My new favorite part of our apartment

So my apartment-mate took this table from a girl we know. He cut glass for it, put it on door hinges, attached a handle, and lined the bottom with vinyl LP sleeves; it is kind of awesome--just slightly.

I really don't recommend garlic coffee

I primarily brew my coffee with a press (it is delightful) and am currently without a microwave (which I use to bring water to a boil for the brew).

Apparently tastes of garlic lingered in the pot I used for boiling and were introduced into my coffee--this is not recommended.

I have a confession

I like shopping for "home things." I enjoy Bed, Bath, and Beyond--mostly the beyond. I'm ok with spending part of my afternoon there and other "home" stores as I replenish the things that "walked out" when one of the guys in my apartment moved out yesterday.

"Gravity? One word: no way."

I laughed out loud

Nerdy accounting/word humor

1) I love funny acronyms; IBRACON makes me think of "I, bacon" and I, therefore, laugh out loud.

2) If a fund is labeled "fiduciary" it almost sounds like it is being personified as a jerk.

It's sad

If you ever need a buzz kill just go look at the facebook profile of someone born after the early 1980's and read what they list for "Books."

It'll go something like:

"ummm..."

"all the good books are made into movies"

"haha"

"..."

" i hate reading "

" Dan Brown books "

and my favorite: " [classy explicit verb] reading/books!"

I'm so disappointed in my generation.

Too early for Halloween planning?

I've found myself playing with halloween costume ideas already. So far I have:

1) the even whiter Barak Obama (I do a pretty mean impression if I do say so myself)

2) a fan of 80's alternative punk rock (i.e. The Cure)

3) a band of horses

4) a flock of seagulls

5) elf

Rocked it

And I totally just rocked private sector not-for-profit accounting and auditing standards. Solid.

My Two Helpers

Let me introduce you to my two writing companions. A slinky I got last year for Christmas and a Toy Story Mr. Potato Head toy I got thirteen years ago for Christmas.

They're good helpers for facilitating thought and logical progression.

Will this too pass?

Years of writing--half a dozen at fairly complex levels--and I still struggle with this regularly.

"Its vs. It's"

When I write I almost always have to pause and ask, "am I using the right one?"

I often find myself asking "who do you think you are?"

I think it's pretty presumptuous and can be borderline arrogant when someone "apologizes on behalf of all [fill in the blank]."

On the other hand apologizing FOR others can be encouraging and help foster reconciliation if not offer some sort of start for healing at the very least. (i.e. apologizing for when someone flies off the handle and wrongs another; "I'm so sorry that just happened")

I gather the former is usually a means to save face for one's own sake while the latter shows sympathy for a wrong doing.

Awkward Turtle

I enjoy puns and one ling zingers with those I consider friends; when intentional they mock our own attempts at humor and are a fun thrust towards humility.

I discovered this morning puns and passing zingers can be in vain when made around acquaintances or strangers and therefore substitute introspection for ineptitude.

Oops.

Regardless, I'm glad I gained perspective and the mother of that three year old on the tricycle in the 12 Hotel was made--at best--very uncomfortable by someone's tactless stab at humor. It was awkward to say the least.

I see great things in the future

I'm just one small silo of oats away from a groovy homemade bongo set.

My right of dorky passage

While studying just a few moments ago I took off my glasses (which I've only had for a month now), fogged them with my breath, and cleaned them with some cloth.

First time I've done that.

It was an exceptionally novel moment for me.

Me: 1 Apple: 0

All that remains of my late afternoon snack

A fly on the wall

I've been thinking about Calvin a lot--mostly because most of the blogs I read have been doing the same and because I have been reading a lot from and about him this summer.

Today would be his 500th birthday.

Because of this milestone, today I have been wondering what it'd be like sitting down with him and talking--probing his brain and heart mostly. This obviously made me wonder what it'd be like to do the same with Jonathan Edwards, then C.S. Lewis, then I wondered what it'd be like to see the three of them at a table and just talk about whatever came up. I wonder how they would engage topics thrown into the middle of the table.

It would be awesome.

Pop Psychology is fine, but has no place in God's Gospel

I'm still not on board with some of the buzzwords and frameworks I'm hearing from some churches, writers, and ministers about "being real" and "being vulnerable."

