaningful and sensible walk with God by knowing more about the ancient Jewish background of their faith. It is nice to know what the writers of scripture had in mind when they wrote what they did! But in many Messianic Jewish synagogues more time is spent discussing the ancient and modern Jewish applications: how to act, think, relate to God, and relate to other people.
As someone who grew up Jewish I love that culture immensely, yet at the same time it has been so refreshing to live a year almost without any discussions of what a rabbi said. Those discussions about applications were always much more divisive to community than helpful to spiritual growth.
So do I miss the Messianic Jewish worship? Only a little. Dancing in a group in unity is indeed part of why that type of movement is worshipful. Do I miss the Messianic Jewish fellowship? Not yet.
Would I miss the Messianic Vision? Tremendously, but I still get to be a part of that even without a Messianic Jewish synagogue.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Magalena-Pagalena
When I was little, one of my family's favorite car songs was Magalena-Pagalena.
I've found four versions online, none of which completely match what my family sang. I know we had more verses than below, but I can't remember them.
I've found four versions online, none of which completely match what my family sang. I know we had more verses than below, but I can't remember them.
Chorus:
Oh, Magaleena-Pagaleena-Roomastina-Iodina-Hoka-Poka-Loka was her name.
Verses:
She had four hairs on her head, two were alive and two were dead.
She had two eyes in her head, one was blue and the other was red.
She had three teeth in her mouth, two pointed north and the other pointed south.
Below her waist she had two hips, they were as large as battleships.
(mournfully) A ten truck truck hit Magaleene, (quickly) the fellow had to buy a new machine!
Friday, November 13, 2009
Turkey Jumping Parade
A group of wild turkeys lives in our neighborhood.
On October 12th, six of them visited our house. Normally they walk around the front yard and then go uphill to more interesting places.
But that day they arrived through the back yard. The marched, single file, to the back of our house. Then they flew up onto our roof, and walked across it. Then they flew down to the front yard before leaving to the sidewalk.
Smiley and I were inside the house, and stuck by how much noise the large birds made on the roof.
It was like a children's book that has never been written.
On October 12th, six of them visited our house. Normally they walk around the front yard and then go uphill to more interesting places.
But that day they arrived through the back yard. The marched, single file, to the back of our house. Then they flew up onto our roof, and walked across it. Then they flew down to the front yard before leaving to the sidewalk.
Smiley and I were inside the house, and stuck by how much noise the large birds made on the roof.
It was like a children's book that has never been written.
Six wild turkeys walk in the back yard.
Gobble, ka-gobble, a-gobble. Gobble, ka-gobble, a-gobble.
Fly onto the roof!
Thump, bump, thump. Thump, bump, thump.
Walk across the roof!
Pitter, patter, scritch. Pitter, patter, scritch.
Fly down to the front yard.
Flap, flop, flup. Flap, flop, flup.
Bye bye, birds! Bye bye, birds!
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Oregon Travel and Activity Survey Ethics
My family is participating in the Oregon Travel and Activity Survey.
I normally ride the bus weekly. On Tuesdays I take Smiley to the library for their Tiny Tots story and singing time. Parking at the library costs money, but the library is across the street from the downtown bus station. So we park a little ways away and take the EmX.
I bicycle with Smiley often (last week only three times, but it was rainy). But not daily.
The survey provoked an ethical issue that made me laugh. I noticed I wanted to be sure to take the bus and bicycle on the day I record all my family's traveling, to promote those modes of transportation. I found it humorous that my subconscious would never stoop to lying on the piece of paper but was quite willing to fudge the data by altering my behavior.
I normally ride the bus weekly. On Tuesdays I take Smiley to the library for their Tiny Tots story and singing time. Parking at the library costs money, but the library is across the street from the downtown bus station. So we park a little ways away and take the EmX.
I bicycle with Smiley often (last week only three times, but it was rainy). But not daily.
The survey provoked an ethical issue that made me laugh. I noticed I wanted to be sure to take the bus and bicycle on the day I record all my family's traveling, to promote those modes of transportation. I found it humorous that my subconscious would never stoop to lying on the piece of paper but was quite willing to fudge the data by altering my behavior.
Toy Trucks
Smiley is still crazy about trucks. (In the car he'll happily read his truck-themed picture book all the way to Trader Joe's.)
So I decided to get him some toy trucks. I was surprised that the toy store had so few that were sturdy and medium-sized.
There were lots of tiny, metal Matchbox-sized trucks, but those are always underfoot. And Tonka makes large sturdy ones, of course. But in between nearly all the toys were flimsy plastic and full of buttons, lights, and noises. Now what Smiley needs!
But John Deere makes what I wanted. Hooray!
I cannot find the dump truck and front loader I got online, but they seem to be a variation of this 1/64th scale series. I also got him a Gator with big puffy tires that will be easier to push around in the yard.
Some day he'll be old enough for a Big Loader set. That was a great toy. I bet the Big Trak has been replaced by something else to teach programming a list of instructions.
So I decided to get him some toy trucks. I was surprised that the toy store had so few that were sturdy and medium-sized.
There were lots of tiny, metal Matchbox-sized trucks, but those are always underfoot. And Tonka makes large sturdy ones, of course. But in between nearly all the toys were flimsy plastic and full of buttons, lights, and noises. Now what Smiley needs!
But John Deere makes what I wanted. Hooray!
I cannot find the dump truck and front loader I got online, but they seem to be a variation of this 1/64th scale series. I also got him a Gator with big puffy tires that will be easier to push around in the yard.
Some day he'll be old enough for a Big Loader set. That was a great toy. I bet the Big Trak has been replaced by something else to teach programming a list of instructions.
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
A Personal State of the Union
I was hoping to write this soon after Rosh HaShanah. Oh well.
When I was young I had a framed painting in my room of a boy pulling a wagon. The caption read,
So here we go.
(Note that I don't count parenting or teaching or being a good husband among my "projects" even though these take up most of my waking hours. So I won't write about them in this essay even though they dominate my life.)
Scriptural Concept Studies
On the penei.org website are a bunch of essays about the scriptural understanding of some concepts.
I'm supposed to be writing more of them. They can be a great aid to viewing the world as Yeshua did. I have not seen anything else like them on the web.
Since the middle of 2007 this has been the only public "ministry work" God has specifically told me to do. But it is not helpful to my family, so I have not devoted much time to it this year.
The task is to take my old sermons from the years P'nei Adonai was a congregation and extract word-studies and concept material from what I learned those years through study and prayer. The concept essays have a certain format, so I would also need to do some research to fill out any missing parts of the format (for example, a concept I studied in Biblical Hebrew but not in Biblical Greek).
I also need to edit the existing essays to add scholarly footnotes and citations.
This project is in one sense the most important, because I know God wants me to do it so that what he taught us at P'nei Adonai does not get forgotten. But I have not been told a time limit, so I focus for now on things that help my family.
Role-Playing Game
This year I've spent a lot of time designing a role-playing game specifically for adventures played with only two people (narrator and hero/heroine).
I think this is a unique niche. I don't know of any other such RPGs. A few others work acceptably with only two people, but not great. My wife and I can't be the only nerds who have wanted such a thing!
Along with the game mechanics I've developed a fantasy setting whose design also promotes adventures with a single hero or heroine. Lately God has been helping me with this, which is exciting.
This project is almost done: the game mechanics are complete and the setting is nearly finished. There's no reason to try to publish this in paper form.
I will continue to add maps and adventures as I make them for my family's use, but that's a much smaller bit of work.
Two Math Books
Most high school or community college math classes are low on real-life applications.
So I've written a workbook about real-life problem solving math applications. The book is appropriate for Math 25 at LCC, and could some day be published for general use. I am waiting for more "testing" at LCC before I pursue publishing it.
I've also just started a workbook to teach fun math: using some famous patterns, puzzles and pictures that have delighted mathematicians through history to teach about how mathematical thinking can be fun even for people who don't like arithmetic or algebra.
Unlike the concept essays and RPG I have no evidence that God wants me to be doing this, so it's very much a back burner project. But maybe, God willing, I'll some day have published a beloved pair of math textbooks, the ones we all wished we had in high school: Real-Life Math and Fun Mathematical Thinking.
Two Fantasy Novels
How many children's fantasy novels can you name that besides having a fun adventure also teach important spiritual truths (if the reader is old enough to notice)?
Not many, right? It's a another niche that needs more filling. Even the Narnia books often only have virtue/vice lessons and Aslan making deus ex machina appearances.
A few years ago God helped me write two children's fantasy novels, Windsong and its sequel The Sandy Isles. Both describe, better than any other children's adventure stories I know, how knowing God only adds adventure and suspense to life. The first novel is about what it means to be a good person; the second about being a good couple. The novels also prompt us to question our assumptions about what a messiah might be like (or avatar if the reader had that type of religious background).
Years ago I actively tried to send these to publishers. I found out that only a few secular publishing houses have any interest in children's fantasy, and all of those require working with an agent. I could pursue a religious publishing house, but that might needlessly limit the audience.
I keep praying about whether I should restart trying to publish. So far God has not told me to do so.
