serpents & doves

Review: The Naked Anabaptist

2010-10-01T12:33:00.004-08:00

Murray, Stuart. The Naked Anabaptist: The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith. Herald Press, 2010

The Naked Anabaptist, by Stuart Murray, is a helpful introduction to Anabaptism for people who are not Anabaptists themselves, aren't interested in becoming Mennonite, but are still intrigued by what they might learn from Anabaptist theology and practice.

I found Chapter 3, "After Christendom", particularly helpful. Murray interprets the Anabaptist movement of the Sixteenth Century as, in part, a rejection of Christendom--the alliance of Church and State in which all citizens are presumed to be Christian and the Church supports the secular authorities. While the original Anabaptists did not use that particular language, it is helpful for those of us living at the end of Christendom to see the Anabaptist movement in that light. It is also encouraging for any Christian who is concerned about the fate of the church in a post-Christendom, post-modern culture. Murray celebrates the demise of Christendom and sees Anabaptism as a viable and vibrant alternative.

I agree with Murray. The conversion of the Roman emperor Constantine and his endorsement of Christianity as the official religion of the empire was one of the worst things to ever befall the church of Jesus Christ. In rejecting Christendom, the early Anabaptists were using the early church as their model--a church in which people joined voluntarily, forming an alternative society in the image of a suffering, loving Lord. The death of Christendom is returning the Christian church to more faithful roots. We will lose political power, affluence and maybe numbers. And we will be the better for it. Churches that found their identity in Christendom are struggling; Anabaptism can provide them a way forward in a post-modern, post-Christendom society.

As much as I enjoyed the book, I am wary of taking the concept of a "naked Anabaptist" too far. Anabaptism is rooted in community. Belonging to a community, sharing within that community and being accountable to a community is a hallmark of Anabaptism. Anabaptism is more than a theology or collection of ideas. It cannot be easily separated from its historic communities: Mennonites, Amish, Brethern, and Hutterites. While anyone can learn from Anabaptism without leaving their own Christian tradition, Anabaptism is more a challenge to Christian communities than to individual Christians.

I am thankful for Murray's treatment of Anabaptist spirituality. It awakened a desire to learn more. It's worth quoting at length:

Early Anabaptists used the German term Gelassenheit.... Medieval mystics had used this term to describe an attitude of detachment from the material world that would free the soul to seek after God, but the Anabaptists interpreted it holistically and applied it to many aspects of discipleship. Gelassenheit can be translated as "yieldedness." For Anabaptists this implied submission to the lordship of Christ, obedience to the teachings of Scripture, an inner attitude of renunciation matched by a readiness to suffer for one's faith, open-handed generosity with one's possessions, prayerful dependence on God, acceptance of community discipline, speaking truthfully regardless of the consequences, and refusal to defend oneself....

Gelassenheit is the spirituality of the "naked Anabaptist." It speaks of vulnerability and openess, an unguarded approach to life, recognizing one's weaknesses and frailities. It is also the discipleship of the "naked Anabaptist." It speaks of nonviolence, truth telling, and honesty, and the availability of one's resources to meet the needs of others. And because it renounces concerns about social achievements and impressing others, it is profoundly subversive, refusing to be overawed or cowed by those with power, wealth or learning. [This attitude, so irritating to the authorities, is evident throughout the accounts in Martyr's Mirror, as unlearned Anabaptists debated unapologetically with theologians, clergy, and inquisitors.] It is no coincidence that the practice of foot washing has been much more prevalent in Anabaptist communities than in most other traditions, for this symbolizes the spirit of Gelassenheit and calls members of the community back to this attitude and behavior. It is to such "yieldedness" that Anabaptists, and many other Christians in various traditions, through the centuries has aspired.

Early Christians for Peace

2010-07-23T15:24:00.004-08:00

"Shall it be held lawful to make an occupation of the sword, when the Lord proclaims that he who uses the sword shall perish by the sword? And shall the son of peace take part in the battle when it does not become him even to sue at law? And shall he apply the chain and the prison and the torture and the punishment who is not the avenger even of his own wrongs? ... How will a Christian man war, nay, how will he serve even in peace, without a sword, which the Lord has taken away?"

Tertullian, circa 200 A.D.

David W.T. Brattston, writing in The Mennonite provides a helpful insight into some early Christian attitudes to war. In the first three centuries, the Christian church roundly rejected military service. It was only after the Roman emperor Constantine seduced the church with promises of wealth, power and security, that the followers of Jesus began justifying violence for the followers of the Prince of Peace.

Brattston writes:

Sometime before A.D. 236, Bishop Hippolytus in central Italy ranked war as a sin with murder, revenge, idolatry, selling a free brother into slavery and separating oneself from God. Dating from A.D. 217, his Apostolic Tradition sets out the livelihoods disqualifying applicants for church membership. It excludes idol-makers, prostitutes, pimps, gladiators and pagan priests along with military commanders. Soldiers desiring to become Christians must be taught not to kill and even to disobey if ordered to kill. Christians already in the church who try to join the army were to be expelled, as despisers of God. Even enlisting and taking the military oath were forbidden, in addition to killing in war.

Read the rest of the article at:

Early Christians for Peace [The Mennonite, 1 July 2010]

I Shouldn't Say Shouldn't

2009-09-03T21:08:00.003-08:00

Common Usages of The Word "Should"

1. To express a desire, need, wish or feeling by appealing to a vague, unspecified, external authority instead of openly expressing a need, desire, wish or feeling.
examples:
"You should take better care of your room."
"He should be nicer to his wife."
"I should not have eaten an entire pie last night."
"No one should die because they cannot afford health care."

2. To give a command, to make a request or to attempt to persuade without appearing to do so by appealing to a vague, unspecified, external authority.
examples:
"You should do your homework before you go play."
"We should not allow children to go hungry."
"You should lose weight."

You may substitute other words for "should" such as "ought, obligation, right (as in human- or civil-), and responsibility." All these words can be barriers to open, honest communication. I'm not being superior--I catch myself using them, too--and it is an effort for me to speak simply, honestly and openly--as I feel I must (should? see, I did it right there) as a Christian and a pastor. My training as a pastor and as a mediator has taught me to listen beyond a person's words to hear the need or desire that is being expressed. When I hear "should," I take it as a signal to probe a little deeper. All the examples above can be reworded without the word "should" to directly express a desire, feeling or command/request. Try it yourself before reading further.

"I want you to clean up your room."
"I am angered by the way he speaks to his wife."
"I feel guilty for eating an entire pie in one sitting."
"I am grieved that people die because of their poverty and I want to do something about it."
"Do your homework right now."
"Let us feed the children."
"Please go on a diet."

Remove the "shoulds" and the underlying feelings, hopes, needs and requests become more plain. We also notice that in so doing, the predominant subject pronoun changed from "you" to "I", another sign that more open communication is happening. When our wishes are made more clear, there is a better chance of their fulfilment. When we make our commands clear instead of appealing to some distant authority, they will be better understood. The "should" statements are open to argument. What if I disagree that I should take better care of my room? Why should I? What authority dictates that I clean my room? The command "I am your mother; I want you to clean your room; clean your room today" can be resisted or disobeyed, yet it is clear and unambiguous.

Why do we lean on "should" if it obscures our communication? In some cases, I think that we are being subtly disingenuous, especially when we are trying to persuade others. We appeal to this faceless authority to make our argument more persuasive. Or we frame our desire as a moral imperative to guilt someone into compliance. But most of the time, I think we do it because we are afraid or insecure. Appealing to an authority distances ourselves from the statement or request; it feels safer. Speaking openly and honestly of our needs and desires makes us vulnerable to the indifference of others. Or we feel that expressing our feelings and desires just isn't sufficient, that our needs are not important unless they are justified by an authority beyond ourselves. I know people who have a very difficult time saying "I want..." because they have been taught that what they want is not important, but that morality and fairness are. Giving orders or making requests opens us up to the possibility that we will be disobeyed, opposed or denied. If we say "You should take better care of your room" and our teenager says, "No, I shouldn't" he isn't resisting US, but the mysterious authority we are merely quoting.

As I said, I do this often. "They shouldn't be so loud. He should slow down. No one has the right to speak to me that way. I deserve more respect." It is easier to assume the role of the unjustly injured party or to ally myself with the moral authority than to simply express my opinion, desire or feeling. When I catch myself thinking that, it is helpful to stop a moment and rephrase that thought without the "should." It forces me off my moral high horse and helps me clarify what I am really feeling and what I truly want to happen. I think our communication and our relationships will benefit by retiring the word "should" from our vocabularies and by hearing the word "should" as an invitation to dig a little deeper to hear the unspoken desires and feelings that are (almost) being shared.

