Grammar/Syntax.

August 2nd, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

As I was walking in the office this morning I overheard a woman, agitated, and talking on the phone.

"What the problem was?  What the problem was?"

She said it three times, each time raising her voice and becoming increasingly more angry. 

If there is one thing I can't stand it's people not using grammar correctly.  If English is your first language, there is no excuse for not learning to communicate properly.  I'm not pretending to be an articulate Chomsky or anything; but seriously, structuring your sentences in this sort of way screams, "Look at me, I'm uneducated!"

(Disclaimer: this is NOT a race issue.)

I’m a Harry Potter fan.

July 22nd, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

My friends consider me an "early adopter," at least on technology anyway…  One pop-culture phenom that I've been late to fall into is none other than the infamous Harry Potter books.

As you well know, the seventh and final book of the series released today.  Some of my co-workers, three of them, have been salivating at this new release and yapping about it all week.  (I'm sure as I write this they are probably reading it now.) 

After little deliberation I decided to dive in and start the series.  I finished the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, early this morning.  Now I'm midway through Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, the second one.  I must say that the books are wicked fun to read and they are definitely worth the hype.

I don't read many fiction books, but when I do I'm always happy I'd done so.  I think fiction is good for your brain because the writer forces you to develop mental models of the story, which in turn develops your creative faculties!

John Piper on Missions

June 25th, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

Pretty strong words from Piper. 

It’s time.

May 16th, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

I just went out on my deck and I saw something very peculiar.  There was a small child, probably only 2 or 3, running through the parking lot of my apartment complex.  It wasn't like a full run, it was more of a wandering run.  I kept watching and waiting for his parents to follow…  They weren't there.

It was obvious the child was lost and looking for his home.  Then from the other side of the complex I see a dad running.  A different run from the child's.  His run was a voracious, aggressive one.  As he slowed pick up his son, he said, "Where have you been?"  And the child started crying as dad carried him back into their apartment.

I have (unintentionally) not attended church for a full year.  I can count the number of times I've prayed, talked to God, or read my Bible in the past year on these ten fingers of mine.  The picture was crystal clear to me in a split second.  

Like I said, I went out on my deck and I saw something very peculiar…. or maybe someone is speaking.

Thomas Friedman on Geopolitics

May 5th, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

I read a book by Tom Friedman, called "The World is Flat," a little over a year ago.  I also recently watched a Discovery Channel documentary Friedman hosted on a similar subject of outsourcing.  Both were really interesting and I highly recommend you read/see both.

Last week I ran across this lecture by Tom from the Pop!Tech conference.  During the lecture, he presents some very compelling reasons on why the US (and the world for that matter) should become less reliant on oil.  In other words, he's calling for us to "go green."  Now I've never been a sucker for Democratic hype I saw Inconvenient Truth and thought it was a total load; on the other hand, I can't help but side with Friedman on this.  He gives great arguments on why things should change and how the future will look if we don't… 

I guess the biggest problem that I have with going green or as Friedman calls it, being "geopolitically conscious," is that it's not cost effective.  Sure I'd love to drive a hybrid car and help out the environment, but they are too dang expensive!  Even with the tax write-off…

So here are a list of things I've found that you can do to help out the environment AND save money:

1.  Buy carbon fluorescent light bulbs.  Froogle
2.  Wash your clothes in cold water.
3.  Replace your air filter.
4.  Keep your tires properly inflated.

Financial Tips from T.Brooks

April 9th, 2007 ThoughtProvoking

For the past two weeks I've scoured over hundreds of blog posts, listened to hours worth of podcasts and sermons, read and reread multiple books, and had many conversations with friends and family on financial strategies.

In all the books I read I've reached these simple conclusions:
1. Stay out of debt.
2. Spend less than you earn.
3. Save/invest for the future.

Here are some other little tidbits…
A. Invest at least 10% of your earnings into no-load mutual fund or S&P index-tracking stock.  (I personally own FFFFX through Fidelity and VFINX through Vanguard.)

B. Max out your Roth IRA first and then work on maxing your 401k. ($4k contribution limit for the IRA and $15k limit for the 401k)

C. Pay off your debt starting with the debt that has the highest interest rate you have.  e.g. Credit cards usually have the highest interest rates.

After you've done those things then I would really encourage you to read these books if you're looking for a healthier financial life:  The Automatic Millionaire, The Richest Man in Babylon, Wealth Without Risk, Winning The Loser's Game, and The Wealthy Barber.

And please by all means check out some of these posts and podcasts:
Mint - Graduated?
Mint - Reduce Your Expenses
Money Guy - Your Retirement Options
Money Guy - Podcast Episodes 

the average brain weighs between 1-1.5 kilos…

December 6th, 2006 ThoughtProvoking

check out this article… i thought it was really insightful on excercising your brain.

recently, i’ve taken quite an interest in psychology.  why people make the decisions they do…. how people think…. and how to work smarter….  not necessarily harder, but smarter….

interesting.

