The Turtle Speaks

In looking through the blog stats, I see there are some of you who come from the same site several times a month to check this blog to see if something is new. Presumably you also are checking sites of other family members, news sites, and the like. Is there a better way? Yes. RSS.

Or, if you’re a visual learner, this short video explains it wonderfully:

Everyone who visits a blog or news site more than once a month should use an RSS reader. You can use them online (as the video suggests) though there are also advantages to a desktop (offline) reader.

I personally use a free product from http://www.newsgator.com/ which I like. (And yes, technically I know that RSS is not the new way to use the net, but since it’s severely underutilized by netizens, I was hoping calling something ‘new’ would entice people).

Now that you’re using RSS, you can use your free time to write comments on blogs or learn to juggle.

What do Jeff Buckley, Rob Bell, and Qohelet have in common? They’ve all helped formulate and crystalize some ideas in my mind regarding the nature of life and how we are to live it.

Qohelet, another word for Ecclesiastes, speaks of God’s hand at work in the daily lives of people:

 Go, eat your bread with enjoyment, and drink your wine with a merry heart; for God has long ago approved what you do. Let your garments always be white; do not let oil be lacking on your head. Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that are given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun.

Jeff Buckley, the singer/songwriter best known for his enthralling cover of Leonard Cohen’s hallelujah, speaks of the spirituality of intimate relationships, and experiencing grace (the title of his best-known album) and eternal life (a song title). To listen to Buckley sing his passionate lyrics is to hear someone whose spirit and life is infused with a recognition of the otherness that invades and pervades life in a mysterious way, so infusing that all he can do is sing passionately.

Rob Bell, pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church, and author of Velvet Elvis speaks frequently of the differences between Christianity as a thought process (Western) and a way of life (Eastern). Bell speaks of the presence of God in daily life; in breaking bread and sharing drink with neighbors, watching children play, doing service, sitting doing nothing, grocery shopping, etc.

One of the unfortunate legacies of the Enlightenment is the compartmentalizing of life. People talk about their personal life, work life, love life, and so on. While the validity of these divisions may be debated, one segment of life that it doesn’t apply to is one’s spiritual life. To say that a person has a spiritual life is to imply that there is a segment of a person’s psyche that is characterized by faith or spiritual things.

But faith doesn’t shouldn’t work like that.

As the biblical writers describe a person’s life, there is no word or concept of Spiritual as opposed to other components of life. There is just life. Life lived before God with an understanding of his role and presence in the world. Life that incorporates the mundane elements of existence with the realization of deeper overtones and meanings within all.

When the NT writers use spiritual, it refers to a mindset or gift from God rather than a component of life that is somehow separate from the physical. The OT writers do not use spiritual at all because their conception of God and his work is more integrated into the national consciousness than the NT writers who have to combat paganism and Greek dualism in their writings.

I’m not talking about pantheism or panentheism here, but rather a deep recognition of the work and hand of God in all we do, say, and experience. I feel this has been neglected in the expressions of Christian faith that I have been exposed to. To quote Bell:

This is not just the same old message with new methods. We’re rediscovering Christianity as an Eastern religion, as a way of life. Legal metaphors for faith don’t deliver a way of life. We grew up in churches where people knew the nine verses why we don’t speak in tongues, but had never experienced the overwhelming presence of God.

Thanks Rob, Qohelet, and Jeff for helping me recognize the Spiritual in everyday life.

I came across an unfortunate comparison between new British and United States currency. I’m not graphic designer, but — and it’s perhaps a [n unfortunate?] side effect of being an Apple user — I appreciate style.

Quite a bit.

That’s one of the reasons I love my wife. That’s why I enjoy well-designed software and prefer Australian currency and products that favor form as much as function.

I’d nearly move to Britain for this currency. For now, I’ll just use a credit card and not have to look at our money…

Many of my friends are on Facebook. Few are on Twitter. What is Twitter? Twitter is a viral conversation webapp. It’s similar to the status feature on Facebook, but it allows you to keep up with small, mundande aspects of people’s lives, reply to their Twitters, and send direct (i.e. non-public) messages. If you’ve got 2:25, watch the following:

What’s interesting to me is the revolution in communication that social networking has ignited. Twitter takes this to another level. It’s relational, informative, interesting, and not something my parents could appreciate. What is the future of interactive and instant communication? What does it mean? As Tim Bray notes “I think that with Twitter, something important is happening. But I’m having trouble figuring out what.” It’s fascinating to me how different generations view technology and information, but I digress…

Twitter has also spawned a number of sites that utilize its API: Tweetburner, which highlights popular links on Twitter, Quotably which aggregates the replies to a conversation, and the excellent Twittervision (check this one out) and Twittermaps.

Unfortunately, I only know 3 people personally who use Twitter (4 if you count the person behind the Oklahoma Christian username). Since Twitter can update your Facebook status automatically, I’ll be mostly on Twitter as mrturtle. Join me? It’s free

I’ve been posting tech-related stuff, like a jQuery AJAX navigation tutorial and my excitement over IE 8 supporting web standards @ http://mrturtle.com.

For the few of you who know/care what that means, techy stuff will be over at the main domain. Any posts here will deal with family/faith/etc.