Overheard in the airport

2009-06-24T07:42:00.000-08:00

Father: "A baby robin eats up to 14 feet of earthworms a day. Did you know that?"
4-year-old girl: "... I didn't know earthworms HAD feet."

Life

2009-06-12T13:25:00.001-08:00

Enjoying life takes a lot of hard work. That's why so few do it.

Four Days, 1000 Miles

2009-06-11T19:10:00.004-08:00

Denali
☑ wolf
☑ Dall sheep
☑ caribou
☑ ptarmigan
☑ grizzly bear
☐ wolverine
☐ lynx
☑ snowshoe hare
☐ marmot
☑ Mt. McKinley with nary a cloud in the sky

Fairbanks
☑ Jesse
☑ Jill
☑ 5-hour canoe trip down the Chena River
☑ spaghetti supper with bluegrass band practicing upstairs

Tok
☑ Bob
☑ Betty Lou
☑ pancakes

WBMC 2009 Video Playlist

2009-06-05T14:16:00.003-08:00

Below is a playlist of about 15 videos from the 2009 World Beard and Moustache Championship. Enjoy. I've never been able to edit my own videos.

2009 World Beard and Moustache Championship

2009-06-04T20:34:00.011-08:00

Last weekend was the 9th World Beard and Moustache Championship. Anchorage hosted the biannual competition this year and it was a blast. One of our Service Adventure participants, Brent, started growing a beard when he arrived in September. With the help of the Southcentral Alaskan Beard Club, he has been training for this event all winter long and I believe it is important for us to encourage hard work and dedication in our young people. Plus, as a bearded aficionado of beards myself, I have been looking forward to this event for three years.

I've had a beard for a few years now, but nothing that could contend with the beards I had seen in press photos. I decided it would be fruitless to compete. Even so, I wanted to participate in the spirit of the event. So I decided on the Friendly Muttonchops. The Friendly Muttonchops is a distinctively 19th Century style that bespeaks style, grace and class. They distinguish the wearer as a man of culture, aristocratic bearing and virility. The Muttonchops are prominent sideburns that extend to the chin. Friendly Muttonchops are connected by a mustache. I had been letting my beard grow out for three weeks to achieve the proper bushiness. With about an hour before the Parade of Beards, I took trimmer and razor in hand and exposed my chin to the light of day for the first time in years.

The Parade of Beards was supposed to finish at Town Square, but I wasn't sure where it would begin. As I walked into the plaza with my brand new 'chops, two men with facial hair sidled up to me. "Do you know the parade route?" one of them asked me. Now why would he ask me? "I think they are starting at the Visitor's Center" said the other. The Brotherhood of Beards. I was moved by the power of facial hair to unite total strangers into a Fellowship. A Brotherhood. The Bond of the Beard. On my way to the Visitor's Center, I was standing at a crosswalk with a woman and her family. She looked around her husband at me and asked, "Excuse me. Do you know where the parade is starting?"
"What makes you think I would know anything about the Parade of Beards?!" I replied. She grinned. "I just thought you might have an idea."

When we reached Fourth Avenue, a sea of beards stretched as far as the eye could see. There were beards in attendance from all over the United States and Canada. Australia sent a team. The Germans, always strong competitors were there in force, a Bearded Blitzkrieg. I saw beards and mustaches representing Italy, Great Britain, Norway, Belgium, Spain and many other nations. (Although none from Asia, Africa or South America.) Many of the men wore costumes. Some wore formal period dress. Others dressed to match the theme of their beard, such as the Alaskan Whaler or Wild West mustache. Others used the occasion to dress outlandishly. It was a colorful mob. It seemed to be organized much like a mob as well. I was never sure who was in charge of the event. People were milling around taking photos and then the group started filtering out onto the sidewalk to march with hirsute pride through downtown Anchorage.

Taking up my station on a street corner to get some good photographs, I saw a Swiss flag fluttering toward me, borne by an older gentleman sporting coattails and an immaculately groomed Verdi (It won first place). It was the opportunity I had been waiting for ever since I returned from Europe. "Gruezi!" I called out as he passed. He gave a little start of surprise and replied "Gruezi." I was very pleased with myself for finding the opportunity to use 20% of the Swiss German at my disposal.

Anchorage Daily News video of the Parade of Beards

The parade was Friday afternoon. That evening was the opening celebration at the new Denai'na Convention Center. It was essentially a party with a little friendly warm-up competition, the Grizzly Beard competition, that categorized beards by color rather than style. Competitive bearders (Is that a word? It is now. Bearder (n.): one who competes in beard competitions) are, as a general rule, congenial, outgoing men with a good sense of humor. And a thirst for beer. I know that many sports incorporate beer into the experience, but it's generally reserved for the spectators. Beard growing is the only sport I have ever seen in which competitors drank beer while they were competing. You can't even do that in bowling. You have to at least put down your drink for 10 seconds while you roll the ball. Together, these factors made it easy to meet many interesting people and beards. One of the most commonly overheard questions was "Can I take your picture?" This was always answered affirmatively. Shy people do not style their facial hair into a model of Mount Rushmore and put on a top hat. (OK, no one actually had a depiction of dead presidents on his face, but I'm hoping this gives someone an idea for Norway 2011.) Somehow I didn't feel the least bit self-conscious walking about with Friendly Muttonchops.

Friday night's highlight was a performance by The Beards, a band that came all the way from Australia to perform--and compete--in the World Beard and Moustache Championship. All of their songs were about beards. "This song is about beahds (Australian, remember?).....This is a song about a man with a beahd.....OK, weah gonna do another song about beahds." They were militantly pro-beard songs with titles like "Growing a Beard," "No Beard, No Good" and "If Your Dad Doesn't Have a Beard, You've Got Two Mums." Their anthemic "Born With a Beard" gave me chills and brought a tear of pride to my eye. They were very funny and it was a good concert.

Video from the WBMC performance

On Saturday at noon, beards from around the world put in an appearance at the Downtown Saturday Market. At 2 PM, judging for mustaches and partial beards began. I won't go into many details on the competition itself. You can read about the many categories at the WBMC website. I was impressed with the setup inside. They had long runways set up for the contestants, a large video screen to capture all the action and lots of seating. It was a big deal. There were cameras everywhere. There were about 300 contestants and maybe a couple thousand spectators. The Service Adventure Unit was volunteering that weekend. Some were selling T-shirts in the lobby while others kept the riff-raff out of the VIP seating. This apparently included their own pastor.

The full beard competition began after a short break in the evening. Brent was competing in the Garibaldi category: rounded beards no longer than 20 cm with integrated mustache. At 19, he may have been the youngest competitor. Being his first competition, he did not expect to finish in the top three, but it was good experience and we were all very proud of him. I noticed that the Europeans tended to be older and to take the competition a little more seriously. Many of the North Americans were younger men who were there for the novelty of it. But I think everyone had a good time.

I wasn't sure how the church would respond to my magnificent muttonchops. Would they be too vain? Too worldly? Would they be a stumbling block to those easily lured by all things bright and beautiful? One of the Service Adventurers had been so impressed by my whiskers that she could not stop smiling whenever we spoke. Or giggling. God forbid that my beard should unintentionally be a source of temptation to such virtuous young women. Although I noticed that the song leader seemed intent on avoiding eye contact while she lead the first hymn, I did not experience any untoward consequences. One quizzical person tried in vain to puzzle out what was different about me. And one seven-year-old girl boldly declared, "I don't like your new beard." But as she has often in the past expressed contrary opinions and unrealistic demands--"Don't preach so long today, OK?"--I have learned to stand my ground against her.

I liked my Friendly Muttonchops and I thought they looked great, especially after I trimmed them a little shorter. It was refreshing to feel a cool summer's breeze upon my chin. Yet one of the beautiful things about growing a beard is not shaving every morning. And the chin is the hardest part to shave. So with a twinge of sadness, I trimmed my beard to the trimmer's lowest setting and let nature take its course. Now, ten days later, all that remain are the memories. As The Beards sang, "It Only Takes a Fortnight to Grow a Decent Beard."

View my photo gallery of the 2009 World Beard and Moustache Championship.

One Bag (Black)

2009-06-04T19:24:00.003-08:00

On Sunday, Lifehacker published an article on packing light for long journeys. This reminded me that I had taken this photograph before my sabbatical. It is a photo of every single thing I took with me on a three-month trip to Europe. It all fit into one carry-on. Books were responsible for most of the weight. Once I reached a place where I could store most of those books, it was a light load. My advice for packing light? Don't take cotton. All my clothes were synthetic so they dried quickly and did not need ironing. They were all blue, gray and black--dull, but easy to match. And they straddled the fence between formal and casual so they could be worn walking around town or in a church service. I debated taking running shoes along. In the end I didn't. I think I got enough exercise walking. I was glad to have the shorts and T-shirt to wear while I was washing the other clothes, though. I think I packed well. I didn't miss anything I couldn't buy in Switzerland and I never regretted anything I took.