When I was leading P'nei Adonai I expected that some day, after the congregation ended, I would be helped to write a matching third novel about what it means to be a good community. But apparently that isn't part of God's plan.
Other Games
In years gone by I designed many board games. A few are online again. Some day, when I have time, I'll share more of them.
This is just a fun thing. It's not anything God has asked me to do or helped me with.
Other Writing
Similarly, over the years I've written many poems and short stories. Some day a bunch of them will be on my website. But this is also low priority.
When I was young I had a framed painting in my room of a boy pulling a wagon. The caption read,
Please be patient with me. God isn't finished with me yet.My mother once had a tee shirt that said,
God put me on earth to do certain things, and I'm currently so far behind that I will never die.Both seem to be true for me lately. As I was doing some self-inspection and life introspection before and during the Days of Awe it occurred to me that I've never blogged concisely about all my projects.
So here we go.
(Note that I don't count parenting or teaching or being a good husband among my "projects" even though these take up most of my waking hours. So I won't write about them in this essay even though they dominate my life.)
Scriptural Concept Studies
On the penei.org website are a bunch of essays about the scriptural understanding of some concepts.
I'm supposed to be writing more of them. They can be a great aid to viewing the world as Yeshua did. I have not seen anything else like them on the web.
Since the middle of 2007 this has been the only public "ministry work" God has specifically told me to do. But it is not helpful to my family, so I have not devoted much time to it this year.
The task is to take my old sermons from the years P'nei Adonai was a congregation and extract word-studies and concept material from what I learned those years through study and prayer. The concept essays have a certain format, so I would also need to do some research to fill out any missing parts of the format (for example, a concept I studied in Biblical Hebrew but not in Biblical Greek).
I also need to edit the existing essays to add scholarly footnotes and citations.
This project is in one sense the most important, because I know God wants me to do it so that what he taught us at P'nei Adonai does not get forgotten. But I have not been told a time limit, so I focus for now on things that help my family.
Role-Playing Game
This year I've spent a lot of time designing a role-playing game specifically for adventures played with only two people (narrator and hero/heroine).
I think this is a unique niche. I don't know of any other such RPGs. A few others work acceptably with only two people, but not great. My wife and I can't be the only nerds who have wanted such a thing!
Along with the game mechanics I've developed a fantasy setting whose design also promotes adventures with a single hero or heroine. Lately God has been helping me with this, which is exciting.
This project is almost done: the game mechanics are complete and the setting is nearly finished. There's no reason to try to publish this in paper form.
I will continue to add maps and adventures as I make them for my family's use, but that's a much smaller bit of work.
Two Math Books
Most high school or community college math classes are low on real-life applications.
So I've written a workbook about real-life problem solving math applications. The book is appropriate for Math 25 at LCC, and could some day be published for general use. I am waiting for more "testing" at LCC before I pursue publishing it.
I've also just started a workbook to teach fun math: using some famous patterns, puzzles and pictures that have delighted mathematicians through history to teach about how mathematical thinking can be fun even for people who don't like arithmetic or algebra.
Unlike the concept essays and RPG I have no evidence that God wants me to be doing this, so it's very much a back burner project. But maybe, God willing, I'll some day have published a beloved pair of math textbooks, the ones we all wished we had in high school: Real-Life Math and Fun Mathematical Thinking.
Two Fantasy Novels
How many children's fantasy novels can you name that besides having a fun adventure also teach important spiritual truths (if the reader is old enough to notice)?
Not many, right? It's a another niche that needs more filling. Even the Narnia books often only have virtue/vice lessons and Aslan making deus ex machina appearances.
A few years ago God helped me write two children's fantasy novels, Windsong and its sequel The Sandy Isles. Both describe, better than any other children's adventure stories I know, how knowing God only adds adventure and suspense to life. The first novel is about what it means to be a good person; the second about being a good couple. The novels also prompt us to question our assumptions about what a messiah might be like (or avatar if the reader had that type of religious background).
Years ago I actively tried to send these to publishers. I found out that only a few secular publishing houses have any interest in children's fantasy, and all of those require working with an agent. I could pursue a religious publishing house, but that might needlessly limit the audience.
I keep praying about whether I should restart trying to publish. So far God has not told me to do so.
When I was leading P'nei Adonai I expected that some day, after the congregation ended, I would be helped to write a matching third novel about what it means to be a good community. But apparently that isn't part of God's plan.
Other Games
In years gone by I designed many board games. A few are online again. Some day, when I have time, I'll share more of them.
This is just a fun thing. It's not anything God has asked me to do or helped me with.
Other Writing
Similarly, over the years I've written many poems and short stories. Some day a bunch of them will be on my website. But this is also low priority.
Tamiflu
Last night Smiley suddenly had a high fever. Since his afternoon nap he had been irritable and clingy.
We're not sure how high the fever was, but our digital thermometer read 101.2 Fahrenheit in his armpit so it was at least that. We started him on toddler ibuprofen, which soon removed the fever.
Currently none of the colds going around in Eugene have both a sudden onset of fever and muscle aches. Also, the seasonal flu has not yet reached Eugene. So anyone with both those symptoms nearly certainly has H1N1. My wife was wiped out by that flu for most of last week. Smiley cannot tell us about muscle aches, but it's nearly certain he caught the H1N1 flu from my wife.
So Smiley visited the doctor today. We had a nice bike ride there and back.
Although Smiley is currently almost symptom free (just more tired and clingy than usual), the high likelihood he has a flu caused the doctor to give us a guarded recommendation for prescribing Tamiflu (drops twice per day for five days).
The drug is still quite effective against Oregon's H1N1. It will probably do very little: perhaps shorten the duration of Smiley's flu by one day.
But the small chances, that we'll probably not see, are what matter most.
There's a small chance that Smiley could experience Tamiflu side effects. Among toddlers these usually look like aggravation, caused by spaciness, confusion, or even hallucinations. If his behavior changes we stop the medicine and the side effects soon stop too. (This chance is supposed to be very small, but both the doctor and drug store had lately seen more cases of it than the official statistics predict.)
There's another small chance that Smiley could develop pneumonia. Pneumonia can be extremely bad news for a 19-month-0ld. The chance of him developing pneumonia is affected by lots of current conditions and impossible to know accurately, but is probably greater than the chance of Tamiflu side effects. And if it did happen it would be much a more dangerous problem.
Tamiflu's main benefit is that it reduces the chance of pneumonia to nearly zero. We're basically swapping a chance of pneumonia for a chance of a few hours of spaciness/confusion. That's an easy choice.
UPDATE: Someone comments, "People are more likely to be trippy in Eugene?" Heh.
We're not sure how high the fever was, but our digital thermometer read 101.2 Fahrenheit in his armpit so it was at least that. We started him on toddler ibuprofen, which soon removed the fever.
Currently none of the colds going around in Eugene have both a sudden onset of fever and muscle aches. Also, the seasonal flu has not yet reached Eugene. So anyone with both those symptoms nearly certainly has H1N1. My wife was wiped out by that flu for most of last week. Smiley cannot tell us about muscle aches, but it's nearly certain he caught the H1N1 flu from my wife.
So Smiley visited the doctor today. We had a nice bike ride there and back.
Although Smiley is currently almost symptom free (just more tired and clingy than usual), the high likelihood he has a flu caused the doctor to give us a guarded recommendation for prescribing Tamiflu (drops twice per day for five days).
The drug is still quite effective against Oregon's H1N1. It will probably do very little: perhaps shorten the duration of Smiley's flu by one day.
But the small chances, that we'll probably not see, are what matter most.
There's a small chance that Smiley could experience Tamiflu side effects. Among toddlers these usually look like aggravation, caused by spaciness, confusion, or even hallucinations. If his behavior changes we stop the medicine and the side effects soon stop too. (This chance is supposed to be very small, but both the doctor and drug store had lately seen more cases of it than the official statistics predict.)
There's another small chance that Smiley could develop pneumonia. Pneumonia can be extremely bad news for a 19-month-0ld. The chance of him developing pneumonia is affected by lots of current conditions and impossible to know accurately, but is probably greater than the chance of Tamiflu side effects. And if it did happen it would be much a more dangerous problem.
Tamiflu's main benefit is that it reduces the chance of pneumonia to nearly zero. We're basically swapping a chance of pneumonia for a chance of a few hours of spaciness/confusion. That's an easy choice.
UPDATE: Someone comments, "People are more likely to be trippy in Eugene?" Heh.
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Local Messianic Composer
A friend of mine who lives in Lebanon, Oregon, has been writing Messianic music.
He has finally collected extensive samples his music on a web page.
If you like his work and have contacts among recording studio folk, please contact him! He also enjoys doing home concerts.
He has finally collected extensive samples his music on a web page.
If you like his work and have contacts among recording studio folk, please contact him! He also enjoys doing home concerts.
Sunday, November 01, 2009
Jim Henson versus Spike Jonze
I have not yet seen the Where the Wild Things Are movie. I would like to see it in the theater, but I'm not in a rush to do so.