June 27th, 2006 Friends, ThoughtProvoking

so i go out with a couple of friends this weekend and one of them drank a little more than his fill.  ok, so he was trashed.  and then he writes this little ditty:

“sin is funny. we naturally think of sin as something you DO… I shoot squirrels, I eat babies, etc… sin is that. but its so much more. the problem is that sin is something you ARE. so you can’t really just stop doing it, because most of the time you don’t even realize its a problem.

I feel this with my independence. its not something I can just fix. when I do I’m only “tinkering with the inner-self” as tozer said, and mucking things up worse than they were before. its almost like you can’t directly fix the problem sometimes, jesus has to work on the problem indirectly until one day you wake up and realize its just not such a problem anymore.”

interesting.  if the fellow reads this, know that i’m not passing judgement, just simply observing.

question of the night.

June 27th, 2006 ThoughtProvoking

is greed good?

winner.

May 5th, 2006 ThoughtProvoking

Prolegomena.
As a preparatory note to my brief discourse on attempts to display a witticism, the following comments I believe to be worth the making; if you find them unnecessarily vindictive or bitingly offensive, then you should consider yourself the product of an oversensitivity complex, undoubtedly encouraged by the mind-numbing magic of global, moral inclusivism. Instead of actually dealing with our own issues, (and for those of you with a Christian conscience I am in no way demeaning the grace of Christ; case in point: the book of Matthew) we revert to an insipid co-existence with our grievous, how should I say this…sins. Somehow, we each craft our own Wonderland, and while we imagine and, indeed, believe we are living a comfortable existence of happy amusement, we are in reality dwelling in filth. I can’t be convinced that it’s O.K. that I sin or even that I’m a sinner. Paul would have been appalled at that idea. It’s foolishness to suppose that that concept is anything better than spit on the cross. It’s because I know I’m a sinner that points me to the knowledge that I need saving. And it is precisely because of the saving that I find the very cause for which Christ perished all the more vile, wicked, and deserving of my utmost, extreme hatred.
So if you read this and discover you can’t handle critique, whether moral or intellectual, from an anonymous, nameless, faceless, observer, who knows all of you least of all, then I’m sure a community circle gathering will be shortly convening at Starbucks, where a grande mocha frappacino will soothe your overly-perturbed nerves.

If competition draws out essence, then, frankly, I’m mostly disappointed by the posts summarized in the following categories.
Vulgarity. Not only is it a dismal reminder of blight of thoughtlessness, but it’s cheap, bawdy, shallow humor. After reading some of the posts, I felt like I’d just paid a dime to watch a pimp do 30 seconds of stand-up comedy. Or worse, like I’d been exposed to a Mel Brooks film festival. You might get a sudden rush of laughter from your audience, but they’re not improved by it. Some of them probably even feel a bit grimier after the experience.
Imitations. I’d rather grind my teeth on a sidewalk than plagiarize. A copied adage shouldn’t strike you as a form of wit, it should embarrass you as a being capable of dreams. A bird will chirp the Star-Spangled Banner if he hears it enough, but he’ll never conceive of creating something like the Sistine Chapel, or design a helicopter, or write like Whitman. That’s why parrots are cheap, and the Mona Lisa priceless.
Half-heartedness. Again, a function of the collegiate carelessness. I’ve never met so many brilliant people in one place than in college, and I’ve never met so many lazy people in one place than in college. Surely, effort is not always measured by the quantity of the output (in this particular venue: words), but the quality is necessarily proportionate to the degree of effort. Wit can certainly be a sudden showing, but it is a sudden showing of a mind well-trained. True, it is a simple contest and one you might not seriously consider or care about. But then why participate and degrade the competition and the giver of the competition with lousy posts?

Something of yourself is communicated in every word, thought, and expression. Thus, we can rightly call our language alive or “living.” Truly, we “live” in our words. Thus, they are, every one of them, judged eternally. It seems appropriate, then, to count them precious and value them as instruments, as organic conduits to accomplish an end. But, in fact, they’re not just means; they’re an end in themselves. Words produce effects and they are effects. They result in and they are the result of, for from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.

I know I haven’t given a real witticism yet (unless something above merits “wit”), and that I’ve only engaged in categorical criticisms (yet another form of “easy” conversation). But I’m not really trying to win the competition; I’m trying to improve the nature of the participants and participation.

Still, it is on this final note I close:
If you so wish to win but won’t will to change the work of your words with which you writ’ your wit with, I pithy you.