Everything I Took With Me on a Three-Month Sabbatical in Europe:
one duffle bag
one messenger bag (for day trips)
one small bag/shower kit
one pair pants (black)
one pair pants (gray)
one shirt (blue)
one shirt (gray)
one pair athletic shorts (black)
one athletic T-shirt (blue)
two pairs of socks (wool, black)
three pairs underwear (I splurged here)
one jacket (black)
one cap (gray)
one belt (black)
one pair shoes (black, Ecco walking shoes--the most expensive thing I took, they got a lot of use)
one rain jacket (green)
one towel
one toothbrush holder, with toothbrush
dental floss
nail clippers
mobile phone (quad-band, unlocked, GSM)
mobile phone recharger
digital camera (not shown in photograph for obvious reason)
digital camera battery recharger
European electrical plug adaptor
one money belt
passport
photocopies of important documents
train passes
train maps and timetable
Books:
"Lagenscheidt Pocket German Dictionary"
"German: Verbs & Essentials of Grammar"
"501 German Verbs"
New Testamtent Bible (with Psalms)
"Walking in the Footseps of the Anabaptists"
Servas Directory for Switzerland
"Crime and Punishment" by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Moleskine notebook
one glasses case with spare pair of spectacles
one pair of glasses (on my face)

Mon Vieil Ami

2008-11-25T06:18:00.005-09:00

In 1991, I graduated from high school and spent the summer working as a counselor at Camp Luz, in Orrville, Ohio. Two brothers from France, Luc and Yves, also worked there for a few weeks. We exchanged letters around Christmas and then we lost touch. But I thought of them as I was leaving for Europe, found that letter and jotted down the return address. When I was arranging my visit with Kevin in Granada, he mentioned that he had visited Luc and Yves in Basel years before. (Kevin also worked at Luz that summer).

"But...they live in France," I said.
"Yeah, but just outside Basel. Right over the border."

I checked the address: St. Louis. Then I checked Google, and, sure enough, St. Louis is essentially a French suburb of Basel. I had no idea if they still lived there, but a search of the French phone directory showed that someone with the same last name was living there, so before I left for Spain I mailed a postcard with my phone number.

When I was in Granada I received a voice mail from their mother. She had received my post card and left a message that Yves is living in New Caledonia (That's near New Zealand) and that Luc is teaching near Paris, but that he would be in St. Louis for holidays in a few weeks. On Oct. 31, I met Luc at the Rathaus in Basel and we spent the day with his family. I had not seen him in over 17 years--half of my lifetime. We drove to St. Louis for lunch with his parents and sister, who was home for a few months before she returns to Cambodia where she works.

After dinner, Luc and Paul, his father, and I, did some sightseeing. They took me to the Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg in the Alsace. This is a castle that has changed hands many times. It was abandoned after being looted and burned by the Swedes during the Thirty Year's War. The present castle was reconstructed by the German emperor Wilhelm II in 1908. After World War I, the castle again passed into French hands. It was a rainy day and the fog covered the valley below. It lent a nice "Lord of the Rings"-esque atmosphere to the place. From there we visited Kaysersberg, a beautiful little medieval village, and birthplace of Albert Schweitzer. Then back to St. Louis for supper.

It was fun to see someone I hadn't seen in such a long time. Although it had been 17 years, we still had plenty to talk about. Luc had some old photographs that brought back a lot of memories. The next day, I took the train to the capital of Switzerland, Bern, to visit another Mennonite community. More on that later.

More Photos

The Jura

2008-11-25T01:13:00.004-09:00

My sabbatical is drawing to a close. I will be in Anchorage Thursday night after about 26 hours of travelling, and I'll be preaching once more on Sunday. I have two days left here at Bienenberg and I'm still about four weeks behind on my travelogue.

Oct. 25: After returning from Spain, I spent one night in Basel before riding four different trains into the Jura mountains. It was dark when I arrived in the village of Tramelan. I was visiting Margrit and Michel, who is one of the pastors of Evangelische Mennonitegemeinde Sonnenberg. No, not the Sonnenberg Mennonite Church in Ohio, the REAL one. Sonnenberg actually has four meeting places. Two are German-speaking and two are French-speaking. Every Sunday, there is a service at one of the French locations and one of the German locations. The Jura is a French region, but many of the Mennonites living there still prefer German, although that is changing.

Sunday morning, we attended the French service. I was invited to share a few words, translated by Michel, and bring greetings from Prince of Peace. Sonnenberg is the largest Mennonite church in Switzerland with over 300 members, but since they are spread out over multiple meeting places, there were about 50 people in attendance that morning. The meeting room was not large and had windows that looked out onto the mountains. In that respect, it reminded me of POPMC. They meet in a building with two floors of apartments above.

After lunch, Margrit drove me to two places of historical Anabaptist significance. The Geisskirchlein (Chapel of the Goats) and the Pont des Anabaptistes (Bridge of the Anabaptists). For nearly two centuries, Anabaptists were persecuted in Switzerland and throughout Europe. They were arrested, tortured, and executed. Or they could have their property and lands confiscated and themselves exiled. So it was necessary to meet in secret for prayer, worship and study of the scriptures. The Chapel of the Goats is a small cave where Anabaptists used to meet. It took Margrit and me about 30 minutes to hike back to it. It's not so hidden now, with a nearby trail and signs pointing the way. There is now a plaque in the rear of the cave and some benches installed at the entrance. Every other summer, the Sonnenberg church has a church service here, alternating with a service at the Bridge.

After hiking back to the car, we drove to the Anabaptist Bridge. This was another meeting place for my spiritual ancestors. The Mennonite met in the ravine below the bridge, probably at night, to avoid discovery by the authorities. The bridge is gone now. Only some stones on either end of the ravine are still visible. It encourages me to think that these Christians had the faith to persevere despite persecution. The church even grew despite the threat of death and torture. In all, it's estimated that some 6,000 Anabaptists were martyred in the 16th-17th centuries in Europe. Hans Landis was the last Anabaptist to be executed. He was beheaded in Zurich in 1614. Their stories (with many illustrations of their grisly deaths) were printed in The Martyr's Mirror, first published in Dutch in 1660. There's a joke in Mennonite circles: "You know you're a Mennonite when you think that a 1300-page book detailing 6000 grisly executions would make a nice wedding gift."

That evening, Michel took me to the Swiss Mennonite Archives. They have several old Bibles and copies of The Martyr's Mirror as well as official proclamations denouncing the Anabaptists. 2007 was officially proclaimed the Täuferjahr (Anabaptist Year) in Switzerland. During the year, there were many significant acts of remembrance and reconciliation. The Reformed Church apologized for the centuries of persecution and asked forgiveness. Many plaques and historical markers were erected (such as at the Geisskirchlein) and there were public events and exhibitions

I also visited a small cheese factory owned by the family of Margrit's sister. They were pleased to hear that Gruyère is available (and eaten by me) in Alaska. I also sat in on my second birthday party in Europe. Michel's teenaged son had a birthday and we celebrated with a "Chinese" fondue. Thin slices of meat are cooked in a fondue pot with boiling broth. Still no cheese fondue, but I did have a standing invitation.

On Monday morning, I walked to the nearby train station and took the first train that came by. These were regional trains that stop at every village, so travel is not very fast. Eventually I found myself in Biel (home of Swatch) and spent a few hours walking around before travelling back to Bienenberg. Stay tuned for the next episode where I meet an old friend in France, visit another castle and tour the capital of Switzerland.

Photo Gallery
Martyr's Mirror Encyclopedia Entry
Martyr's Mirror Illustrations
Täuferjahr

Begich defeats Stevens in Senate race

2008-11-18T22:31:00.005-09:00

Perhaps I was too hasty in my derision. Although convicted felon and Senate incumbent Ted Stevens was winning by 3000 votes the day of the election, Mark Begich, current mayor of Anchorage, closed the gap and then pulled ahead as absentee and questioned ballots were counted. Yesterday, Begich claimed victory as his lead extended to 3724 votes. There may be a recount in December, but for the moment, it appears that Alaskans have decided they don't want corrupt felons representing them anymore. Well, Alaskans outside of the Mat-Su Valley. Good for you! My faith in Alaskans is--partially--restored.

Begich defeats Stevens in Senate race (ADN)

Photos of Gaudí Buildings

2008-11-13T01:52:00.001-09:00

As promised, below are links to yet more photos from Barcelona.