I've seen an earlier film adaptation of a Maurice Sendak book. I'm not sure if Spike Jonze can fill Jim Henson's formidable shoes, and I'm quite certain Max Records cannot fill David Bowe's tight pants.
3D Again
The laptop is an Acer Extensa 4620Z, which has an Intel GMA X3100 graphics card. This card should run 3d games, but poorly for modern games. But the card lacks GLSL support.
The laptop only has Ubuntu on it. I've learned to live without any 3D games since Ubuntu was unable to make that graphics card run even the most primitive 3D games.
Until a few days ago: Ubuntu 9.10 is now out and it handles the graphics card flawlessly.
The laptop only has Ubuntu on it. I've learned to live without any 3D games since Ubuntu was unable to make that graphics card run even the most primitive 3D games.
Until a few days ago: Ubuntu 9.10 is now out and it handles the graphics card flawlessly.
Conservation of Worry
In July I wrote about what I've inaccurately nicknamed "conservation of risk".
Something else similar only in name is what I've nicknamed "conservation of worry".
The idea is that parents (especially moms) are kind of programmed to worry a certain amount about their kids. Now that life in America is amazingly safe, all that instinctual need to worry gets channeled into making mountains out of mole hills.
Parents used to have genuine worries about their children starving, dying of illness, being eaten by wild animals, and so forth. These are quite rare now. So we worry about pacifiers, allergies, television, BPA in plastic, child car seats, and other minor issues that would have been laughably small concerns even a few generations ago.
I probably do this as much as most dads in Eugene.
Child car seats are actually a great example. Insurance companies have known for years that child car seats do very little to prevent fatalities (although they help prevent less serious injuries). All of the time and money this country has invested in child car seats could have saved many more lives if instead applied to disease research. However, as a parent I can see a change by buying a child car seat for me child: no similar feedback happens from donating money to cancer research.
Crime is a revealing issue. Violent crime rates have been decreasing, but worry has not decreased because crime is makes a convenient worry item. (Especially in a culture where we are comfortable with steps to prevent fires but not shootings in schools.)
I just wrote about vaccination again. Now I'll add, sort of as a concluding post-script, that it makes a lot of sense to me that parents who have little need to worry about their children dying of illness instead worry about the potential harm of "what big medicine wants".
After all, if we were really rational creatures then we would spend the time saved by our laundry machines sitting and watching them, enjoying half an hour of relaxation, rather than rushing on to the next chore. (Hm. Conservation of hectic-ness?)
Something else similar only in name is what I've nicknamed "conservation of worry".
The idea is that parents (especially moms) are kind of programmed to worry a certain amount about their kids. Now that life in America is amazingly safe, all that instinctual need to worry gets channeled into making mountains out of mole hills.
Parents used to have genuine worries about their children starving, dying of illness, being eaten by wild animals, and so forth. These are quite rare now. So we worry about pacifiers, allergies, television, BPA in plastic, child car seats, and other minor issues that would have been laughably small concerns even a few generations ago.
I probably do this as much as most dads in Eugene.
Child car seats are actually a great example. Insurance companies have known for years that child car seats do very little to prevent fatalities (although they help prevent less serious injuries). All of the time and money this country has invested in child car seats could have saved many more lives if instead applied to disease research. However, as a parent I can see a change by buying a child car seat for me child: no similar feedback happens from donating money to cancer research.
Crime is a revealing issue. Violent crime rates have been decreasing, but worry has not decreased because crime is makes a convenient worry item. (Especially in a culture where we are comfortable with steps to prevent fires but not shootings in schools.)
I just wrote about vaccination again. Now I'll add, sort of as a concluding post-script, that it makes a lot of sense to me that parents who have little need to worry about their children dying of illness instead worry about the potential harm of "what big medicine wants".
After all, if we were really rational creatures then we would spend the time saved by our laundry machines sitting and watching them, enjoying half an hour of relaxation, rather than rushing on to the next chore. (Hm. Conservation of hectic-ness?)
Herd Immunity
I've written three earlier posts about vaccinations. A few October news articles can help me elaborate.
There is an effect nicknamed herd immunity that can allow vaccines to protect even the unvaccinated. Depending upon the disease, if enough people are immune then the disease lacks a large enough pool to stabilize.
For example, rubella is not very contagious, so if 80% of the population is immune then rubella cannot prosper with only 20% available to attack. Measles is quite contagious, so 95% of the population needs to be immune to squeeze out measles.
Now, H1N1 is so amazingly contagious that I doubt we can hope for herd immunity. We'd need more than 95% immune but sometimes vaccinations don't cause enough of an immune response to work, and some people are not candidates for vaccination.
Also, some diseases don't need to be fought with mass vaccinations. For example, chicken pox is not very dangerous to most kids and suffering through the disease provides a much more thorough immune system response than a shot. That's why parents of normally healthy kids have for generations been using "chicken pox play dates" instead of vaccinating against chicken pox.
But let's ignore H1N1 and chicken pox. This essay's point is that vaccinations like the MMR are enough to create herd immunity, and those three diseases are dangerous enough that parent's certainly don't want to use "measles play dates" instead of a shot!
That's why it's a problem when too many parents opt out of vaccinating their children. By ruining herd immunity, their choice is putting other people at risk. It's especially sad because their choice is often based on prejudice and ignorance.
I would not want government to require vaccinations, but I fear something like a resurgence of measles will happen before vaccinations are no longer villified.
H1N1 might cause the social change despite the fact it's probably not able to be fought with herd immunity. Americans are seeing many young people die within a few months (usually due to complications, not H1N1 by itself). As a culture we're not used to being culled. Our people in poor health generally either take medications to keep living reasonably well, or die at a slow rate. Seeing many people simultaneously suffer and die has not happened for a few decades. Now our illusion of health entitlement is shattering.
There is an effect nicknamed herd immunity that can allow vaccines to protect even the unvaccinated. Depending upon the disease, if enough people are immune then the disease lacks a large enough pool to stabilize.
For example, rubella is not very contagious, so if 80% of the population is immune then rubella cannot prosper with only 20% available to attack. Measles is quite contagious, so 95% of the population needs to be immune to squeeze out measles.
Now, H1N1 is so amazingly contagious that I doubt we can hope for herd immunity. We'd need more than 95% immune but sometimes vaccinations don't cause enough of an immune response to work, and some people are not candidates for vaccination.
Also, some diseases don't need to be fought with mass vaccinations. For example, chicken pox is not very dangerous to most kids and suffering through the disease provides a much more thorough immune system response than a shot. That's why parents of normally healthy kids have for generations been using "chicken pox play dates" instead of vaccinating against chicken pox.
But let's ignore H1N1 and chicken pox. This essay's point is that vaccinations like the MMR are enough to create herd immunity, and those three diseases are dangerous enough that parent's certainly don't want to use "measles play dates" instead of a shot!
That's why it's a problem when too many parents opt out of vaccinating their children. By ruining herd immunity, their choice is putting other people at risk. It's especially sad because their choice is often based on prejudice and ignorance.
I would not want government to require vaccinations, but I fear something like a resurgence of measles will happen before vaccinations are no longer villified.
H1N1 might cause the social change despite the fact it's probably not able to be fought with herd immunity. Americans are seeing many young people die within a few months (usually due to complications, not H1N1 by itself). As a culture we're not used to being culled. Our people in poor health generally either take medications to keep living reasonably well, or die at a slow rate. Seeing many people simultaneously suffer and die has not happened for a few decades. Now our illusion of health entitlement is shattering.
Friendship Not Conspiracy
Last month I wrote some about the fundamentalist Christian home schoolers I knew.
The day after that essay, the news contained a pair of articles that provide a great example: first, an article about network television promoting the "I Participate" project; second, an article describing the secular slant of that project.
(Curious, I searched for local volunteer opportunities near my own zip code at createthegood.org and iparticipate.org. As alleged, neither suggests any of the multiple opportunities to help veterans within 10 miles of my zip code. But I did not see other "liberal" bias.)
I know of no comprehensive online database of local volunteer opportunities. It is commendable that an organization is trying to create one.
I also know what I would do if I were assigned the task of creating one. I would start with a web search and the phone book but those ideas would soon be used up, so I would change to asking those I spoke with at non-profits what others they have heard about.
Thus I'm not surprised at all to learn of a feedback loop of idealogical slant. As an example, in Eugene and Springfield there are both liberal and conservative groups who give food to the hungry and I know from having talked to them that they are much more familiar with others of their kind.
So I do not agree with those news articles that there is any evidence the "I Participate" project is deliberately trying to promote secular values. Rather, I expect its database is still quite incomplete and more the result of relationships than research.
But do you catch how this would be perceived by someone taught to see a "political America" in which secular and religious folk battle to define the priorities of a "secular America"?
The day after that essay, the news contained a pair of articles that provide a great example: first, an article about network television promoting the "I Participate" project; second, an article describing the secular slant of that project.
(Curious, I searched for local volunteer opportunities near my own zip code at createthegood.org and iparticipate.org. As alleged, neither suggests any of the multiple opportunities to help veterans within 10 miles of my zip code. But I did not see other "liberal" bias.)