In a nut shell most of these conversations encourage "vulnerability" and "being real" with God because He was "vulnerable and real" with us at the Cross.

There are hints of truth in these statements but the poor diction and misguided emphasis tends to lead people into embracing a weak--and therefore incomplete and false--gospel. This framework has four big problems:

1) It robs God of His sovereignty thus taking from His glory

2) Lessening Christ's Divinity

3) Makes man the center of the gospel rather than Christ's Glory

4) Is a gateway into legalism

I don't want to worship a Being that is ever, has ever, or will ever be vulnerable. God did not make Himself vulnerable at the Cross nor was Christ ever himself vulnerable in the true sense of the word while on Earth--to teach this diminishes His Sovereignty and is blasphemous.

The only vulnerability we see at the Cross is that of our own, John Calvin informs this notion wonderfully:

"Christ is called the Prince of Peace, and our peace (Isaiah 9:6; Ephesians 2:14), because he calms all the agitations of conscience. If the method is asked, we must come to the sacrifice by which God was appeased, for no man will ever cease to tremble, until he hold that God ispropitiatedsoley by that expiation in which Christ endured his anger. In short, peace must be sought no where but in the agonies of Christ our Redeemer."

John Calvin, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book III, 13.4.

The cross enables us to make ourselves vulnerable to God who is completely sovereign and unlocks unrelenting joy in the inexhaustible goodness of His glory.

God is not a 16 year-old drama queen who "opened Himself up" out of a weak sense of neediness directed at the affections of man. Who wants a God no stronger than an emotionally starved narcissist? Churches need to stop teaching this, it's destructive to the Body and masks the true wonder and beauty of the gospel. This is why we need less pop psychology and more championing of the scriptures in churches.

Healing emotional wounds is fine and there are a lot of tools found in these "Pop Psychology" frameworks that CAN help people--but it just doesn't fit in with the gospel. Let's not pollute the gospel with anything else but God's Sovereignty, Christ's Glory, and the joy spilling out of both.

It sounds great

A Pretension Convention SOUNDS great phonetically but I am sure the magic stops there.

my hygienic accessories are out to get me--there's a plot

While preparing to go to bed I was attacked on multiple fronts by the various items I use for pre-slumber hygienic "funtivities;" they're usually funtivities because I'm probably playing an episode of The Office or rocking out to a podcast or sweet tunes, thus the actives then become fun. Tonight was The Office.

The series of seemingly coordinated events:

1) My face wash burned the heck out of my face for some strange reason

2) My floss DESTROYED my gums and left me pretty bloodied up--like baseball bat in the mouth bloodied up

3) I got mouthwash in my eye--which kind of amazed me

4) I dropped my beard trimmer on my foot

5) Tripped over my scale...

It's a conspiracy. I'm convinced. A strange conspiracy... involving Nivea ...Wah ... Procter and Gamble... and... maybe... gravity....

More details on said conspiracy as they unfold

this isn't patriotic--not intentionally, it just isn't

but in a round about way I suppose you could make it patriotic

so for the past few years Sufjan Stevens has been my favorite musical artist; there has been no close second.

Music is art and I like growing in ways to appreciate art. So, I am going to be "immersing" myself in his art this month.

So, for the whole month of July I have decided to only listen to Sufjan Stevens' music in hopes to gain an even deeper appreciation for his art. To make sure I am dedicated I actually took everything but him off my iPod.

It's not that I think it's a big deal--because it's a pretty small one--but I was wondering if anyone else has ever done anything similar. Not just with music but with any art. Not even art but with anything. Has anyone else ever had a "month of [insert whatever]."

I would be interested to hear about it.

peace.

Toilet

I had a conversation with a friend while in one of the bathrooms at our college of management

I almost walked out without washing my hands (relax people, it was just a number onesee visit); then I looked at him and said "I have to wash my hands because if I don't you're going to think I'm a disgusting human being. You seeing me not wash my hands is literally the only reason why I am going to wash my hands."

What a convoluted reality.

He told me he was going through the same dilemma--apparently I'm not the only crazy person in the world.

Awesome.