Casa Milà: Photos - Information

Casa Batlló: Photos - Information

Park Güell: Photos - Information

Antoni Gaudí: Information

Barcelona

2008-11-12T22:52:00.002-09:00

I'm rushing to get up to date with my field reports, but I'm still three weeks behind. I arrived in Barcelona, Spain on 20 October after a 12-hour train ride from Granada. It was a pleasant ride and the scenery, especially in southern Spain was pretty. I even saw windmills of the Don Quixote style on the hilltops. I arrived in Barcelona at 9 pm, had a much easier time finding the Metro and headed north. I emerged about 30 minutes later, walked past the breakdancing youth, walked past them again because I had gone the wrong way, eventually walked past the sculpture of giant matches and to the Mennonite guesthouse where I would stay for the next three nights. It used to be a Mennonite nursing home, but now it houses students and international visitors such as myself. I wasn't in Barcelona for the weekend, so I wasn't able to attend a worship service, but I did meet Juan Luis, the pastor. He lives just across the street. Even with my rusty Spanish we were able to converse.

The first language of Barcelona, though is Catalan. Since the death of Franco, it is coming into more common use. Most of the signs I saw were in Spanish, Catalan and English. I enjoyed Barcelona. It is a beautiful and very "cosmopolitan" city. I especially enjoyed discovering the architecture and design of Antoni Gaudi. I won't waste and space with a biography. Use Google for that. I'll just say that I spent a lot of time, and a surprising amount of Euros, in buildings of
his design: the Sagrada Famila, La Pedreta, Casa Batllo, and Parc Guell.

The Sagrada Familia is a cathedral that has been under construction for over 100 years and is still not completed. I had to pay to get in and then pay another fee and stand in line for an hour to take the lift up the bell tower, but it was worth it. I took many photos which you can see below. Gratis. I spent a couple hours there, then I walkedt o La Pedreda, a building renovated by Gaudi. Again I spent a couple hours there. Then I hustled over to Casa Batllo. When I saw the
admission price there, I was hesitant, especially as it would close in little more than an hour. But...when will I be in Barcelona again? I don't have any photos of these places uploaded yet. I'll let you know when I do. I enjoy the fanciful and fun architecture: the geometric forms and catenary arches. They create spaces that are fun to live in. I'd love to live in the attic of La Pedreda. Or any of these buildings. They are the kind of spaces that inspire creativity.

The next day I visited a park designed by Gaui: Parc Guell. Again, very cool. Then I hit las Ramblas, the main drag, as it were, and the old city. By 5 PM, I was tired so headed back to the guesthouse for my last night in Spain.

The next morning I awoke early, took the Metro to the train station and boarded a train to Montpelier, France. The Mediterranean was visible for part of the trip. And at some point along the way we crossed over into France. I bought a croissant in Montpelier and rushed to the next train, which would take me to Geneve. At one point, about a dozen immigration cops came through the train car to look at the papers of anyone who looked African. They didn't ask for mine, or speak to the Asian man sitting across from me. They were in plainclothes with only armbands and pistols on their hips to identify themselves as police. But some of them looked for all the world like the stereotypical undercover cop, with leather jackets, long sideburns, ridiculous-looking gold chains and earrings, chewing gum. They were trying so hard to NOT look like the Fuzz that it was impossible to look at them and not think "cop."

I arrived in Geneve and spent another night with Martin and Cindy. This time we enjoyed some delicious raclette. Raclette is melted cheese served with potatos, mushrooms, onions, or whatever you prefer. You put the cheese, onions and mushrooms in a little pan and then put it under a heaing element to melt. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raclette) The next morning Martin drove me around to some old churches in the area and then put me on the train to Lausanne. I didn't spend much time in Lausanne because I was really on my way to visit a castle they had recommended.

A real castle! When I was a boy I had a severe infatuation with knights, castles, swords, etc. I read and re-read the Chronicles of Narnia and The Lord of the Rings. I took fencing lessons. I put a hole in my bedroom wall swinging a wooden "sword." (It was actually The Paddle, but I don't think it was applied in this case as it had already done enough damage.) So, I was excited to visit Chateau Chillon. It is a very well preserved castle and I spent about three hours wandering around. No, I didn't pretend I was defending it from a horde of orcs. I am a LITTLE more grown up now. I did, however, take a ton of photos. Which I have yet to upload. It's not easy uploading a hundred photos five photos at a time. From Chateau Chillon, I headed back to Bienenberg for one night before taking off the next day for a weekend in the Jura visiting the Sonnenberg Mennonite Church. (Not the one in Ohio). More on that later. Tonight I head to Germany for four days, so we'll see what I can get done before then. Today I plan to visit some Roman ruins and the history museum, although it is still very foggy....

I trust you are all doing well. I have two weeks left in Europe. So some of you I will see soon.

Photos of the Sagrada Familia:
More Photos of the Sagrada Familia + some others:
Sagrada Familia Wkipedia

Die Siedler von Catan

2008-11-10T11:35:00.012-09:00

Settlers of Catan is a popular game. It is perhaps the unofficial official game of Prince of Peace MC. The game, like so many good table games, comes from Germany where it is known as Die Siedler von Catan. I always thought it would be fun to play in German and I saw a copy of it here in the Bienenberg student lounge. Tonight after dinner, I finally found some people to play.

The German version is a little different. The pieces are plastic, not wood and are modelled in 3-D to actually look like a village or a band of robbers. Instead of 18 individual ocean hexes, it has six pieces that lock together like a jigsaw puzzle to create the sea. This made it much easier to keep the hexes together. We played a little differently, starting with only one settlement instead of two, so the game took almost three hours to play.It started out very slowly with only one village collecting resources and, with no access to brick, I quickly fell behind. I was hoarding a Road Building card and had all I needed to build a new settlement when Marina beat me to it and cut me off from a promising wheat field. I thought all was lost. I had only one city and one road. I despaired of any victory. In the meantime, Sascha, playing for the first time, was surging to a commanding lead. His dominance of the brick manufacturing industry was paying off as he built village after village and was awarded the Longest Road card. I still had a handful of points when he reached nine, one point shy of total victory.
All he needed was one more settlement, but he would be denied by Daniel, who managed to build two more road segments and snatch the Longest Road card, 11 segments to Sascha's 10, reducing Sascha to 7 points. By now I had about six points and things were looking up. I still had no brick or wheat hexes but I had two cities producing an abundance of ore every time a four was rolled. I was able to trade for the essential commodities and build three pitiful villages on the coast--settlements that could work only one hex each instead of the normal three. They were lousy producers, but they provided victory points. Maybe if I could turn more settlements into cities...no, I'll still need at least one more settlement. And still no wheat.By now, Marina, who had been converting settlements into cities, Sascha and I were tied with 7 points. Daniel was 2 points behind with three settlements and the Longest Road card. Suddenly the game seemed within reach and a plan came together. If I could build two more road segments, I would have a road 11 segments long. It would not be long enough to create the longest road and I would have no more room to build. BUT, if I built a settlement at the end of that road, where it connected to Daniel's road, I would cut his road in half, giving myself 1 point for the new settlement and 2 points for the longest road. I would have the needed 10 (11 actually, since I had a point card) and victory would be mine! But could I pull off such a maneuver before someone else beat me to it? I would need 3 woods, 3 bricks, 1 sheep, and 1 wheat. I had no brick-producing or wheat-producing hexes.

The short answer is "Ja." Trading with the unsuspecting Germans, I acquired the needed resources to enact my plan in one fatal blow and beat them at their own game. It was a true come-from-behind victory as I was sure at the beginning that I would not fare well. My endgame was buoyed by the fact that I, and I alone, was producing a great deal of ore. I like to think that I upheld the honor of POPMC and dedicate this victory to my fellow Settlers players in the U.S. of A. Now wasn't that more exciting than some old soccer match?

The board at the end of the game. I was yellow.

Granada

2008-11-10T07:55:00.002-09:00

After three days in Madrid, I woke up early, slipped out of the
apartment and took the local train to the Atocha train station. I had
a 7:40 train to Granada. Getting on board the trains in Spain and
France was more like boarding a plane. I needed seat reservations for
all the trains (also requiring a separate fee on top of what I already
paid for the ticket). So before getting on board, we had to present
our boarding pass and X-ray our luggage before proceeding to the track
platform. In Switzerland, at least on the domestic lines, the train
stops at the station and you hop on. A conductor comes through the car
later and you show your pass or ticket.

The trip to Granada took about 4 hours and I was met at the station by
my friend Kevin Mayer. He and I worked at Camp Luz together back in
the 90s. We also lived across the hall from one another for one
semester at Goshen College, when he roomed with Phil Christano, whom I
visited in Washington, DC on the first leg of this trip. This wasn't
the last Camp Luz connection to be made on this trip, but more on that
later.

Kevin and his wife Wendy and their two children have been living in
Granada for almost a year and a half. I hadn't met his children yet,
although I had been following their progress through the family blog.
I enjoyed hanging out with them for six day. We feasted on Wendy's
paella, countless tapas, and schawarmas at a tea shop owned by a
Lebanese friend of Kevin. Tapas are usually finger foods served in
bars and restaurants. Order a drink and you will also get a small
plate with, perhaps, some olives, a date rolled in bacon (surprisingly
good), a croquette, or some fried anchovies (or sardines, I can't
remember).