I know of no comprehensive online database of local volunteer opportunities. It is commendable that an organization is trying to create one.
I also know what I would do if I were assigned the task of creating one. I would start with a web search and the phone book but those ideas would soon be used up, so I would change to asking those I spoke with at non-profits what others they have heard about.
Thus I'm not surprised at all to learn of a feedback loop of idealogical slant. As an example, in Eugene and Springfield there are both liberal and conservative groups who give food to the hungry and I know from having talked to them that they are much more familiar with others of their kind.
So I do not agree with those news articles that there is any evidence the "I Participate" project is deliberately trying to promote secular values. Rather, I expect its database is still quite incomplete and more the result of relationships than research.
But do you catch how this would be perceived by someone taught to see a "political America" in which secular and religious folk battle to define the priorities of a "secular America"?
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
The Sign Your Children have Waited to See
Last week I read two news articles that made me think about "Tomorrow".
I don't mean "the Future". There's a difference between Tomorrow and the Future, constructed from decades of literary structure. Everyone yearns for Tomorrow, but many people fear the Future. Saying Tomorrow is here speaks of progress and stability, but saying the Future is here speaks of uncertainty caused by changes to which we must adjust. People strive to create Tomorrow, but only try to predict the Future. Tomorrow's theme song is as upbeat as the Jetsons, but the theme song of the Future keeps changing on us while retaining slightly dark undertones.
The first article told me that magnetic monopoles not only had been discovered but were being manipulated in labs.
If you were never a physics major then I can't explain why that's big news or seems like Tomorrow. But I think I'll remember the scene--the loveseat, laptop, open blinds showing a window full of Autumn colors--as vividly as the morning in high school when I woke up to my radio alarm clock telling me the Berlin Wall was broken.
The second article talked about the EU starting a new project, funded with the equivalent of ten million pounds, to monitor social networking.
I almost laughed aloud. Some bigshot in the EU must have asked for information from Project Echelon and been politely but firmly refused. So now the EU is starting a tiny and wimpy imitation? Meh. Computers won't be a Miniluv two-way entertainment device for years. Little Brother is watching.
I don't mean "the Future". There's a difference between Tomorrow and the Future, constructed from decades of literary structure. Everyone yearns for Tomorrow, but many people fear the Future. Saying Tomorrow is here speaks of progress and stability, but saying the Future is here speaks of uncertainty caused by changes to which we must adjust. People strive to create Tomorrow, but only try to predict the Future. Tomorrow's theme song is as upbeat as the Jetsons, but the theme song of the Future keeps changing on us while retaining slightly dark undertones.
The first article told me that magnetic monopoles not only had been discovered but were being manipulated in labs.
If you were never a physics major then I can't explain why that's big news or seems like Tomorrow. But I think I'll remember the scene--the loveseat, laptop, open blinds showing a window full of Autumn colors--as vividly as the morning in high school when I woke up to my radio alarm clock telling me the Berlin Wall was broken.
The second article talked about the EU starting a new project, funded with the equivalent of ten million pounds, to monitor social networking.
I almost laughed aloud. Some bigshot in the EU must have asked for information from Project Echelon and been politely but firmly refused. So now the EU is starting a tiny and wimpy imitation? Meh. Computers won't be a Miniluv two-way entertainment device for years. Little Brother is watching.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Gluten in Dry Roasting
My wife discovered a long time ago that her gluten sensitivity was triggered by most brands of roasted nuts.
Here's a web page explaining why. Basically, two common processing methods try to increase salt adherence by applying a coating of wheat gluten or two coats of both wheat gluten and gelatin.
Of course, the equipment is not thoroughly cleaned before nuts not destined for salting are processed.
I wonder how many brands of roasted nuts are not vegetarian (because of gelatin)?
Here's a web page explaining why. Basically, two common processing methods try to increase salt adherence by applying a coating of wheat gluten or two coats of both wheat gluten and gelatin.
Of course, the equipment is not thoroughly cleaned before nuts not destined for salting are processed.
I wonder how many brands of roasted nuts are not vegetarian (because of gelatin)?
Friday, October 23, 2009
Yom Kippur 5770
My family visited Temple Beth Israel for Yom Kippur.
For the start of the High Holy Days, to help enter an appropriate mood of introspection and repentance, we drove farther to visit a Messianic congregation. To end the High Holy Days, to conclude with communal yearnings and pleas, it seemed most appropriate to be with the Jews of our neighborhood.
What follows is lengthy, but I expect my family and friends might enjoy glimpsing inside my head.
I have only visited Reconstructionist services a few times. During the Erev service I tried to immerse myself but too often found myself analyzing what makes that Jewish philosophy unique.
What I found most noticeable (and interrupting to my own habits of worship) was how Reconstructionism is uncomfortable with such surrender. More traditional Jews, including Messianic Jews, are very willing to have God do things to them. But that evening even the Avinu Maklenu was modified so the phrase oseh eemanoo l'ma-an shemcha was translated "help us for the sake of your name" instead of "do to us for the sake of your name".
Both Yom Kippur services emphasized the theme of can we be doing more? This is a worthy topic for the day but seemed out of place as the primary theme. The teshuvah seemed incomplete despite very genuine confession because the goal of perfection was replaced with a desire to do more good deeds. The liturgy still identified vices and the need to turn from them, but no longer directed participants to face any specific new direction. The community expressed its sincerity in waiting for and pleading with God to abolish evil, but then asked, "What will we do?", which is almost a non sequitur.
Yom Kippur needs a balance between teshuvah and relationship: we have disobeyed our Father yet he will help us become better children, we have ignored our King yet he is a faithful provider and ruler, we have failed our communal calling yet God still makes us a people and his people. To me, it seemed Reconstructionism only distantly and vaguely held up any light or goal to aim for, and thus inescapably overemphasized relationship. The community was not walking together along a path to perfection. It had confidence in doing good deeds but not growing visibly in holiness.
I did benefit from hearing and thinking so much about doing good deeds. I myself often display the other imbalance, focusing in prayer and deed too much on surrender to God and not enough on kindness and warmth. Those two Yom Kippur services were healthy for me.
After the Erev service and a night's sleep I was ready to focus better. The Morning service was much more worshipful.
I asked God many questions, and heard some answers. Three issues are worth sharing.
First, I asked for guidance. Since Sar Shalom closed, the local Messianic Jewish movement has been adrift and nearly inactive. Indeed, to speak strictly there remain "Jewish followers of Yeshua" but there is no more local "Messianic Judaism" since there is no IAMCS or UMJC congregation through which people can participate in the specific movement of God shepherded by those two organizations.
Would God tell me what would happen during the new year and my role in it? I had realized a few days earlier that my work with P'nei Adonai began in mid-2003, making my lack of ministry activity during 2009 in one sense a Sabbatical year. I would not have been surprised if God asked me, on Yom Kippur, to soon start something.
But God didn't. He said my Sabbatical time will end later. However, my personal laxness needed to end immediately. I will need personal momentum well-established before I can be an example for others.
Second, I asked for courage. I dealt with tremendous spiritual warfare during the years I led P'nei Adonai. As one small example, during those years it was normal for me to have a nightmare any time I slept. I was not sure why I would dream about people I cared about suffering, but trusted God was toughening me up for some purpose. It was sometimes strange to see family in the morning, or congregants on Shabbat, healthy and happy in contrast to what happened in my nightmares. Yet we all do suffer, and one day we will stand more alive than ever.
In any case, I was certainly aware that one reason I did not miss doing ministry work was the near absense of spiritual warfare in my life since Sar Shalom closed. A big advantage of doing little for the Kingdom of God is that God's enemies don't bother to oppose you! Returning to the trenches would require courage.
God told me I would have the courage I would need. That reply was not very comforting, but a sufficient answer. And any answer was encouraging.
Third, I asked for more relationship with God. He told me two stories. I have not retold them as well as I wanted, but those links lead to the best I can do at this time.
Most of the work to develop the RPG's setting I did myself: I tried to be prayerful but heard very little from God. Then, during Elul, there was a breakthrough. It began with more of my own thinking, but soon God contributed advice about how to honor him in an fantasy adventure setting. (I would have loved to blog about it during those weeks, but it happened to fast and intensely.) I had saved religion for last as I deveoped the setting; religion quickly became the most well-developed aspect and everything else needed revision to reflect a new and better foundation.
For God to tell me two stories (and he tells them better, both had much more detail and made me cry) using the fantasy setting we developed together was deeply touching.
Currently that setting has two purposes: it allows my wife and I to play a RPG together, and it helps me tell stories to Smiley. Perhaps I'll hear and share more stories set in that setting. It could become something for a broader audience. After all, God had me write stories in 2001 and 2002. I certainly would not mind if my new "ministry work" was more about being a storyteller and less about running a congregation.
For the start of the High Holy Days, to help enter an appropriate mood of introspection and repentance, we drove farther to visit a Messianic congregation. To end the High Holy Days, to conclude with communal yearnings and pleas, it seemed most appropriate to be with the Jews of our neighborhood.
What follows is lengthy, but I expect my family and friends might enjoy glimpsing inside my head.
