Commoditization?

From The Body by Colson and Vaughn.

Therapy and the promise of material reward may lure people into our churches, but so might free packets of Prozac handed out during Communion. We need a cure that cuts far deeper than feeling good.

Quick update: am working on finishing my BAM with Prairie... those of you still working on your degrees - finish them, it helps with employability, if nothing else.

Oh, and yes, the rumors are true, there's a little Mackay on the way... we're so excited, I can't even describe it. Whoo hoo! It'll end up being a girl with the biggest feet of any girl, ever. Just so long as she doesn't get my nose, we'll be okay.

A Quiet Sunday Evening

Howdy folks,

I'm sitting in my living room next to my wife, I'm listening to the Leafs play the Rangers... we're down 4-2, and we need this one. She's reading a book. And, I'm thinking, yeah... life is good.

Of course, I remember that tomorrow is, in fact, Monday, which means I have to be at work for 7:30 for our weekly sales meeting. And, I've got to go switch the laundry over, cause we haven't really gotten much done. And if I wanted to be really smart, I'd probably make my lunch tonight.

But I guess what underlies all that is that life is good. It's not easy... but it's good. Marriage is good. Very good. It's a big learning experience, but there's no one else I'd rather learn with than my wife.

So, that's not a lot by way of update, but it's a little. God is very good to me, and I thought I'd share that.

It's a great feeling

Hey guys, by way of update, the best feeling in the world is taking all your resumes off monster, hotjobs, and beyond.com. It just feels great. Yep, I'm employed. If you're ever in West Virginia and in need of a bank account, give me a call. More to come.

Diversionary Tactics

Hello friends. I wanted to let you, the three people who still check this, in on a new venture. You can find my reflections on writing at the Maple Mountain Story Club. Even better, you'll find my friend (and brother-by-marriage) Samuel's thoughts there too. We've just gotten started, but I think you'll find it to be fun to read. Hopefully we'll have some good dialogue on writing, art, and faith. And hey, it's free!

What are you waiting for, come visit the Maple Mountain Story Club!

Valentines Day

I have not always been a big fan of this day. I've had an on-off relationship with it. At times I've not liked the principle of it, as though we need a day to force us to appreciate our significant others. It seemed fake to me. Of course, then there were the times when I hated it for being a day focused on exclusive relationships: as a bitter, single man, I didn't like that the whole world... or North America, anyway, stopped to emphasize our lack for a whole day.

Now I'm married. I love my wife, and try to make sure that I show her that every day. So, Valentines Day approached, and I thought a little bit about it. And you know, I decided to do something for her, in the spirit of the day. There's nothing wrong with a tradition of making especially sure, this one day of the year, that your loved one knows they are your loved one.

So, single folks, you're fine. You don't need a relationship, and that's cool.

Dating folks, do something for your SO. I mean, why not? Sure it's not spontaneous, it's expected, whatever... there's nothing wrong with the tradition of celebrating people's birthdays, similarly, there's nothing wrong with celebrating your relationship on this day.

Married folks... men especially, why not go out of your way to show your wife that you love her? I mean... we men, we don't always do so well at the emotional side of things. So, take this day and make it clear to your wife how important she is to you.

And Valentines Day Abstainers, I get it. I can see where you're coming from. But, try not to post/shout any tirades about it unless you're really going to stick to your guns. Cause, otherwise, you may have to post/shout a retraction... maybe not next year, or the year after that, but eventually.

running water

So, I just washed dishes in my kitchen sink. And I was pretty excited about it... I mean, I was almost celebratory. If I had champanade, I would've drank some! It's been a week... yes, a full week, since we had water running and draining in our kitchen. And, it's one of those luxuries you never think about.

See, our kitchen is in our basement, and our house is built on a hill, so underneath the kitchen is just a big gap. You can actually crawl up in there (it is bricked in and it has a door on it, but... you know). And, it's not exactly insulated in there. At all. So, when it got down to -18 celcius last week, boom, everything froze. Well, actually, the drain froze first. Then, when I couldn't leave the water dripping from the tap, the water froze too. Yesterday it warmed up, and all of the sudden I heard my hot water heater kick in fiercely. I hoped that it meant that my pipes were open again, but it turned out that it just meant that my hot water pipe had split. Big time... Anyway, the landlord -- and he's a good one -- sent the plumber, who promptly had things back up and running.

It is funny, though, the things that we take for granted. I watched a video where Mr. Cuthill recorded Matt and Ruth show how they heat water. It involved a fire and a big metal container. Folks, we are blessed.

Appeasement

So, I read this story, and I have to say... have we not learned from history? First, lets think about recent history: how many times have we heard that North Korea would consider getting rid of their nuclear capabilities? It's a bargaining chip! Goodness! And every time we give them our part, they end up finding another reason not to disarm. What's going to change? They've got a good thing going!

But then, if we go back a little bit, we've got the way the international community treated Hitler. Now, I'm not saying Kim Jong Il is Hitler. I'm comparing the international community response: when appeasement was all we went for, we got absolutely nothing, and we gave up everything... you know, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and France. Now, again, I'm not comparing the leader of North Korea to Hitler. But, haven't we learned yet that with certain types of people, negotiation doesn't get us anywhere?

On the other hand, I guess we have to try to negotiate. I guess I'm just not optimistic that someone who has reneged on agreements before will start keeping them now. What's the alternative? I don't know... it's a different world. We can just not deal with them at all. Germany couldn't be shut down that way very effectively, but business is so international today that it could work. Who knows.