The largest meal of the day is served at 2:00 and dinner isn't until
9:00. By 2 o'clock, the children are home from school for the day.
While the kids were in school, Kevin showed me around Granada. We
visited the Albaicín, the old Moorish neighborhood, in which some
houses are built into caves in the hillside. We also visited the
Cathedral, the Royal Chapel containing the tombs of Ferdinand and
Isabela, and of course, the Alhambra. The Alhambra was a Moorish
palace built on the hill overlooking Granada. It was the last Moorish
place to fall during the Spanish reconquest of southern Spain. It then
became the palace of Ferdinand and Isabela and the site of Columbus'
famous proposition. It's a beautiful site and a very popular tourist
destination. The complex is quite large. You can view my photos below
and read some of the history on Wikipedia.

I was also able to meet several of their friends. We attended a
birthday party for a friend's child and attending a football (i.e.,
soccer) game on Sunday afternoon. Unfortunately, the Granada side
isn't having a very good season. There was no score for 80 minutes and
few shots on goal. With ten minutes left to play, a Granada player was
ejected and the other team scored a goal off the penalty kick. So
basically, nothing happened for 80 minutes and then everyone was in a
bad mood. And they wonder why the sport doesn't catch on in the U.S.
Still, it was fun to attend a soccer match in Spain. American football
didn't let us down though, as Kevin and I were able to watch (live
over the internet) the Ohio State Buckeyes thrash Michigan State,
45-7.

On Sunday morning we visited a gathering of small house churches in
Granada. It was a multi-lingual service, with a lot of people from
North America, other European countries and Southeast Asia. Initially,
I had trouble making the switch from German to Spanish, which is a
language I actually sort-of know. At least, by the end of my visit, I
was able to converse with some people. I couldn't understand
full-speed Spanish, and some people gave me trouble with their
Andalucian accents, but I definitely improved just in two weeks. A lot
of the Spanish that has laid dormant for a decade came back when
needed. It was an interesting experience to see an object and then
have the Spanish word for it simply pop into my head, seemingly from
nowhere.

I enjoyed Granada more than Madrid. I liked the more relaxed pace, the
old buildings and neighborhoods, and spending time with old friends.
Spanish culture is different than Swiss or American culture. The
personal space is much smaller. Northern Europeans don't like to touch
strangers so much. If you are sitting next to someone on the bus and
it goes around a corner and you slide over practically on top of the
person next to you, the American will sheepishly apologize and scoot
back over as far as possible. The Spaniard won't move and won't even
seem to notice that your legs are now touching. I also kissed more
women in two weeks than I have in the last, oh, 20 years? All on the
cheek of course. The Swiss also kiss--three times on the cheek
compared to the Spaniard's two times, but not someone they have just
met. I enjoyed going out in the evening. People are in the street
making their paseo, walking and meeting friends, instead of driving
everywhere. It's like the old cruising tradition in the U.S. but
without cars so you can actually, well, meet people and speak with
them.

But at the end of the week, it was time to say adios to Granada. So
with the music of Walt Disney's Robin Hood reverberating through my
skull (Did I mention that Kevin's daughter is four and really, really
likes that movie?) Kevin took me back to the train station and I
began my 12-hour train trip to Barcelona. More on that next time. I
took a lot of photos there, so it will take some time to upload them.
Photos of Granada and the Alhambra are below.

Granada Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9704&l=cbd0e&id=1036732070

More Photos of the Alhambra:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9706&l=58b7b&id=1036732070

Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schwarma
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croquette
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapa_(food)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albaicin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alhambra

Geneve and Madrid

2008-11-10T00:38:00.002-09:00

It's been a long time since my last update, but I won't be able to fit four weeks into one email, so ... installment number one:

On the ninth of October (I know, it's been a while), I hopped the train to Geneva, or, as the locals prefer, Geneve. It is a French-speaking city, so even my rudimentary German wasn't much use. I walked from the train station to Lake Geneva and spent most of the afternoon sitting or walking by the lake or reading a book. In the evening, I took a short train ride to the town of Coppet to stay the night with a Mennonite-Your-Way couple, Martin and Cindy.

Mennonite-Your-Way is a hospitality network of people who offer to hosts guests who are travelling. Most hosts are Mennos, but many, such as Martin and Cindy, are not. When I arrived Martin immediately informed me that at first he was reluctant to reply favorably to my email as they had a lot happening that week, but then he read my stories from the trip so far (via the link in the email signature). He liked them and found them interesting and well-written. "That's the only reason you're here," he said. I don't think he was kidding. I arrived in time for dinner and Cindy, who is an American expat, prepared a good Swiss dinner. Martin had picked up some specialties as well: an assortment of Swiss and French cheeses and pate. All the cheeses were very good, especially the Rocquefort.

The next morning, I returned to Geneve and visited a few sites: the Wall of the Reformers, the Reformation Museum and the Cathedral. The most interesting part was underneath the cathedral. There have been many chapels and churches on this site, dating back to the Romans. Under the church is an archeaological site that is open to visitors. I like castles, caves, catacombs and crypts better than cathedrals, so I enjoyed seeing these old foundations underground.

Geneve Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9702&l=a8064&id=1036732070

I had a long wait in the train station that night for my 11 o'clock train to Madrid. I took the night train from Geneve to Barcelona. I didn't have a couchette, just a reclining seat. I arrived in Barcelona with about two hours to change trains. Barcelona has one station for international trains and another for domestic trains, so I had to get across town for my train to Madrid. Step one was to get some Euros. Step two: find the Metro station. Step three: Take the Metro to the Sanz station. I walked in the direction of the nearest Metro station as indicated on my (outdated) map. Both the Metro station and an ATM were difficult to find. I found that streets and amenities such as restrooms, ATMs, and public transportation are not as well marked in Spain as they are in Switzerland, where there are signs everywhere. But I did draw some Euros from an ATM and find the entrance to the Metro. Unfortunately, the ticket machine did not accept twenties and the man running the nearby newstand would not sell me some Mentos. Again, Spain was not showing up favorably against Switzerland, where ATMs don't hand out anything smaller than a hundred and merchants are accustomed to accepting large bills. Finally, a Metro employee took pity on me and just gave me a ticket to Sanz.

The trip to Madrid took three hours on the new high-speed train. We topped out at 300 km/h, or about 180 mph. I was struck by how much Spain looked like the American southwest, dry and relatively empty. People would later tell me that Spaniards don't like to live in isolation. They would rather pile into a large city like Madrid than live the country life. Even farmers tend to live in small villages and commute to their fields.

My sister Lynnette and her friend Pam were also in Madrid. Pam has family in the city, so the two spent about 10 days in Spain. We met at a cafe near the home of Pam's aunt for a cafe con leche and to plan the day. After we dropped off the sum total of all my European belongings at their apartment, we took a walking tour of Madrid. I spent that night with another Mennonite-Your-Way family, Bruce and Merly. They are Americans who have been living in Spain for 20 years working with a couple of Brethren in Christ churches there. On Sunday, I accompanied them to two church services, one in the morning and one later in the afternoon. Both churches have many immigrants from Latin America, and in many ways, Madrid felt more like a Latin American city than a European city. I could have been back in Santo Domingo if it was a little warmer.

On Monday, Lynnette, Pam and I took a short train ride to Toledo. No, not Ohio, although we did find a Toledo, Ohio Street. It's a small city on a hill and still looks like a medieval city. The streets were narrow and winding, there were knives and swords for sale in every other window, and the city is so small that, if you miss a turning, you'll be on the other edge of the city before you know it. It was hard to get used to the scale of the map. A centimeter on an Alaskan map is a mile. Here it was the width of a building. Fortunately, the small size makes it easy to correct any mistakes and we eventually found everything we wanted to see, even the art museum which was clevely hidden down a small, narrow alley. Even when we found it, we weren't initially sure if it was the main entrance or the service entrance. Although it is small, there is much to see, and we spent the day walking around the city of Cervantes and Don Quixote before heading back to Madrid for the night. Our way back to the train station was hampered by the imminent arrival of the Spanish king, so we had to take the long way around. It was like living in Washington, DC when the roads would be blocked off for the President's entourage.

At the train station in Madrid, I said Adios to Lynnette and Pam. They still had a week in Madrid, but the next morning I took the train to Granada to spend a week with my friend Kevin Mayer and his family. More on Granada next time.

Madrid and Toledo Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=9703&l=f6003&id=1036732070

You Disappoint Me, Alaska

2008-11-05T23:18:00.001-09:00

My fellow Alaskans: What is wrong with you?!