I have only visited Reconstructionist services a few times. During the Erev service I tried to immerse myself but too often found myself analyzing what makes that Jewish philosophy unique.
What I found most noticeable (and interrupting to my own habits of worship) was how Reconstructionism is uncomfortable with such surrender. More traditional Jews, including Messianic Jews, are very willing to have God do things to them. But that evening even the Avinu Maklenu was modified so the phrase oseh eemanoo l'ma-an shemcha was translated "help us for the sake of your name" instead of "do to us for the sake of your name".
Both Yom Kippur services emphasized the theme of can we be doing more? This is a worthy topic for the day but seemed out of place as the primary theme. The teshuvah seemed incomplete despite very genuine confession because the goal of perfection was replaced with a desire to do more good deeds. The liturgy still identified vices and the need to turn from them, but no longer directed participants to face any specific new direction. The community expressed its sincerity in waiting for and pleading with God to abolish evil, but then asked, "What will we do?", which is almost a non sequitur.
Yom Kippur needs a balance between teshuvah and relationship: we have disobeyed our Father yet he will help us become better children, we have ignored our King yet he is a faithful provider and ruler, we have failed our communal calling yet God still makes us a people and his people. To me, it seemed Reconstructionism only distantly and vaguely held up any light or goal to aim for, and thus inescapably overemphasized relationship. The community was not walking together along a path to perfection. It had confidence in doing good deeds but not growing visibly in holiness.
I did benefit from hearing and thinking so much about doing good deeds. I myself often display the other imbalance, focusing in prayer and deed too much on surrender to God and not enough on kindness and warmth. Those two Yom Kippur services were healthy for me.
After the Erev service and a night's sleep I was ready to focus better. The Morning service was much more worshipful.
I asked God many questions, and heard some answers. Three issues are worth sharing.
First, I asked for guidance. Since Sar Shalom closed, the local Messianic Jewish movement has been adrift and nearly inactive. Indeed, to speak strictly there remain "Jewish followers of Yeshua" but there is no more local "Messianic Judaism" since there is no IAMCS or UMJC congregation through which people can participate in the specific movement of God shepherded by those two organizations.
Would God tell me what would happen during the new year and my role in it? I had realized a few days earlier that my work with P'nei Adonai began in mid-2003, making my lack of ministry activity during 2009 in one sense a Sabbatical year. I would not have been surprised if God asked me, on Yom Kippur, to soon start something.
But God didn't. He said my Sabbatical time will end later. However, my personal laxness needed to end immediately. I will need personal momentum well-established before I can be an example for others.
Second, I asked for courage. I dealt with tremendous spiritual warfare during the years I led P'nei Adonai. As one small example, during those years it was normal for me to have a nightmare any time I slept. I was not sure why I would dream about people I cared about suffering, but trusted God was toughening me up for some purpose. It was sometimes strange to see family in the morning, or congregants on Shabbat, healthy and happy in contrast to what happened in my nightmares. Yet we all do suffer, and one day we will stand more alive than ever.
In any case, I was certainly aware that one reason I did not miss doing ministry work was the near absense of spiritual warfare in my life since Sar Shalom closed. A big advantage of doing little for the Kingdom of God is that God's enemies don't bother to oppose you! Returning to the trenches would require courage.
God told me I would have the courage I would need. That reply was not very comforting, but a sufficient answer. And any answer was encouraging.
Third, I asked for more relationship with God. He told me two stories. I have not retold them as well as I wanted, but those links lead to the best I can do at this time.
Most of the work to develop the RPG's setting I did myself: I tried to be prayerful but heard very little from God. Then, during Elul, there was a breakthrough. It began with more of my own thinking, but soon God contributed advice about how to honor him in an fantasy adventure setting. (I would have loved to blog about it during those weeks, but it happened to fast and intensely.) I had saved religion for last as I deveoped the setting; religion quickly became the most well-developed aspect and everything else needed revision to reflect a new and better foundation.
For God to tell me two stories (and he tells them better, both had much more detail and made me cry) using the fantasy setting we developed together was deeply touching.
Currently that setting has two purposes: it allows my wife and I to play a RPG together, and it helps me tell stories to Smiley. Perhaps I'll hear and share more stories set in that setting. It could become something for a broader audience. After all, God had me write stories in 2001 and 2002. I certainly would not mind if my new "ministry work" was more about being a storyteller and less about running a congregation.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Some Games Back Online
Today I had time to put a few of my games back online: Gruff Goats, the Four in a Row card game, and my list of tag variants.
I used to have these and other games available online at dvsgames.com but took that side down a while ago. Reformatting the presentation to fit my new website has not been a top priority.
I used to have these and other games available online at dvsgames.com but took that side down a while ago. Reformatting the presentation to fit my new website has not been a top priority.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Do I Look Like a Bad Guy?
James Rummel writes about an online survey that rates how likely you are to be the victim of a violent crime.
His rating is negative. So was mine*, but only barely.
I could lower my score all the way down to -15, if I were to start locking all car doors when in the car, carrying an umbrella, and not carrying my ATM card. But I've never heard of a carjacking in Eugene, I usually rely on my hat and overcoat for rain protection, and I do carry my ATM card.
Anyway, this is amusing to me because of an incident that happened two years ago at LCC, on a rainy day as I was walking from my office to the bus stop.
My overcoat is a knee-length London Fog coat. I chose black instead of brown, but admittedly Matrix versus Dick Tracy is a touchy fashion decision with no correct answer.
I was also wearing my hat. With both my coat and hat I look too much like the villain from the first Indiana Jones movie. But no one at the bank has ever asked me to identify myself with both a photo id and the symbol burned onto my palm.
I was also carrying my skateboard. I can skip a 10 to 15 minute wait to switch buses (at an uncovered bus stop) by skating home instead. I get no more wet, have a lot more fun, and arrive home at most 5 minutes later.
So I'm walking along, looking like a villain in need of a 1930s getaway car, when along comes a young boy and his mom. The kid is probably 8 or 9. He's been watching the puddles and his feet, but looks up and sees me. His eyes get big. His mouth drops open. A drone of "Whoa" spills out of his mouth.
He wasn't afraid. I think he was wondering what my superpower might be.
UPDATE: I realized the online survey completely neglects making your home secure, something Mr. Rummel writes about often.
* My current rating. Summer's dry spell is over and I'm often wearing my overcoat. Since P'nei Adonai is no longer a congregation I'm not attending IAMCS conferences or taking airplane trips.
His rating is negative. So was mine*, but only barely.
I could lower my score all the way down to -15, if I were to start locking all car doors when in the car, carrying an umbrella, and not carrying my ATM card. But I've never heard of a carjacking in Eugene, I usually rely on my hat and overcoat for rain protection, and I do carry my ATM card.
Anyway, this is amusing to me because of an incident that happened two years ago at LCC, on a rainy day as I was walking from my office to the bus stop.
My overcoat is a knee-length London Fog coat. I chose black instead of brown, but admittedly Matrix versus Dick Tracy is a touchy fashion decision with no correct answer.
I was also wearing my hat. With both my coat and hat I look too much like the villain from the first Indiana Jones movie. But no one at the bank has ever asked me to identify myself with both a photo id and the symbol burned onto my palm.
I was also carrying my skateboard. I can skip a 10 to 15 minute wait to switch buses (at an uncovered bus stop) by skating home instead. I get no more wet, have a lot more fun, and arrive home at most 5 minutes later.
So I'm walking along, looking like a villain in need of a 1930s getaway car, when along comes a young boy and his mom. The kid is probably 8 or 9. He's been watching the puddles and his feet, but looks up and sees me. His eyes get big. His mouth drops open. A drone of "Whoa" spills out of his mouth.
He wasn't afraid. I think he was wondering what my superpower might be.
UPDATE: I realized the online survey completely neglects making your home secure, something Mr. Rummel writes about often.
* My current rating. Summer's dry spell is over and I'm often wearing my overcoat. Since P'nei Adonai is no longer a congregation I'm not attending IAMCS conferences or taking airplane trips.
Alphabet Songs
Smiley loves Sandra Boynton's ABC Book. One reason is that we seldom read Boynton's text and instead use it to sing the alphabet song. Singing makes any book extra popular and he knows the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle" for other reasons.
Reading the book so often would make the simple alphabet song get boring. So I alter the final couplet to:
We sing the alphabet song at other times as well, especially on walks and in the car. Years ago when I started teaching Hebrew to children I figured out how to fit the Aleph-Bet to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle".
Smiley has not heard it nearly as often, but back when teaching Hebrew I also figured out how to fit the Aleph-Bet to the tune of "Dai-aynoo" since it was nice to sing the Hebrew alphabet to a Jewish song.
UPDATE: Over Thanksgiving vacation I noticed something interesting. I have a habit that I thought was common but apparently is not: when singing the normal alphabet song I drag out w so that it takes up an entire line. This means the final line is x, y, z without the word "and" since the word "and" is not a letter!
UPDATE: Also, the English alphabet fits "Dai-aynoo" very well. I should start singing that also, so Smiley does not develop the habit some toddlers have of considering lmno as a single letter.
