I love teaching. It is a calling, and it is one of the few things in this world that I believe I am very good at it. But I think high school, for most kids today, is a huge waste of time. When I was in high school we were required by the state to take one year of math and one year of science, but we were advised by our guidance counselors to take three or four years of each. I ignored my guidance counselors, took my one year of math and science, and filled my schedule with things I loved and cared about. Second semester of my senior year I took three choir classes (Varsity, Show, and Cardinal), Symphonic Band, and Advanced Creative Writing. That one semester was the only time in high school that my schedule reflected who I was and what I cared about. The rest of the time I was struggling, toughing it out, and feeling guilty for not caring about what so-called responsible adults were telling me to care about. Today, with the benefit of hindsight, I am glad I ignored them and worked hard to create the life I wanted for myself. Unfortunately, the state is making it harder and harder for a kid to ignore the guidance counselors if they wish to graduate. And of course the only academic reason for most kids to go to high school in the first place is so that they can graduate and go on to education that they truly want and need and will prepare them for life.
Marriage Danger Signs
I was on NBC 25 News this morning doing a segment about signs that you may be dangerously close to divorce. My remarks were based substantially on the work of Dr. John Gottman, who has probably done more research on marriage than any other person in the country. I highly recommend his books.
Twitter Weekly Updates for 2012-01-15
- Current blog post: Sex on the rooftop sells books | http://t.co/U8zqMZqh #
Sex on the rooftop sells books
Apparently a pastor in Texas is going to set up a bed on the roof of his church and hit the sack with his wife there for 24 hours. The 24 hour bed-in will be broadcast on the Internet. The date corresponds with a book the pastor will be releasing about sex.
Source: http://thesexperiment.com/
Really? When I was growing up in the church, the revolutionary message was, ”Christians can rock too!” Now our church leaders are doing “Christians can f**k too?” No thanks. Is that really where we’re at? By the way, I too have had weeks where I have encouraged couples to be intentional about having all the sex they can — I think that needs to happen. But this whole thing reminds me a bit of the scene in that Monty Python movie…(warning to the sensitive — there is brief nudity in this scene, and a comic demonstration of sex):
In what way is this different? The Youngs feel the need to demonstrate sex by getting in bed together, and to do it on a rooftop, put it on the Internet, etc., for the supposed benefit of others. (The mere fact that some, perhaps many, may in fact benefit in various ways is beside the point.)
BTW, my use of the term f**k instead of the less vulgar “have sex” is intentional. It seems to me that once you put it on a rooftop and invite thousands of people out to see it, it could never be anything other than f***ing. After all, the medium is the message, right? Can you take sex and put it in a barnyard and have it in the mud and invite all the neighbors and expect that what they will see — no matter your intentions — is beauty and intimacy in action?
This is Spinal Tap is a brilliant 1984 mockumentary about a fake band called Spinal Tap that is a send up of the absurdity, filth, excess, and stupidity of rock culture. (Great movie, but to be compared to anything that happens in it is not good.) Their song Sex Farm comes to mind here. In the movie the point is made, ironically of course, about how this song debases sex.
Comment on the song Sexfarm,by Spinal Tap, from the movie This is Spinal Tap, 1984
Now for the song. Again, if you are sensitive about sexual things, this lyric will bother you. Don’t watch it. It debases sex, big time. That’s the point.
The song “elevates” sex (according to the band) by taking the idea of it and putting it on a farm. Does it matter whether it’s a farm or a rooftop? Isn’t the medium the message? Aren’t you always saying more by how you say something (and the context in which you say it) than by the words you say? So again I ask my question. Can you take sex and put it in a barnyard (on a rooftop) and have it in the mud (in the sky) and invite all the neighbors (the Internet) and expect that what they will see — no matter your intentions — is beauty and intimacy in action?
My presumption is that Pastor Ed and Linda aren’t actually going to have sex, but that too is beside the point. What is going to be accomplished by this circus that couldn’t be accomplished more effectively by simply modeling appropriate sexual attitudes in one’s personal and public life day after day? I’m not questioning that Pastor Ed is already doing that. I’m just stating that it’s enough.
This media show is every bit as absurd as the Monty Python clip above, isn’t it? And depending on your point of view, it’s every bit as funny. Or every bit as tasteless. Then again, quietly living out a life of sexual propriety, decency, responsibility, faithfulness, and integrity — as great as that is — doesn’t sell books. Besides, who wants to see a pastor and his wife in bed together? Creepy.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088258/
Kindle Fire vs. Kindle E-Reader
I dropped my Kindle at the school the other night and it’s permanently broken. I had to figure out quickly what to do because I have preached from my Kindle for nearly a year now and can’t imagine going back to using paper. So I purchased the Kindle Fire this past week.
The Kindle Fire is an absolutely amazing device and anyone who wants a reliable, beautiful, sleek, solid, fast tablet need look no further. But reading on the Kindle Fire is not a pleasant experience. That’s not Amazon’s fault. The Kindle Fire has an LCD display and the difference that makes in one’s reading experience is substantial. It is easy to take for granted just how advanced Amazon’s E-Ink display really is (the one they have used on all other Kindles before the Fire). It is just as easy to read on a sunny day at the beach as it is in the dark (with the convenient book-light case you can purchase for it). It puts very little strain on the eyes (none that I could ever sense). It’s a joy to read from.
LCD, on the other hand, strains the eyes almost immediately. The brightness of the screen can be tweaked, along with other settings, to make the experience less unpleasant, but degrees of unpleasantness are the best you will ever get. If your first device was a Nook Color, or perhaps even the Kindle Fire, you almost certainly cannot comprehend the amazing difference in the reading experience between LCD and E-Ink devices.
As I said, I preached nearly 50 sermons from my previous E-Ink device. Today’s sermon on the Fire was a little frustrating. It didn’t look as clear. Also, since there are no hard buttons, it was hard for this left hander to turn the pages as I had to reach all the way across to the right side of the screen and tap. If you are looking primarily for a reading device, skip the Kindle Fire. But if you are looking for an iPad and would like to save money, this device will probably be perfect for you. It doesn’t have 3G, but it has WiFi. If you have a phone with a data plan and want to get a book when you’re not near a WiFi hotspot, just download it onto the Kindle app on your phone and it will sync to your Fire.
Summary: Before you spend tons of money on an iPad, take a serious look at the Kindle Fire. But if reading is your top priority, skip it and go with one of Amazon’s other readers.
