Greetings from Satan

Sometimes, I cannot believe the conceit of the West.... actually, likely most of the time I cannot believe our conceit.... for really, why do we count our lives as so terribly valuable? That's the paradox... our lives mean very little to nothing at all at the end of the day, yet we are (why? That is an infinite mystery...) infinitely valuable. However, our lives really do mean little more than our fellow Sudanese, our fellow Lebanese, our fellow Somalians, our fellow Cambodians, our fellow Shiite Muslims from Afghanistan... yet HOW did we become so conceited as to believe we as the West are more important? That we have a greater right to live? How have we been so coddled, so dulled, so indoctrinated in the life of ease and leisure (would someone PLEASE shoot all Christians in the West who talk about how they are being 'persecuted' for their faith, how they are 'suffering'????) that we somehow think that is what we are OWED?
Certainly, I fall faaaarrrrr short of this. I too, at the end of the day, don't want to be gang-raped, have my tongue cut off so I won't scream, hacked to pieces starting with my limbs and then ending with my head, and have my corpse being eaten by dogs (well, actually, that last bit doesn't actually bother me very much). I too, would like to live in a cozy nook, with a cup of tea and a good book, surrounded by adorable grandchildren at my hearth, telling me where I left my glasses. However, the conceit, the conceit, the conceit.... the selfish abandon with which we pursue such things... under the guise that they are 'blessings from God'...

Happy birthday to the Pole

That's all I really had to say...

Working, 9 to 5....

You know, all I really want to do (well, at least just work-wise, and at least just for now) is just go to work, have some fun for the day and not want to pull out my hair or scream (much), and then come home. Is that really too much to ask?
I don't go to work so I can deal with politics and pettiness and money grubbing and power struggles and stuff like that; in fact, I PAY MONEY so I DON'T have to deal with that kind of stuff.... why is it chasing me down and stuffing me into its gullet?
I can't figure it out; is it because I'm fairly low maintenance? Is it because people get greedy? Is it because I'm not paying enough money to get people to please stop complaining? Is it because I'm part of the problem? Part of the 'man', the 'system'?
Bah. I think it is in the nature of man to complain. I think also, different things irk different people at different intensities. I mean, I am all for being treated fairly and being compensated fairly for work one does and all, but I think also that there are some things that are probably not worth getting all riled up about.
Bah.

Patmosian paradise

Do you suppose that this is the beginning of the end? That the cities of Tyre and Sidon are again overtaking the Israelites, that the cows of Bashan are going to try to take back what is theirs? Certainly, if the mutterings of Syria and Iran, let alone the rest of the Arab world is any indication, then perhaps, just perhaps... If so, despite how lukewarm and spittable I might be, maranatha....

Worst-Case Scenario Handbook

So the government's sent me this HUGE package in the mail to my house, containing, gowns, gloves, face masks, antiseptics, and who knows what else, in case of an "outbreak".... now, tell me if I'm wrong, but SARS was about four years ago now.... (now who says government isn't efficient?!? Yippee for civil servants... they obviously know how to respond to the pulse of the population... they are SO SMART! I can't stand it! ) ... also, I am not entirely sure what exactly I'm going to do with them in the house... We could wrap the plants, deck them out in gowns and gloves, or maybe some of the furniture, but heck, this house will be prepared in case an outbreak of disease X should occur.... perhaps I should consider adding it to my everyday wardrobe, to protect against overblown diseases like West Nile... or bubonic plague... or Ebola virus...

Italian Patient

OK, so another two stories to add to the pile... and people wonder why I'm so terribly cynical...

It's all a big conspiracy!!!

Hmm, it's difficult, the choice between acne or suicide... it's not as clear as it looks...

Iron Chef Changimoto

After an eight year hiatus, grand master Chang regaled us with meat! Not burnt! Well made! (Of course, we think of most of it stems from his lovely assistant...)
We now look forward to the innovation involved in pastry within the next decade...

FFT

Western Christianity is no more than the religionization of capitalistic culture.
Emile Durkheim

Another Vietnamese cliche

Where is my Absalom?

E, I, E, I, Oooooo

So finally, FINALLY, made it out to The Farm. Mulched to my heart's content, admired the rare-breed chickens and pure-bred cows freely grazing in the fields, ate beef for the first time in almost two years (knowing who the cow was, who the farmer was and who the butcher was) which completely underwhelmed me, ate from the bounty of the fields, was philosophically challenged in an adobe hut about the nature of faith and belief when worldviews clash; in total, feeling like perhaps I was living a little slice of heaven...