Reading the book so often would make the simple alphabet song get boring. So I alter the final couplet to:
Now I know my ABC's,Then we go sing the alphabet backwards, which by now I have also memorized.
Next time won't you sing it backwards.
z, y, x, w, v, u, t,Then we go through the book a third time, forward, singing the animal names. Except that I'm nerdy enough to know about the frog whose name starts with X, so I use that name for the X animal.
s, r, q, p, o-n-m-l-k,
j, i, h,
g, f, e,
d, c, b, a,
Now I've sung my ABC's,
Next time won't you sing about the animals.
We sing the alphabet song at other times as well, especially on walks and in the car. Years ago when I started teaching Hebrew to children I figured out how to fit the Aleph-Bet to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle".
א aleph בּ bet ב vet ג gimmel ד dalet ה heyThe letters aleph, yod, lamed, nun, qof, and resh are in bold because they receive two syllables worth of time.
ו vav ז zayin ח chet ט tet י yod כּ kaf כ chaf
ל lamed מ mem נ nun ס samech
ע ayin פּ pay פ fay צ tzaday
ק qof ר resh שׁ shin שׂ sin ת tav
Next time won't you sing with me.
Smiley has not heard it nearly as often, but back when teaching Hebrew I also figured out how to fit the Aleph-Bet to the tune of "Dai-aynoo" since it was nice to sing the Hebrew alphabet to a Jewish song.
א aleph בּ bet ב vet ג gimmel ד dalet (eeloo hotzee hotzee-aynoo)This time the letters hey, vav, chaf, mem, ayin, fay, qof, resh, and sin receive two syllables worth of time, and the letter shin receives three syllables.
ה hey ו vav ז zayin ח chet ט tet (hotzee-aynoo mee-Meetzray-eem)
י yod כּ kaf כ chaf, ל lamed מ mem (hotzee-aynoo, mee-Meetzray-eem)
נ nun ס samech (dai-ay-noo)
ע ayin פּ pay, פ fay צ tzaday (dai-dai-ay-noo, dai-dai-ay-noo)
ק qof ר resh, שׁ shin שׂ sin ת tav (dai-dai-ay-noo, dai-ay-noo dai-ay-noo)
UPDATE: Over Thanksgiving vacation I noticed something interesting. I have a habit that I thought was common but apparently is not: when singing the normal alphabet song I drag out w so that it takes up an entire line. This means the final line is x, y, z without the word "and" since the word "and" is not a letter!
UPDATE: Also, the English alphabet fits "Dai-aynoo" very well. I should start singing that also, so Smiley does not develop the habit some toddlers have of considering lmno as a single letter.
a, b, c, d, e, f, g,Then I can replace the chorus with "alpha-bet..." instead of "dai, dai, aynoo".
h, i, j, k, l, m, n,
o, p, q, r,
s, t, u, v,
w, x, y, z.
alphabet, alphabet,
alphabet, we sing our ABC's!
More Fall 2009 LCC Statistics
I wrote a couple weeks ago about the current LCC enrollment surge.
How is the increase enduring? Enrollment during the first week of a term is always slightly fictitious because a few students, to appease a financial aid requirement, enroll in classes they intend to promptly drop.
At the start of the second week of classes, looking only at credit classes, enrollment is up 20%, with 10% more classes being offered, and with 17% more students than Fall 2008.
Financial aid us up a huge 47%. As of last Friday, $16,951,872 in student aid assistance had been disbursed to 5,484 students.
How is the increase enduring? Enrollment during the first week of a term is always slightly fictitious because a few students, to appease a financial aid requirement, enroll in classes they intend to promptly drop.
At the start of the second week of classes, looking only at credit classes, enrollment is up 20%, with 10% more classes being offered, and with 17% more students than Fall 2008.
Financial aid us up a huge 47%. As of last Friday, $16,951,872 in student aid assistance had been disbursed to 5,484 students.
When Google Can't Search!
Blogger/Blogspot has been owned by Google for a while now.
Sadly, the "search this blog" box in the upper left corner has been broken for months. It has often been an extra pain in the behind to write a blog post about one of my recurring themes when I need to spend minutes instead of seconds locating my previous essays.
There is now a form to fill out when searching fails, to help Google debug the problem.
Sadly, the "search this blog" box in the upper left corner has been broken for months. It has often been an extra pain in the behind to write a blog post about one of my recurring themes when I need to spend minutes instead of seconds locating my previous essays.
There is now a form to fill out when searching fails, to help Google debug the problem.
The Home Schoolers Fifth Column?
Last month Frank Schaeffer wrote a fascinating article about the fundamentalist Christian home school movement.
I know a fair number of local fundamentalist Christian home school parents, and thought I should write a brief reply.
First, he has seen a different flavor of reaction than I have in Oregon. The folks I know in this movement see a clear distinction between "secular America" and "political America". The former, a mental mish-mash of Hollywood and those political groups actively promoting unscriptural values, is indeed vilified as Schaeffer describes. The latter is not.
Rather, the country's political climate is instead viewed in an oversimplified way as tension along a single political spectrum ranging from "anarchic hedonism" to "selfless devotion to Christ". None of the parents I know think this tension is undemocratic, un-American, or evil. I must disagree with Schaeffer's observation that they see American politics as illegitamite. These parents simply want to add their votes to the side they favor; none of the protest antics or millitia hoarding Schaeffer describes happens here. These parents may misunderstand political issues as they try to force a complicated political climate into an imaginary dichotomy, but this is no more a source of distortion than the way a greater number of American voters cast votes the way their parents did or by party line, or are simply uninformed.
Certainly the local home schoolers I know are not "work[ing] to overthrow our democracy and replace it with a theocracy." They would not even know how to begin this if they were to adopt that goal.
Locally, it is instead the extremely liberal crowd that has (some, only some) members acting as Schaeffer describes. During Bush's eight years Eugene had plenty of examples of people not accepting the 2004 Presidential election results, of signs comparing Bush to Hitler, of preparations made for an imagined imposition of a dictatorship that might happen any day or Armageddon that would wipe out scriptural faith in 2012.
The last point makes Schaeffer's article seem slightly humorous to me. Eugene still has plenty of bumper stickers from the Bush years about "He's not my president" or "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism".
I know a fair number of local fundamentalist Christian home school parents, and thought I should write a brief reply.
First, he has seen a different flavor of reaction than I have in Oregon. The folks I know in this movement see a clear distinction between "secular America" and "political America". The former, a mental mish-mash of Hollywood and those political groups actively promoting unscriptural values, is indeed vilified as Schaeffer describes. The latter is not.
Rather, the country's political climate is instead viewed in an oversimplified way as tension along a single political spectrum ranging from "anarchic hedonism" to "selfless devotion to Christ". None of the parents I know think this tension is undemocratic, un-American, or evil. I must disagree with Schaeffer's observation that they see American politics as illegitamite. These parents simply want to add their votes to the side they favor; none of the protest antics or millitia hoarding Schaeffer describes happens here. These parents may misunderstand political issues as they try to force a complicated political climate into an imaginary dichotomy, but this is no more a source of distortion than the way a greater number of American voters cast votes the way their parents did or by party line, or are simply uninformed.
Certainly the local home schoolers I know are not "work[ing] to overthrow our democracy and replace it with a theocracy." They would not even know how to begin this if they were to adopt that goal.
Locally, it is instead the extremely liberal crowd that has (some, only some) members acting as Schaeffer describes. During Bush's eight years Eugene had plenty of examples of people not accepting the 2004 Presidential election results, of signs comparing Bush to Hitler, of preparations made for an imagined imposition of a dictatorship that might happen any day or Armageddon that would wipe out scriptural faith in 2012.
The last point makes Schaeffer's article seem slightly humorous to me. Eugene still has plenty of bumper stickers from the Bush years about "He's not my president" or "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism".
Two Gluten-Free Snacks
During the Summer my wife and I got to try two gluten-free snacks that were new to us.
Neither was nice enough that we're looking for the best prices at a local or internet store, but they seemed worth archiving.
The first was Glutino's Vanilla Dreams sandwich cookies. The second was Michael Season's baked cheese curls.
Neither was nice enough that we're looking for the best prices at a local or internet store, but they seemed worth archiving.
The first was Glutino's Vanilla Dreams sandwich cookies. The second was Michael Season's baked cheese curls.
More about Ages and Stages
Back in September I mentioned how Oregon has paid for free use of the Ages and Stages developmental screening questionnaires. Just use the state's website instead of the publisher's website.
At Smiley's 18-month checkup our pediatrician asked us to start participating in the program. So we did. It only took a few minutes.
Humorously and usefully, the state's website is not very secure. After you finish a questionnaire it offers you two list of learning activities appropriate for your child. But anyone who wants to browse through the good ideas can just go to either directory and see all the files.
At Smiley's 18-month checkup our pediatrician asked us to start participating in the program. So we did. It only took a few minutes.
Humorously and usefully, the state's website is not very secure. After you finish a questionnaire it offers you two list of learning activities appropriate for your child. But anyone who wants to browse through the good ideas can just go to either directory and see all the files.