Senator Ted Stevens was just convicted on seven counts of accepting
bribes in return for political favors. He sold your best interests and
your good faith for his own financial gain. Yet you re-elect a
convicted felon. How is he going to make roll call from prison?
Representative Don Young is also under investigation by the FBI for
corruption. Yet you re-elect him as well. I am reminded of my time in
Washington, DC, where voters elected Marian Barry over and over again,
despite his persistent illegal activity.

A citizen who casts a vote for a politician who accepts bribes is as
morally culpable as the politician himself. A corrupt politician can
only govern by the consent of corrupt voters. It's obvious that most
Alaskans vote with their wallet or blind partisanship as a guide,
giving no thought to the character or moral conduct of the candidates.
I am more and more convinced that Christians in America cannot
conscientiously participate in the electoral process.

The Alps

2008-10-08T00:24:00.004-08:00

On my second Sunday in Europe, I attended the Mennonite church closest to Bienenberg, Mennonitengemeinde Schänzli. The service was attended by about 150 people and it was similar to many Mennonite services I have attended in North America. During the announcements time, the worship leader introduced me as the Mennonite pastor from Alaska and told the congregation that they were welcome to invite me to their homes for fondue or raclette or any other Swiss culinary delight. Yes, I had gotten to her before the service. She also introduced Adrian, who was sitting next to me. He is from British Columbia and is a new student at Bienenberg. A new program started this week so the number of students on campus has doubled and I no longer have the men's bathroom all to myself.

As soon as the service was over, I was greeted by an enthusiastic man wearing an 'Alaska' T-shirt. Thomas has been to Alaska twice and already has his third trip planned even though it is four to five years away. He also speaks English and said that they weren't having fondue, but if grilled wild boar was acceptable I could have lunch with them. So I spent the rest of the day with Thomas and Rebecca and their three daughters. After lunch, the girls went out to play and the adults went for a short drive and a hike. We couldn't see the Alps, but it was a very nice hike. With cows. Hiking is popular in Switzerland and there were many other people out walking. We stopped in at the farmer's on the way down. Many farmhouses double as restaurants, so it was crowded with local people enjoying the weekend. Go for a hike and then order a meal or dessert at any farm you pass.

After we reached the car, we drove about 40 minutes through the countryside to reach another farmhouse/restaurant that had, Thomas insisted, very good coffee. We sat outside and ordered coffee and
vermicelles, a Swiss seasonal dessert made from sweetened and puréed chestnuts. It was unique, good and rich. We were glad we only ordered two.

This restaurant was in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Switzerland has four official languages, German, French, Italian and Romansh, which is spoken by a tiny percentage of people who are descendants of Roman colonists. The fifth unofficial language is English, which most people have studied in school. If a Swiss person from the north meets a Swiss from the south, they are (I'm told) as likely to speak to one another in English as in French or German.

After dinner back at home, Thomas drove me back to Bienenberg, but not before making plans to see the Alps the next day. The students were beginning their two-week fall holidays and Thomas was also taking the
week off. Swiss workers get a minimum of four weeks vacation a year. Oh, and the drinking age for beer and wine is 16--18 for liquor. Just thought I'd throw that in. Also, there are very few drinking fountains
anywhere; they prefer their drinking water fizzy; and they never serve drinks with ice.

The next morning, Thomas, one of his daughters, the aforementioned Adrian and I began the three hour drive south to the Eggishorn. We drove over the Grimsel Pass, which looked much like Alaska, except
that we do not have hotels and power lines at the top of our mountain passes. Also, I kept expecting to see berries on those slopes, but found only grass. I did, however, catch a glimpse of what looked a great deal like fireweed as we were zipping down the other side of the pass.

The switchbacks coming down from Grimsel Pass are intense. They look like shoelaces keeping the mountain in place. You can see for yourself by clicking the link. Scroll left to see the top of the pass where my photos were taken. Once safely on the southern side of that range, we drove to Fiesch. To reach the top of the Eggishorn, you ride a gondola, or cable car, first to Fiescheralp, which is the ski resort halfway up the mountain. Then you get onto another gondola to take you all the way to the top of Eggishorn

From the Eggishorn, you have a panoramic view of 40 mountain peaks and the Aletsch Glacier, the largest glacier in the Alps. It was a warm sunny day, even at 9600 feet and the view was impressive. We could see Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn, and, well, about 38 other peaks. There was also a little restaurant at the top that offered some of the best outdoor seating I've experienced. The meal came with our ticket and the dish offered (there was only one) was Rösti with pork and gravy! Rösti is another dish from north Switzerland. It is grated and fried potatoes, rather like a huge hash brown. So I was able to check off two dishes from my culinary checklist in two days. After spending several hours on the mountain, including apple streudel and coffee back down in Fiescheralp, we began the drive home.

We elected to take another pass on the way home. If you look at the switchbacks again and follow the road to the east, you will come to the Furkapass. It was dark by the time we reached this, and when we reached the top, it was very foggy as well. We began descending this pass in the dark, with visibility limited to about 30 feet, back and forth on the edge of a mountain, with only darkness visible to the right. Hopefully this is as close to death as I come on this trip. After we reached flat land, the trip back was uneventful although we drove through miles and miles of tunnels. The Swiss have been doing some serious digging in the last century.

As a sidenote, Thomas' SUV ran on natural gas, which is much cheaper than gasoline. Not every station has natural gas, but he knows where they are. You fill up much like you do with unleaded gas: pull up to the pump, stick the nozzle in the car and squeeze the handle. While natural gas is used to power fleet vehicles, it would be nice to see this available for consumers, especially in Alaska where we have abundant natural gas and no way (yet) to get it to markets in the Lower 48. Why don't we just use it ourselves? And stop paying for the most expensive gasoline in the country?

But I digress. The trip was a lot of fun, the mountains are beautiful and Thomas and Rebekah were very gracious hosts. Tomorrow I leave for a couple days in Geneva and then I am off to Spain for two weeks. I
also had a good day trip to Zürich which I will relate later. I hope you are all well. You can check out the photos below. They will describe the Alps better than I can. Tchüß!

Photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=8287&l=bf6bf&id=1036732070

Links
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermicelles
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosti
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aletsch_Glacier
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggishorn

Basel und Bienenberg

2008-10-02T09:37:00.002-08:00

I have been at the Bienenberg for about two and a half weeks now. There were only about seven students on campus the first two weeks I was here: 6 women and one man. I didn't meet the man for the first week since his wife had just given birth to a baby and they were in sleepless seclusion. I don't think I spoke to a man for at least the first 6 days. The people here have been friendly and most people speak some German and the teachers and staff here speak excellent English. The students have been patiently speaking clearly and...very...slowly. But mostly I sat around and listened to a mixture of German and Swiss German. Have I mentioned that I don't speak German? I have been studying in the mornings, but not too diligently. I AM on sabbatical. I have managed to understand more just by listening to others speak. That's the value of immersion.

I'm up early, since breakfast is served at 7 am. Breakfast for students is bread and coffee. But good bread and coffee. Bienenberg, in addition to being a Bible School, is also a hotel, conference center and restaurant. The food is very good. OK, lunch, being the main meal of the day, is very good--much better than I am used to. I generally eat on my own for supper: bread, cheese, fruit and chocolate. All the major Swiss food groups.

On the first two Saturdays, I took the train into Basel and walked around the old town. There are five walks mapped out, all beginning from the Markplatz, the central market, which still is a market, at least on Saturday. The weather was perfect both days and the streets were full of people enjoying the day.

On the first Sunday, I woke up early and drove 3 hours into Germany with Heiki and Bernhard, two teachers, for a conference of the Mennonite churches in Southern Germany. It was a good opportunity to meet lots of European Mennonites at one time, încluding several Canadian expatriates.

This is a short post, but if I write anything longer, it will never get set. I'll write next time about my trips to the Alps and Zürich. Until then, you can view my photos here:
http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=7757&l=b9710&id=1036732070

Maybe we shouldn't eat pork either

2008-09-21T23:28:00.001-08:00

Looks like we lost out to the Muslims this summer. I'm not big on usury myself. Maybe I should ditch MMA and keep my money under my mattress.

