Nonsense, Drivel, and Balderdash

It is hard to find the right balance between activity and rest, but this past weekend was nice. Sometimes you spend too much time resting and end up more tired than if you had just gone out and done something. Sometimes your mind is what is tired, and activity ends up being more restful, even if your body takes some coaxing. Friday night, Jessica and I went to see Over the Rhine play a concert downtown. It was a good show. They had a good band and have good stage presence. The audience was older than I expected. I expected mostly mid/late-twentysomethings with a smattering of older fans in their thirties (the band has been around since the mid 90s after all), you know, an older hipster crowd. Instead, we were on the younger side of their fans. Most of them were in their 30s, 40s, and 50s. Actually, I swear that my old Biblical studies professor, Elaine Phillips, was there. I stared at her for a long time and couldn't disprove it. I think the nicest thing was that they played in a...

My last post was, perhaps, written in haste and in post-adolescent angst (post-haste? No, wait... ha). I think it misrepresented my current life-stage quandary. It wasn't supposed to be so much a commentary on my restless dissatisfaction as it was supposed to be about my annoyance at my lack of professional stability or even clear direction. I wasn't trying to say that I am perpetually dissatisfied at my lack of "vocation," though I'll admit that our generation does feel this somewhat, especially if you come from a Christian background. It isn't like I have a good job and I am sorry that it doesn't satisfy me or that I am holding out for a job that will. No, my post was supposed to emphasize two things:  A) How naive it was for me to think that life would progress in a linear way and that age would bring clarity. And how I can't help but feel a bit ripped off by life not working the way that it was sold to me at 15.  B) How I am a stage that could us...

I exercised yesterday. Do I expect a medal? Why yes. Yes, I do. I spent some time stretching, did some ab work, and took off for a run. At this early point in my new exercise regimen, I don't have to run for long until I start to feel like a loser (though I look like one from the start), but I lasted a couple of miles before I called it quits. Then I came home stretched for a minute and hopped in the shower. Showers always feel extra good after some exercise and it is tempting to stay in them forever, but you must fight that temptation or no one will ever see you again. Unless they look in your shower, which is creepy. But anyway, I was feeling fairly refreshed as I sat on our brown living room couch and feeling self-satisfied because I had been proactive about running. But it wasn't long until I started to notice a little knot right where the neck meets the shoulder. It was also around that time that I realized that I needed to get up and go make some dinner. So I leapt up f...

The sun is out again today. The snow has all but melted except for in the abandoned lots where they piled it up several stories high; but even those piles are melting, leaving behind all of the grime that was plowed up with the snow and rivulets of water running towards the nearest gutter. The fact that the water reaches the drain is quite a feat. Just weeks ago it would have frozen halfway across the sidewalk... and lain in waiting for an unsuspecting jogger. But, as I said before, the sun is out now, the temperatures are up, and the ice is nowhere to be seen. I am running out of excuses to avoid jogging, if you will permit the pun. I am in some of the worse shape of my life and I don't particularly feel good about it. Those of you who have known me for most of my life know that being "in shape" was never really been a priority of mine until recently. In high school I looked for ways to do the least amount of work possible in P.E class. When we played sports, I chose t...

I never grew up with Lent. Without counting Christmas and Easter, I never grew up with any knowledge of the liturgical calendar. All the other Christian holidays or events I knew about were associated with the ocean of popular Roman Catholic culture that I grew up in. While my Protestant minister parents didn't demonize Catholics as many of the other people in the missionary community did, there was definitely a sense of otherness between "us" and "them." It is little wonder, for even our most basic expressions of faith were very different. Even today, the Protestant church in Spain rarely embraces any traditional liturgical forms, for most of the Spaniards who convert to the Protestant branch of Christianity are often looking for an encounter with Christ separate from the Roman Catholic culture that has oppressed their country for centuries. Though I feel somewhat apologetic to any Roman Catholic readers, I use the word "oppress" in a very conscious w...

I have to admit that though Facebook doesn't really create true connectivity or foster real relationship, it does have some undeniable, practical, social purposes. If you don't believe me, just think about how Facebook has made it less awkward to meet up with an old acquaintance that you haven't seen in years. It makes it is easier to interact with old friends and acquaintances because it creates the illusion that you have been "in touch" with them. I think this is accomplished by allowing us to watch our friends grow older and warning us about their changes, much as if you saw them on a regular basis. You know how they have been, their new musical tastes, if they are in a relationship, their travels and hobbies, and have maybe even commented on their status updates from time to time. Facebook photo albums even allow you to watch your friends age physically. That is a huge factor in creating the illusion of connectivity. 15 years ago, when you bumped into someone ...

I have finally decided to leave Facebook behind me for a while. Way too much of my time is eaten up by the news feed of people I don't care about... which, oddly, I can't help but read. If it were up to me, I would have no more than 150 friends. Facebook should have an "acquaintance" setting. But instead I am forced to be "friends" with anyone that asks due to some odd, online, etiquette code. Anyway, now that I am quitting Facebook indefinitely, I am forced to evaluate the dubiously positive and negative things it has done for me. This has generally served to confirm that leaving Facebook seems like a wise choice: - I have rejected countless invitations to join games, applications, and other pointless things. Like Facebook wasn't enough of a time-waster... sheesh.  - I have seen people accidentally reveal private issues on their friends' walls ("I'm praying for you incontinence Johnny!" or "Hey, don't worry, the puke didn...