Two October Days
The past two days have held a strange collection of chores as I tried to get things done while watching a tired little boy.
Yesterday was cold so we started a fire in the stove. Then, to stay downstairs by it, we cleaned my skateboard's bearings. Smiley liked paying with the rubber wheels, and putting them on and off the skateboard's axles. I also did laundry and re-seasoned our cast iron skillet. We went for a stroller-walk to the grocery store and took pictures of Autumn trees. After his nap I swept the deck and then started building Boo's winter indoor cage. After dinner everyone went swing dancing.
Today began with my math class taking the term's first test. Then we did dishes, oiled all the wood cutting boards, and made up a new rice pudding recipe to try. After his nap we'll go to allergy shots, maybe shop for stain and maybe varnish, and perhaps even finish Boo's cage.
UPDATE: No hardware store or woodworking got done, but they rice pudding recipe was a definite success.
Yesterday was cold so we started a fire in the stove. Then, to stay downstairs by it, we cleaned my skateboard's bearings. Smiley liked paying with the rubber wheels, and putting them on and off the skateboard's axles. I also did laundry and re-seasoned our cast iron skillet. We went for a stroller-walk to the grocery store and took pictures of Autumn trees. After his nap I swept the deck and then started building Boo's winter indoor cage. After dinner everyone went swing dancing.
Today began with my math class taking the term's first test. Then we did dishes, oiled all the wood cutting boards, and made up a new rice pudding recipe to try. After his nap we'll go to allergy shots, maybe shop for stain and maybe varnish, and perhaps even finish Boo's cage.
UPDATE: No hardware store or woodworking got done, but they rice pudding recipe was a definite success.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Done with Initial Teething
Huzzah! Today Smiley's lower right eye tooth (#27) finally came through.
He had another milestone today: after his nap we took a shower together that concluded by him standing up in the tub and drying himself with his towel. Previously he has always been dried by a parent, usually while lying on the towel on his back upon the bathroom counter.
I had two milestones today. I cleaned my skateboard's bearings for the first time, and used my new circular saw for the first time as I started building a better cage for Boo.
He had another milestone today: after his nap we took a shower together that concluded by him standing up in the tub and drying himself with his towel. Previously he has always been dried by a parent, usually while lying on the towel on his back upon the bathroom counter.
I had two milestones today. I cleaned my skateboard's bearings for the first time, and used my new circular saw for the first time as I started building a better cage for Boo.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
To Give Up Mouse Clicks with a Cookie?
I have some long web pages. For example...
So during the past month I've added two buttons at the top right corner of all my web pages. One darkens the background for people who like that. One narrows the page to 800 pixels for people who find that more readable.
Currently a reader has to click the button(s) on every page they want the effect(s) applied.
I could change the buttons to "remember" a reader's preference, using a cookie. But I'm old enough to be prejudiced against cookies, especially needless ones.
Should I use a cookie, or should people have more anonymity and mouse clicks?
So during the past month I've added two buttons at the top right corner of all my web pages. One darkens the background for people who like that. One narrows the page to 800 pixels for people who find that more readable.
Currently a reader has to click the button(s) on every page they want the effect(s) applied.
I could change the buttons to "remember" a reader's preference, using a cookie. But I'm old enough to be prejudiced against cookies, especially needless ones.
Should I use a cookie, or should people have more anonymity and mouse clicks?
Faith Won't Axiomatize
A friend asks on Facebook today (why can't I link to such things!)...
But a very similar story was once believed by the Ophites, and we can't use logic alone to discredit the possibility.
As we roll the scroll back again, we need to ask ourselves why we believe this stuff anyway. How do we know that the Bible we believe is truly God's Word to us. Is it because it is what our parents have taught us? Is it because it makes sense... to our intellect? Is it because we have truly met with Adonai through it? Without understanding the why (or seeking to understand) it is no more than ritual exercise.My response was that of a mathematician. I asserted we cannot logically know if our faith is true. We believe in an intelligent, powerful, deceiving being. So logical proofs are out. Here's an example of why logic alone cannot be enough.
What if the divine being who created the world is apathetic and evil, but humanity would be hurt to learn this. So the deceiving being invents our scripture and acts as the God of scripture, humbly portraying himself as the evil being and giving us a message of hope and faith rather than allowing humanity learn a crushing truth.Sound crazy? It is! There is something inside us, once we have met Yeshua, that will never accept such a hypothesis.
But a very similar story was once believed by the Ophites, and we can't use logic alone to discredit the possibility.
Nerdity
What is the difference between a geek, dork, and dweeb? Jeff has a handy chart.
Ever wonder how dividing by e can help you make an important choice?
Someone had to invent the Möbius strip music box.
For those with televisions, a chart of science fiction shows after 1970.
Want to change the layout of a web page story? Use Readability! (Except that none of my tests with various copies of A Midsummer Night's Dream worked well with it. Blah.)
Ever wonder how dividing by e can help you make an important choice?
Someone had to invent the Möbius strip music box.
For those with televisions, a chart of science fiction shows after 1970.
Want to change the layout of a web page story? Use Readability! (Except that none of my tests with various copies of A Midsummer Night's Dream worked well with it. Blah.)
Saturn and Toyota in 2009
I've previously mentioned our Saturn SL2.
Earlier this year there were plans to transfer the Saturn brand to the Penske Automotive Group, but those plans have failed. I'm not sure if the brand is now mortally wounded or whether there are backup plans. Perhaps I'll read the whole Saturn story in a book someday, or someone will make a movie.
My local Saturn dealership has closed; the nearest one is now in Salem. But the local dealer's master mechanic and repair manager moved together to a local Toyota dealer, where they still do repair work for many of the county's Saturn owners. But Toyota is not now a healthy brand either.
Earlier this year there were plans to transfer the Saturn brand to the Penske Automotive Group, but those plans have failed. I'm not sure if the brand is now mortally wounded or whether there are backup plans. Perhaps I'll read the whole Saturn story in a book someday, or someone will make a movie.
My local Saturn dealership has closed; the nearest one is now in Salem. But the local dealer's master mechanic and repair manager moved together to a local Toyota dealer, where they still do repair work for many of the county's Saturn owners. But Toyota is not now a healthy brand either.
YouTube's Trucks for Toddlers (Mostly Fixed Camera Edition)
In the past I've mentioned that kids less than two years old should watch little if any television.
We don't own a television. Every now and then I allow to Smiley to watch a short video on my laptop. Normally this only happens when I am reviewing our videos of him to pick which to edit and post on BlipTV. But during the past month I've been slightly more lenient.
He loves trucks, and during the Summer was able to see some construction vehicles do work near our house. But he has a fun picture book about trucks and I feel bad that he has no idea what many of the featured trucks look like in motion.
Currently the most agreed-upon hypothesis for why television is bad for little brains involves how most television programs shift the camera point of view so often. So I have looked for YouTube videos about trucks in which the camera moves never or rarely.
So far I've only found three: about a Bell Dump Truck, Excavator, and a Fire Truck Parade.
Do you know about any others?
UPDATE: I've found four more, about tractors: a Ford 5000, John Deere 7920, and a Harvester. Also this one but the tractor and tank are not showing off what they normally do.
UPDATE: Steam roller videos from Wales and the U.S. And Smiley had little interest in this video about a train plowing snow but I thought it was nifty.
UPDATE: More! A front loader, Bobcat, mobile crane, excavator, and bulldozer. The first two are fun with the vehicles doing stunts instead of normal construction work.
UPDATE: Many more! Fun forklifts. Three big excavators. A boy driving a bulldozer.
We don't own a television. Every now and then I allow to Smiley to watch a short video on my laptop. Normally this only happens when I am reviewing our videos of him to pick which to edit and post on BlipTV. But during the past month I've been slightly more lenient.
He loves trucks, and during the Summer was able to see some construction vehicles do work near our house. But he has a fun picture book about trucks and I feel bad that he has no idea what many of the featured trucks look like in motion.
Currently the most agreed-upon hypothesis for why television is bad for little brains involves how most television programs shift the camera point of view so often. So I have looked for YouTube videos about trucks in which the camera moves never or rarely.
So far I've only found three: about a Bell Dump Truck, Excavator, and a Fire Truck Parade.
Do you know about any others?
UPDATE: I've found four more, about tractors: a Ford 5000, John Deere 7920, and a Harvester. Also this one but the tractor and tank are not showing off what they normally do.
UPDATE: Steam roller videos from Wales and the U.S. And Smiley had little interest in this video about a train plowing snow but I thought it was nifty.
UPDATE: More! A front loader, Bobcat, mobile crane, excavator, and bulldozer. The first two are fun with the vehicles doing stunts instead of normal construction work.
UPDATE: Many more! Fun forklifts. Three big excavators. A boy driving a bulldozer.
Kudlow's Recovery Measurement
Yesterday Larry Kudlow asked an interesting question: what if I do not treat gold simply another investment to measure, but instead as the basis of comparison (instead of the dollar) for all other investment growth.