"In a July Newsweek review of "faith-based" mutual funds (whose
managers invest only in companies whose work does not offend
their particular spiritual values), big short-term losers included one
Mennonite fund emphasizing pacifism (eschewing high-
performing military and energy stocks), but big winners lately were
Islamic funds. Not only do they screen out the "sin" companies
(tobacco, alcohol) and sellers of pork products, but they avoid
financial-services stock (based on the Koran's prohibition against
borrowing or lending if interest is charged) and thus were
unscathed by the initial mortgage-market meltdown." [Newsweek,
7-28-08] via [News of the Weird]

Washington and Virginia

2008-09-17T05:38:00.002-08:00

I had an uneventful flight to Washington, DC, where my friend Phil picked me up at National Airport. I stayed with Phil and Rita just around the corner from where I lived in 1995-97. Mennonite Central Committee sold the old voluntary service house and moved to another part of the city, but I enjoyed walking around Mt. Pleasant, through Adams Morgan and to Dupont Circle. I stopped in at my old office and spent several hours at the zoo, which is a short walk from Phil's apartment. The neighborhood hasn't changed too much. I was still able to buy pupusas, a Salvadoran food. Columbia Heights, on the other hand, has changed dramatically since a Metro stop was built there about 8 years ago. As expected, retail stores, restaurants and condos moved into what was a poor neighborhood. Still it was very convenient to have a Metro stop so close. When I was there, we had to take Bus 42 a mile and a half to Dupont Circle to catch the Metro.

On Sunday, we went to Hyattsville Mennonite Church and went out for Ethiopean food for lunch. The Ethiopean restaurant was a very small place. The only person who seemed to be working there was an older woman who didn't speak a word the entire time we were there. I also thought it odd that she had loud Ethiopean music playing and bass fishing on the TV. But the food was good. I stayed with Phil and Rita for two nights. On Tuesday morning, I took an hour-long bus ride to Dulles Airport and rented a car to drive down to Harrisonburg, Virginia.

In Virginia, we had a Prince of Peace Mennonite reunion. Dwight and Susan Huyard, Russ and Cheryl Buckwalter, and Bruce Buckwalter all lived in Anchorage before moving to Virginia. Joe and Sera Buckwalter, who currently attend POPMC, were also in town, so, including all the children, 17 of us got together for dinner at the Huyard's new home in the country.

On Thursday, some of the grown-ups met for lunch at the Blue Nile in Harrisonburg. Yes, more Ethiopean food. It was Ethiopean New Years so the owner and his family were there celebrating. He is a friend of the Buckwalter clan, so we got a tour of this recently re-opened restaurant. It's a nice place, so if you are living in Virginia and looking for some good injera and wat, try the Blue Nile. I spent the first two nights with Bruce. Then I moved south about 30 minutes to visit the Huyards.

While with the Huyard 6 I got to read some stories to Ben and Luke, listen to a story read by Isaac, watch hummingbirds at the feeder, eat some oatmeal pancakes, and awaken to the sound of roosters crowing. At 6 am. The Huyards live out in the country and have two miniature horses, 4 cows, two dogs, and a dozen chickens. While I was there, they added some goats. On Sunday, we worshipped at Springdale Mennonite Church and then went for a walk at some local wetlands. Then it was time to drive back to the airport. I enjoyed seeing Dwight and Susan and the kids, who, curiously enough, have grown in the past year. The visit went by very quickly.

My trip to the airport went very well. I didn't have any trouble returning the car; I breezed right through check-in and security and had plenty of time to wait for my 6.5 hour flight to London. I flew on British Airways and I was impressed. The seats were comfortable enough to sleep well and they even fed us supper and breakfast! When we got to Heathrow, I had to switch terminals and go through security. I received a warm welcome to England when I was patted down and felt up by a security guard. I almost felt guilty for not buying him dinner.

I had four hours to while away in Teminal 4. Fortunately, they offered an abundance of duty-free shopping. Unfortunately, I have no interest in liquor, cigarettes or perfume. You know you've left the U.S. when women in evening dress are handing out free samples of vodka. It's the ultimate Mennonite dilemma: free alcohol. All the cartons of cigarettes were emblazoned with warnings that read: "Smoking causes serious harm to you and those around you." and "Smokers die." Judging from the stock on hand, few people care. Tax-free smokes!

The flight to Basel was little more than an hour. The test of my international travel skills would soon begin. EuroAirport is actually in France and is a bi-national airport, so the first challenge is to go to the right country. That was easy: just follow the sign that says "Schweiz." A man in a glass booth glanced at my passport and waved me past and I was in Switzerland. I didn't check a bag, so now I just need to have my train pass validated. The Swiss Railway office right past customs should be able to do that. I hand it over to the woman at the desk and she fills it out without any input from me. So far so good.

I'm supposed to take a bus to the Basel Bahnhof (train station). Maybe it's the same bus that everyone else is waiting for. Yep. Before I have even forged through the cloud of cigarette smoke, a bus pulls up. The sign says "Basel SBB Bahnhof". I crowd on with everyone else. An older woman in front of me is struggling to get her luggage into the bus without the doors closing on her. I hand up her second suitcase and she says, "Danke schön." I say, "Bitte schön." My first conversation in German!

The bus ride takes about 15 minutes. Then the bus stops. The driver turns off the engine and everyone gets off. We must be at the Bahnhof, and I'll bet it's this big building with all the train schedules on the wall. These make it easy to find a train to Liestal. I see that there is a train going to Liestal and several other towns. It is on Gleis 8 and it leaves in 15 minutes. Finding platform Acht is easy and there is a train that says "Liestal" so I get on it and have a seat. After a short wait, it begins moving and announcements in German, French and English proclaim Liestal to be the first stop. Ten minutes later, the train rolls to a stop and I get off. I have a train pass, but no one asked to see it. This is all very easy so far, but now I have to find the Bienenberg campus.

They had told me that I could call for a ride if I arrived before 8pm, and it was 6:30, but I took one look at the payphones and decided to walk. I didn't have any Swiss Francs and I didn't mind a little exercise. I had found walking directions from the same place I got the public transportation directions: Google Maps. Try it; just go to Google maps and ask for directions from EuroAirport to Bienenberg. Then select public transportation. Amazing.

"Bienenberg" means "Bee Mountain." I didn't see any bees but I did walk uphill for about 30 minutes, past some cows (with cowbells), and to the seminary/restaurant/conference center/hotel. I was glad that I packed light. As if the directions weren't enough, there were signs pointing me to Bienenberg at every turning. The reception area was closed, but there was a note, a map and a room key waiting for me. Sorry it couldn't have been more exciting. I'm usually a little anxious before a big trip, but this was actually very simple. I'm settling down into life here at Bienenberg. More on that later....

2008-09-07T17:44:00.001-08:00

in DC with Phil and Rita

$3269

2008-09-05T18:04:00.003-08:00

The combined Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend and 'resource rebate' comes to $3269. That will help pay for my trip. Thanks Alaska!

My sabbatical

2008-09-04T22:17:00.003-08:00

After seven years of pastoring, I embark tomorrow on my nearly-three-month sabbatical. I will arrive in Washington, DC Saturday night and spend a few days in my old voluntary service stomping grounds. In fact I'll be staying just around the corner from where I lived in 1995-97. After a few days, I drive down to Harrisonburg and Staunton, Virginia to visit more friends.

On the 14th I'll get back on a plane and head to Basel, Switzerland, where I'll spend most of the next 10 weeks. I'll be staying at the Bienenberg Mennonite seminary located in Liestal, just outside of Basel. In addition to my sabbatical rest and rejuvenation, I plan to study German and visit Mennonite churches in Switzerland (there are 14). I'll also be riding trains around the country to visit historical sites from the Radical Reformation. In October I'll take about 2 weeks to visit friends in Granada, Spain and meet up with my sister in Madrid. I return to Anchorage on November 27--Thanksgiving.

I hope to be able to update the folks back home on my travels. If you receive this--lucky you! You are on my list. I don't know if I will have regular internet access, so I may try to leave updates by telephone. If you are interested in hearing these reports from the field, check out http://drop.io/thacker. That's where you will find the recorded audio as well as these postings. There are options on the right for receiving updates via email or rss. If you want to reach me, email is your best bet. Against my better judgment and long-standing reluctance, I bought a mobile phone to use in Switzerland. I'll have a Swiss number which I will send later. Ain't technology grand?

I'm looking forward to the next few months although it still seems like there is a lot to do tomorrow. Usually, when I go on a trip, I pack up a few items and take them with me. This time, I am packing up everything I own and taking only the few items that are left. Everything else goes into storage.

Thanks to Prince of Peace Mennonite Church for this opportunity. I hope it is as refreshing for the congregation as it will, hopefully, be for me. Preaching and administrative duties are being taken on by several people in the congregation and we will have some guest speakers in the pulpit. Have a good fall, everyone. Sarah Palin and I aren't on speaking terms so stop asking me about her, and keep the country in good working order until I get back.

Dear John David,

2008-08-05T22:23:00.006-08:00

I spent the evening going through my stash of letters and photos from the last 15 years. And throwing out 90% of them. I know! It's sad, but after 15 years, well, it's time to lighten the load. (I kept yours, though, I promise.) It was fun, but also a little disorienting, to go back to my college days and re-live the jokes, the nicknames and relationships of the 90's. A lot of the letters made me laugh out loud. There were a couple tears, too. Thanks. Interesting that the letters all stop around 1996. I wonder if this Interweb-thing had anything to do with that? My award for the most creative letter-writer goes to Matt Lynn, who usually wrote under a pseudonym. I thought you might enjoy reading the kind of letters I used to receive from Columbus. Click to see the letter full-size. Interestingly enough, the wedding I recently attended served yak kebabs, and one of my favorite restaurants is the Yak & Yeti Himalayan Restaurant. I haven't tried the yeti yet.

