Resumption of Normalcy

Normalcy is restoring to Southern California...

Our schools have resumed, and my first midterm is today at 10. 6+ years since I last had to take such a test, I find myself feeling... too old for this stuff! But I digress...

Our community is rallying well together. FEMA has camped out on what used to be our Ultimate Frisbee field near work, and our church is getting involved in the relief effort. Its really neat to see how community and government at all levels can come together to lend a hand to those in need.

Now... I need to do some last minute "cramming!" :-)

Stephen Colbert on Georgia

Just when you thought Georgia has had enough... Horrible droughts, Michael Vick, the Bulldogs losing to Tennessee (though beating Florida, which is some saving grace), along comes Candidate Colbert.

Watch out, Georgia!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQgq_11XbO0

Safely home

Kat and I are very thankfully back in our home in Rancho Penasquitos. We actually were allowed back on Wednesday afternoon. The smoke is clearing in San Diego, and life is returning back to normal.

Its a bit eerie to drive around neighborhoods like Rancho Bernardo and to see them so... normal. On the TV, it looks like the whole place is some type of hellish inferno, but in reality, the firefighters did a tremendous job of minimizing the exposure.

So far, none of our friends that we know of have been directly affected by the fires. It's still early, but praise God for his blessings on our community! It really makes you appreciate the gift of safety each day.

Smoky but Safe

Hey Friends,

Just a quick update... Our neighborhood was evacuated this morning... We turned nomad, spending part of the day with Kat's aunt and uncle before finally landing down in UTC with Katie.

Say a prayer for poor San Diego. Its so hot, so dry, and there are just so many fires...

B

San Diego Sizzles...

Ahh, San Diego... The running joke you hear when you move to Southern California is that we have two seasons: dry and fire. Unfortunately, we have entered the latter.

Maybe its the proximity to Halloween, but its just spooky out there. Large fires burning east of here fill the air with smoke, so the sun and moon have a blood red tinge. The hot desert winds, called Santa Anas, are fanning the flames and howling through the inland valleys. Our temps are expected to be in the 90's with less than 5 per cent humidity. Not good!

When I was a kid I read a story by John Steinbeck about how a community went kind of nutty during a Santa Ana storm. Now I can understand why. Please say a prayer for SoCal, and especially the brave men and women who will be battling these blazes.

Why I love football

Could it get any better than this?

NEW YORK -- The New York Stock Exchange threw the yellow flag on a floor broker from a famous football family -- over back-and-forth taunting that got out of hand.
The NYSE Euronext unit imposed a two-week suspension on Stephen Mara, whose family is part-owner of the New York Giants football team. His infraction: pinning another broker to a trading post for several seconds in December after the victim chided him after a Giants loss.

The floor broker/victim -- not identified by the NYSE, but disclosed in earlier news reports as a fan of the rival Philadelphia Eagles -- approached Mr. Mara on Dec. 19 with "a gesture and comments mocking " the Giants, a NYSE hearing board panel wrote. Two days earlier, the Giants had lost 36-22 to the Eagles in a key game. The other broker imitated the Giants' celebratory "jump shot" ritual.

Mr. Mara threw no punches, but his illegal procedure caused "minor injuries" and violated a rule against "acts detrimental to the interest or welfare" of the NYSE.

"I'm glad that this regrettable incident is behind me and I'm happy that we can all move on," said Mr. Mara in a statement through his lawyer. Mr. Mara recently completed his suspension, said lawyer Paul McCurdy.

Swearing Is the Best Way?

I read this in the journal this morning... Interesting, especially in light of my new peer group at school which uses the F-bomb as a rejoinder for, well, just about everything.

There is no better way to capture human feeling or describe situations with humor and attitude than by swearing, says Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at Harvard University.
Swear words have emotional power not simply because they refer to offensive things, says Mr. Pinker. Brain scans suggest that profanity's impact stems from the way vulgar language taps a part of the brain that links memories to emotions, investing expressions with a sense of dread. "An expletive kidnaps our attention and forces us to consider its unpleasant connotations," says Mr. Pinker.

Is there a Christian response to such an argument?

Internet like water?

Kim Jong Il reportedly told visiting South Korean President Roh Moo- hyun in Pyongyang last week that he is an "Internet expert." If so, we'd love to see his "favorites" list. That makes him about the only Web maven in North Korea, where Internet service is banned and possession of a VCR or DVD player is also a criminal offense. Even radios that aren't permanently tuned to the official government station are illegal.

I just find it so amazing how important information is to the freedom of people. It is so interesting to me to see that it is shut off when a leader lays siege to his own people. Could it be more important than, say, water?

Applegates, Apple Days

Kat and I got out of town this weekend, up to the nearby mountains of Julian. Its a pretty little mountain town, kind of old-westy in a very tourist gift-shop kind of sense, about an hour from our place.

We went up for the Julian Apple Days festival, which we learned has a long, albeit spotty, history up there. Basically it comes down to "Apples in season + San Diego people yearning to experience even the slightest NIP of Fall = $$$"

We duly did our part and joined in the fun!







Lots of good stuff going on up there. They had the pumpkin patch and beer gardens, polka music and bratwurst, and lots of eccentric people hawking antiques. Our favorite part of the day had to be talking to the vendors and hearing their stories... It takes a lot to start a business selling solar powered decorative wood lamps.

That, and pie. Mmmmmm... Warm apple pie on a cool day. A Julian must. Kat and I got the crumb topping. Is there anyone who could convince me of the superiority of patry topping on Apple pie? I challenge you to do so!

Marketing the church

So the other day I got a flyer in the mail for a new church in our neighborhood. Now, I generally view this as a very good thing. California is notoriously anti-religious, and so there is definitely no lack of opportunity for churches.

But I found myself... well, shocked and awed at the marketing chutzpah on display at this new outfit called "the hills."





I'm a Christian who identifies very strongly with the Reformed tradition. The Reformers, in grossly simple terms, put forth a model for justification that I believe is very Biblical: It says that God calls us out of our heredity and nature of Sin. When we are finally fed up with our inability to live right, we turn and repent and discover the new birth of life in Christ.

So I cringe a bit when I see a flyer that promotes, among other things, having a blast, be whoever you are, and short services.

But the marketer in me has to admire these folks: Lead with a topic like sex, use attractive models right out of a Viagra commercial, and make it as appealing to as large of an audience as possible.

What do you think? Am I way off base? I do thank God for sex... Hmmmmm...

GRAMEEN

I went to a talk on campus yesterday by the CEO of the GRAMEEN Foundation. GRAMEEN was the organization begun by Dr. Mohammad Yunus to provide micro-finance loans to primarily women in 3rd world countries.

 
 

The approach was groundbreaking and innovative, in that it involved lending small sums to individuals, and not large sums to governments. Furthermore, accountability to repay the loan was guaranteed by a group of women, and not just the individual.

 
 

I've always thought that the "group dynamic" facet was the most intriguing. It seems like peer pressure has always gotten a bad wrap! Think kids smoking, making bad decisions, etc. But so often, the gentle (or not so gentle) persuasion of a peer group can really make a positive impact.

 
 

It makes me think of other applications in modern-day life. Admittedly, as an American, I hold a pretty high regard for the individual. However, I could see interesting applications of this positive social pressure in a number of areas, from driving the speed limit to going to the gym. The challenge is of course, one of economics and incentives. How to provide the right impetus to "do the right thing."

 
 

Not a whole lot of answers, but it does raise up a number of good questions...