(Not that I don't share Kudlow's concern about the overall economy stagnating. I have also worried that too much Federal activity--specifically, trying both stimulus spending and the bond purchases Friedman recommended--will do more harm than good.)
Second, I should point out that Kudlow relies on a generalization that is not currently appropriate to an investor's decision-making. A big issue with this recession is that the S&P 500 and Dow are no longer useful estimates of national economic health because some financial sectors have been flattened while others are doing very well.
Remember my June investment advice? Consider the overseas investments I wrote about: funds for Latin America (FLATX), Southeast Asia (FSEAX), and India (IFN) have all increased twice as much as as gold, one of those more than three times as much. Similarly, the "stimulus plan" favored sectors of materials (FSDPX) and energy (FSENX, FSESX) have increased twice as much as gold. Even the sector of consumer staples (FDFAX) and the MidCap funds (FNMIX, FMIMX) are keeping even with gold or doing twice as well.
Despite the fact that no one can predict the future shape of the national economy after the recession ends, an investor who pays attention to politics can still outperform gold.
In other words, measured in true, gold-backed purchasing power, stocks have really done nothing this year. Zip. It is most disappointing.First, note that I provided one answer to that question in mid-September, when I wrote about debt-deflation and described how a lending crisis usually requires some inflation as part of the cure. During a recession caused by a debt-bubble bursting, an investor should not expect the entire economy to outpace gold.
(Not that I don't share Kudlow's concern about the overall economy stagnating. I have also worried that too much Federal activity--specifically, trying both stimulus spending and the bond purchases Friedman recommended--will do more harm than good.)
Second, I should point out that Kudlow relies on a generalization that is not currently appropriate to an investor's decision-making. A big issue with this recession is that the S&P 500 and Dow are no longer useful estimates of national economic health because some financial sectors have been flattened while others are doing very well.
Remember my June investment advice? Consider the overseas investments I wrote about: funds for Latin America (FLATX), Southeast Asia (FSEAX), and India (IFN) have all increased twice as much as as gold, one of those more than three times as much. Similarly, the "stimulus plan" favored sectors of materials (FSDPX) and energy (FSENX, FSESX) have increased twice as much as gold. Even the sector of consumer staples (FDFAX) and the MidCap funds (FNMIX, FMIMX) are keeping even with gold or doing twice as well.
Despite the fact that no one can predict the future shape of the national economy after the recession ends, an investor who pays attention to politics can still outperform gold.
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Camping and Adoption
Heh. This is nifty.
The Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission met on September 29th and made a bunch of small policy changes (mostly small fee increases, for the first time in 13 years).
One new policy is that Oregon foster families who adopt an Oregon Foster Child will receive free camping and day use until that child turns 18.
It makes no logical sense, but it is a nice neighborly thing for the State Parks to do!
The Oregon State Parks and Recreation Commission met on September 29th and made a bunch of small policy changes (mostly small fee increases, for the first time in 13 years).
One new policy is that Oregon foster families who adopt an Oregon Foster Child will receive free camping and day use until that child turns 18.
It makes no logical sense, but it is a nice neighborly thing for the State Parks to do!
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Letter Versus Spirit
Last Shabbat a lit a fire.
According to Exodus 35:1-3 this is a violation of the Sinai covenant. The context of the commandment implies the rule exists as a guideline for how much effort counts as "work" to be avoided on Shabbat. I know well from my Boy Scout days that kindling a fire without matches or a lighter is a notable amount of work.
I have heard the reason candles are lit to welcome Shabbat is that the ritual reminded the family to have a flame going as the sun set and Shabbat began. That flame could be passed to other candles, lamps, and stoves during Shabbat.
However, if I tried to keep a continual flame burning from our Erev Shabbat dinner table through the night to use with the stove in the morning, this would be more work than using a lighter in the morning. Oddly, obeying the letter of that law would hinder me from obeying the spirit of that law.
Yet when I do light a fire in the stove on Shabbat I do so differently than during the week. Even though matches and newspaper make the chore very little work anyway, I also set aside the best kindling during the week. Beside the fireplace I accumulate a small pile of "Shabbat kindling" so that if I do need to start a fire on a Shabbat it is not only easy but trivial. My weekday fires take a bit more work to light because I'm preparing for Shabbat, parallel to putting together an uncooked casserole on Thursday afternoon so Friday night can have trivial baking. This is also part of obeying the spirit of the law because fire lighting helps keep me mindful of Shabbat throughout the week.
I can only think of one other commandment where following the letter of the law would mean violating the spirit of the law. In Leviticus 19:27-28 there are rules about sideburns, beards, and tattoos. From what I have read, those rules served to visibly differentiate the ancient Israelites from neighboring people groups (one whom shaved sideburns, another who kept beards short, and a third who used tattoos). I use my necklace, a wedding present from my wife, to visibly show my faith in a parallel way. I could instead style my sideburns and beard as an Orthodox Jew, to better follow the letter of those laws. But then my appearance would no longer indicate my faith, contrary to the spirit of those laws.
There are many, many Tenach commandments that I cannot keep. Obvious examples include anything about the Tabernacle, including the annual holy day observances. Anyone who claims to "follow Torah" is exaggerating: the covenant is a legal contract, and partial obedience is as covenentially invalid as someone paying only part of their mortgage. Yet there is rich spiritual benefit personally and in a community from living according to God's ways, even if it does not pay the rent.
According to Exodus 35:1-3 this is a violation of the Sinai covenant. The context of the commandment implies the rule exists as a guideline for how much effort counts as "work" to be avoided on Shabbat. I know well from my Boy Scout days that kindling a fire without matches or a lighter is a notable amount of work.
I have heard the reason candles are lit to welcome Shabbat is that the ritual reminded the family to have a flame going as the sun set and Shabbat began. That flame could be passed to other candles, lamps, and stoves during Shabbat.
However, if I tried to keep a continual flame burning from our Erev Shabbat dinner table through the night to use with the stove in the morning, this would be more work than using a lighter in the morning. Oddly, obeying the letter of that law would hinder me from obeying the spirit of that law.
Yet when I do light a fire in the stove on Shabbat I do so differently than during the week. Even though matches and newspaper make the chore very little work anyway, I also set aside the best kindling during the week. Beside the fireplace I accumulate a small pile of "Shabbat kindling" so that if I do need to start a fire on a Shabbat it is not only easy but trivial. My weekday fires take a bit more work to light because I'm preparing for Shabbat, parallel to putting together an uncooked casserole on Thursday afternoon so Friday night can have trivial baking. This is also part of obeying the spirit of the law because fire lighting helps keep me mindful of Shabbat throughout the week.
I can only think of one other commandment where following the letter of the law would mean violating the spirit of the law. In Leviticus 19:27-28 there are rules about sideburns, beards, and tattoos. From what I have read, those rules served to visibly differentiate the ancient Israelites from neighboring people groups (one whom shaved sideburns, another who kept beards short, and a third who used tattoos). I use my necklace, a wedding present from my wife, to visibly show my faith in a parallel way. I could instead style my sideburns and beard as an Orthodox Jew, to better follow the letter of those laws. But then my appearance would no longer indicate my faith, contrary to the spirit of those laws.
There are many, many Tenach commandments that I cannot keep. Obvious examples include anything about the Tabernacle, including the annual holy day observances. Anyone who claims to "follow Torah" is exaggerating: the covenant is a legal contract, and partial obedience is as covenentially invalid as someone paying only part of their mortgage. Yet there is rich spiritual benefit personally and in a community from living according to God's ways, even if it does not pay the rent.
18 Month Checkup
Today Smiley had his 18 month checkup. He has grown since his 12 month checkup, and is still following his growth chart trend lines.
Now he is 32.2 inches tall (50th percentile), he weighs 22 pounds (8th percentile), and his head size is 48.7 cm (75th percentile). Compared to six months ago he is slightly more tall and thin, and his head is less huge.
Practically, he has been in size 18 month shirts since Spring because the neck holes on 12 months shirts were too small, but only two weeks ago did he start wearing size 18 month pants.
He had vaccinations today, as well as his seasonal flu shot. We expected more fuss, but he was completely over the ordeal by the time we drove mommy to work and then home.
Later in October a toddler H1N1 vaccine will be available, which probably won't matter to him but might make a difference to any elderly library patrons he sneezes on. But Lane County has at this point only received its first vaccines this week, and only a nasal mist with live virus. Definitely not what would benefit Smiley.
Now he is 32.2 inches tall (50th percentile), he weighs 22 pounds (8th percentile), and his head size is 48.7 cm (75th percentile). Compared to six months ago he is slightly more tall and thin, and his head is less huge.
Practically, he has been in size 18 month shirts since Spring because the neck holes on 12 months shirts were too small, but only two weeks ago did he start wearing size 18 month pants.
He had vaccinations today, as well as his seasonal flu shot. We expected more fuss, but he was completely over the ordeal by the time we drove mommy to work and then home.
Later in October a toddler H1N1 vaccine will be available, which probably won't matter to him but might make a difference to any elderly library patrons he sneezes on. But Lane County has at this point only received its first vaccines this week, and only a nasal mist with live virus. Definitely not what would benefit Smiley.
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