In related news, comments are now enabled on this blog. (Actually they’ve been enabled all along, but I wanted to remind you because the comment count has gone down lately. I know that the comments work because my friends from cyberspace continue to contact me.)

Here is a recent letter written to Dear Abby.

DEAR ABBY: Most people complain about their jobs because they feel they don’t make enough money. My problem is the opposite. I love my job, but I think I make too much money. My job is mostly simple work that could be done by anybody — yet I earn almost as much as my husband, who is a supervisor in a technical field. My boss always gives me excellent reviews and doesn’t seem concerned.

It’s nice to have the kind of job that isn’t stressful. But I feel guilty that a lot of people with more difficult jobs make less than I do. Should I tell my boss to give me a pay cut, or take the money and run? — CUT OR RUN IN WISCONSIN

Don’t you hate it when that happens? Anyone out there sympathize?

As a big Mac fan, and an Oklahoma Christian University employee, I was more than excited that the university recently announced that it is going to give Apple MacBook laptops to all incoming students. The opportunities for this program in my area are exciting: the ability to run multiple operating systems (Vista or Leopard or both at once), options to create media with the iLife software, the ease of use of the Mac platform, etc.

I created a website for the announcement of the Oklahoma Christian MacBook program, which I always enjoy doing (yes, Dan, the code is XHTML 1.0 Strict and it validates). There is quite a bit of buzz on campus regarding the program and students were audibly excited (see below) after the video announcement. It will be interesting to see how this program develops and how users take advantage of it. Faculty will soon have the tools to create media-rich courses and learning opportunities. Any my support questions ought to lesson quite a bit

Also, the university is going to provide an iPhone or iPod touch to every student who gets a laptop (depending on whether or not they want to activate the iPhone). Pretty sweet. And all this is done for the same amount of money for the students. No price increase for a better computer and an iPhone/iPod? Nice.

The story has already appeared on Digg. I’m interested in seeing how the media coverage goes on this one.

Dr. Tony Alley passed away this last Tuesday. Tony was one of my bosses @ Oklahoma Christian. He hired me to be the head tutor of the Mac lab on campus. Because of this, I got to schedule my hours, so I made sure I worked during a class Tony taught. My future (now current) wife happened to be in the class, so Tony was responsible for us getting together. The summer before my Senior year, Tony hired me as an intern in the North Institute, a good-paying job I had for two years. It was because of this job that I have a full-time job with the North Institute. His faith in me (over other, better qualified interns), has literally changed my life.

Tony always had a smile and a great attitude. I will miss his gentle spirit and his love of students. Dr. Alley, you will be missed. See you on the other side.

See an excellent video Interview with Tony. I also look forward to any memories my former co-worker Dan has to say.

Amazon.com has several great features like scads of user-reviews, links to related products, wishlists, competitive prices, and a big selection. They also periodically send out emails with product suggestions based on your purchase history. Often these are helpful, but not always.

James D. G. Dunn is a giant of New Testament scholarship. I’ve especially found his Galatians commentary and Theology of the Apostle Paul to be highly insightful. I also leaned heavily on his groundbreaking (though controversial) interpretation of Paul’s phrase works of the law (ἔργων νόμου) which is found only in Galatians and Romans and is one of the key concepts in Pauline interpretation. He has also had some interesting exchanges with N. T. Wright that I’ve listened to online and enjoyed quite a bit.

So what does Amazon suggest for those who’ve bought or rated items by Dr. Dunn? Dance Praise:

Dance Praise 2-the ReMix Game Only is a CD-ROM with the new and improved Dance Praise. It’s ideal for current Dance Praise families who own the original game and dance pads and want to upgrade to the latest version. With all new music and many new features, this hit Christian dance game is now even better! Digital Praise researched many new enhancement ideas with customers before prioritizing the list of included features. All of the top requests have been incorporated into the game, so you’ll love it!

For ages 4 and up.

I didn’t even know there was such a thing, nor would I ever consider pairing it with Dunn’s books. Perhaps they’re easier to read after a religious spin on the dance pads to praise music? Fortunately Dance Praise is available for Macs and Windows, and I can save 34% if I buy now…

Much of the conversation of the country consisted of lines from television shows, both present and past.
- Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Have you ever talked to someone whose primary conversation starters consist of TV references, quotes, or [failed] impersonations? I mean, I like TV as much as the next guy (unless the next guy doesn’t like TV or obsesses over it) but one of my goals in life is to have either a pool of original thoughts to draw from or enough saavy to interact with people in a trans-media way.

However, I realize many people are into TV — not that there’s anything wrong with that — and it’s understandable. When someone makes you a deal you can’t refuse on a TV or cable service, it’s hard to turn down. You get a big enough TV, and when a big event comes, you’ll probably have a full house. TV also has its plusses — it can take a pair of people (or 3 to make company) who are perfect strangers, and turn them into friends. It also gives you something to talk about at the office. There are minuses as well. Sometimes George wants to watch a show, and I let him know who’s the boss, and take the remote.

BTW, have you ever seen Mitch Hedberg? Kate and I saw him on TV again last night. Funny stuff…