The Madness of Genius

Seriously, if one more person says I'm "brilliant", "insightful", "a genius", "an eloquent speaker", or some other thing like that anymore, I think I'm going to scream...

Eulogy for Gabriel

Oh tiny little perfect one, a little nubbin for a nose, fine small eyelashes, hoped for so desperately, loved so deeply, treasured, held, sung to. A million dreams, all in one little soul. Who suffered, was loved, and will be missed, much more than many could dream of in a lifetime.
Oh mommy, who cradled and dreamt of this little one since he was no bigger than a pea. Who hears the echoes of her heart in the caverns of her womb. Who feels the throbbing in her veins rather than the acrobatics of his feet. Who sings for joy, and for grief.
Oh daddy, always, always, so strong and so able (has always been that way). So strong, carrying the family. Grief that is loving and brave. Hope for strength and a sure foundation. Hope for healing, hope for tomorrow.
I love you all very much.

Blue Suede Shoes

OK, saw this brilliant video a week ago, and finally found out where it actually is sourced from:
www.evolutionofdance.com ... I'm sure some of you have already seen it, but check it out! Lemme know what you think!

Query

OK, I must say, most months, I really love reading Dr. Ursus. Sometimes I wish that some of my colleagues would read him more...

Q&A

I was reflecting today, you know, when it kind of strikes you, facts about people, or new insights that you never thought of before... and I thought: brilliant, brilliant blessings... ones who have 'awoken the sleeping giant'... like Gandalf commanding King Theoden to breathe the free air again... like in The Secret Garden when Mary and Dickon bring Colin there and start encouraging him to start to learn to walk again... and, of course, friends... maybe I should tell them...

Sheep or goat? Sheep or goat? Sheep or goat?

Curiously, one person (who shall remain nameless, as per his request) thought that male sheep were called goats. Had thought so his whole life. Was surprised to find out, in fact, male sheep are rams, female sheep are ewes, and baby sheep are lambs. Goats are an entire other species.
This, of course, leads to very interesting (though irreverant) theology: Were sheep female, and goats male, then Jesus' separation of the sheep and goats, with the sheep being welcomed to the Kingdom and the goats being relegated to weeping and gnashing of teeth, would actually be pretty funny....

James' fan club

So, two dear friends surprised me with LOTR tickets, which was all the more surprising considering that they actually humoured me in getting the synopsis of The Hobbit, and all three LOTRs before the show started.
Now, I'm no theatre critic (food critic, perhaps, but no theatre critic), and I know it's gotten some very luke warm reviews, but I liked it pretty OK, notwithstanding my bias. Certainly, there were elements that I think would be inevitably compared to the films, but I think they did quite well considering the limitations of the stage, without the benefits of digital imaging, special effects and casts of thousands. I think I appreciated the way that they did try to make it distinctly different, though still a bit familiar. I also appreciate how they stuck to the real storyline, rather than adding in elements that weren't even in the book. I also appreciate how they mentioned Tom Bombadil!
I must say that their most daunting challenge was that they had to compress several hundreds of pages (or 14 hours of film- which, even then, still couldn't do the book justice) into less than 3 1/2 hours of musical.
Overall, particularly if being a bit of a 'classic fantasy' freak like myself, this would be a nice show to go watch. I think if you have no clue at all what the story's about, I think it would be rather hard to follow, as the story moves at a very fast clip; it becomes even incomprehensible at times - and I actually -know- what the story's about. It doesn't have the time to go into the richness of the history, geography, politics, or legends of Middle Earth. Certainly, that takes away from the appreciation of the story. But, the set design and costumes were very good; I was particularly impressed with how they did the Balrog, Shelob, and the Nazgul. The songs were not terribly memorable, but then I figure I've got to give the singers a bit of a break; they had just done a matinee just prior...

Apocalypse Now

The Nightmares still persist....

Ambidexterity?

So I managed to meet up with a Greenpeace activist, attend a lecture about Millenium Development Goals and the value of our role in Afghanistan, AND get prepped for election to a non-profit organization's Board of Directors, all in one evening... I'm still not totally psyched yet, like I would've been a few years ago (a sarcastic grazie for that...)... I'm actually shocked that I had the energy level to actually do all that without wanting to keel over... I am not sure where this is all going, but I hope it's pointing towards the Kingdom...