There were some good ones from Mr. Jantzen, too. But now he is a respectable high school teacher and his students might read this blog (OK, maybe just Naomi) so I will leave those in the box.

Week Three

2008-08-03T21:11:00.001-08:00

Weeks one and two of the Hundred Pushups program went well. Today I did 26 in a row. According to the chart, that means I should continue with column three, but I think it is a little unrealistic to think that I can do sets of 25, 17, 17, 15, and 25 pushups within 5 minutes when 26 pushups is the maximum I can do. So I am going to try column two. If I complete that successfully, maybe I’ll repeat this week with column three.

See more progress on: do 50 pushups

Customer of the Year

2008-07-31T10:30:00.003-08:00

I just bought $97 worth of CDs. The customer service from CDBaby.com is excellent if there is any truth to this email I just received. I'll let you know in a future post if the CDs themselves are any good. I have high hopes.

Your CDs have been gently taken from our CD Baby shelves with sterilized contamination-free gloves and placed onto a satin pillow.

A team of 50 employees inspected your CDs and polished them to make sure they were in the best possible condition before mailing.

Our packing specialist from Japan lit a candle and a hush fell over the crowd as he put your CDs into the finest gold-lined box that money can buy.

We all had a wonderful celebration afterwards and the whole party marched down the street to the post office where the entire town of Portland waved "Bon Voyage!" to your package, on its way to you, in our private CD Baby jet on this day, Thursday, July 31st.

I hope you had a wonderful time shopping at CD Baby. We sure did. Your picture is on our wall as "Customer of the Year." We're all exhausted but can't wait for you to come back to CDBABY.COM!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Sigh...

--
Derek Sivers, president, CD Baby
the little store with the best new independent music

Linux Addiction

2008-07-30T17:28:00.003-08:00

Hee hee. Use Linux with caution. It's a slippery slope to the command line and doing everything in text files.

From xkcd. Another funny one that no one will get unless they have spent some time at the command line.

scharfes S und umlauts

2008-07-23T14:03:00.004-08:00

While studying German on LiveMocha.com, I have been stymied by my inability to type German characters like umlauts and the scharfes S. No longer! I can now type ä, ï, ö, ë and even ß!! It doesn't end there. Typing Spanish? You'll need é, ñ, ¡, and ¿. I can even type symbols like ©, ®, and €.

The secret is the "compose key." On my computer, I have designated the right control key as the compose key. Now I hit R-CTRL then a two-letter combination to get my desired character. It is fairly intuitive: n + ~ = ñ
"compose" + s + s = ß
"compose" + u + " = ü
"compose" + e + ' = é
(Don't actually type "+") A much longer list is available on Wikipedia: "Compose Key".

This is much easier than Alt + Unicode code, which is impossible to remember and doesn't seem to work in Linux anyway. As for designating a compose key on your computer, Windows users are on their own. In Linux/Gnome, select System/Preferences/Keyboard/Layout Options/Compose key position.

I'm very excited.

Or 100...

2008-07-21T17:41:00.003-08:00

My goal of working up to 50 pushups stalled recently. I can do about 25 at one time. Then I came across a mention of hundredpushups.com on Lifehacker. This program promises to take us from zero to one hundred pushups in 6 weeks. Sounds ambitious, but if it is only half-true, I’ll reach my goal. So today I started Week One. Week One looks fairly easy, so I am doing the third column, the hardest. If anyone else cares to give it a try, let me know how it goes.

See more progress on: do 50 pushups

A Happy Birthday Indeed

2008-07-08T14:38:00.002-08:00

Sunday was my 35th birthday. It was much like any Sunday--wake up, shower, prepare a sermon, go to church. After church I stopped at the book store, then at the library to check my email since I was without phone or internet service. (It's back today. Apparently some jack was unplugged at the phone company. I went without phone service for five days because someone unplugged the wrong thingy?!) By the time I got home I was tired, and since I had only slept about four hours the night before, I went to bed.

I woke up from a short nap and I was lying in bed contemplating my next move. "Put on pants" was definitely one of the top contenders in the Next Action field, but I still didn't have a reason to Get Out of Bed: Put on Pants. I heard a knocking at the apartment door and some people moving around, the fridge door opening and closing, all of which I attributed to my roommate Mitchell. Then there was a soft knock at my bedroom door.

"MMmmmf!" I said, which translates to "I hear and acknowledge your presence, but don't open the door because I am in my underwear. Speak."
"Are you asleep?" It was Craig, the leader of our Service Adventure Unit and not-infrequent visitor to our pad.
"No. I was. Now I'm just lying here. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing. I'm just going to look at some books here."
"OK."

Roll over. Did he come over here just to rifle through my library? Is he waiting for me? Investigate. Commence Operation Get Out of Bed: Put on Pants. I came out into the living room and the Service Adventurers were waiting in the kitchen with a cake and ice cream. We sang the song, ate the cake (very moist cake, Craig) and hung out for a while.

Later that evening, Mitchell and Craig, some friends of theirs and I went to the Moose's Tooth for pizza. We had a long wait for a table but while we were standing around in the parking lot, I ran into Ryan, who is a Mennonite pastor from Indiana who is taking a sabbatical in Alaska. He was there with his sister Christine, who occasionally comes to church. I knew he was coming, but I didn't expect to run into him at a restaurant. Ryan also started pastoring in his twenties and he told me that turning 35 was a good thing because that was when other pastors started taking him seriously. So I have that to look forward to.

It was a good birthday. I honestly hadn't expected anything, so it was a nice surprise. I welcome good food and good company any day of the year. It's especially nice to get both on your birthday. Stay tuned for my sabbatical plans as they are rapidly taking shape.

Marathon Results

2008-06-25T21:45:00.007-08:00

Chariots of Fire...

Yes, I survived the Mayor's Marathon on Saturday. I finished in 6:00:52. That was good enough for 509th place among the men (out of 572). There were 1285 finishers in all. I had predicted that it would take 5 to 6 hours, so I wasn't too far off. This achievement made it into my Top Three Athletic Accomplishments--right behind 1989's second-place finish in a fencing tournament, and just ahead of the "Most Improved" trophy for the 1985 Mixers No. 1 Bowling League at Northridge Lanes. This feat is easy to accomplish if your average after the first day is 35. (A note to all the mothers out there: I know you mean well, but, if you ever find yourself keeping score for a boys' bowling team, drawing a smiley face inside the zeroes isn't going to make any 12-year-old boy feel better about his gutter balls.)

The runners were exuberant and cheerful at the start and for the first mile or so. Around mile two I came out of a deep reverie on the subject of bears to realize that all chatter had suddenly ceased. There was now only the sound of breathing and sneakers pounding the pavement. It was a little eerie to be running so quietly with so many people.

At mile four there was an aid station manned by Mormons handing out cups of water in suits and ties. My friend Craig was also there to cheer me on, so he got to see me when I was still fresh and happy. Right about that time it started to rain. It rained for about 20 minutes. I was glad I had worn a jacket. I thought I might be able to ditch it once it warmed up, but it remained cool and cloudy all day and I never took it off.

For the next ten miles, we ran on a gravel road through the army base. There were very few spectators and this was the hilliest part of the course. Consequently, it was my least favorite stretch. Some of the first marathoners saw a bear and two cubs, but all I saw was some fresh scat on the trail. There were also many geraniums and lupines in bloom, which was nice. As I was running along, I remember thinking to myself, "Wow. There are a lot of old people running this race." A few miles later (my mind operates at a rate inversely proportional to that of my feet) I thought, "I wonder if that is any reflection on the pace I am running? I'm sure there were some younger people back at the start." Seriously. I was running with a man who must have been 70. He had run a marathon in all 50 states and was running one in Alberta in two more weeks. I couldn't keep up with him.

Mile 21--I was much more tired than I look in these photos.

I felt good until mile 10. Then I started to feel tired. By the halfway point, I started taking walk breaks. By mile 16 my walk breaks were longer than my running breaks. By mile 18, I thought, "forget it, I'm walking the rest of the way." By this time I was out of the woods and on the bike path along Tudor Road. I watched with bitter envy as the cabs drove by, but I didn't have any money with me. I walked for the next three miles. Even other walkers were passing me. I don't get that. How can they walk so fast? I only have one walking speed, and it is somewhere between a saunter and a stroll.

I saw one man who was speed walking the whole race. I first caught sight of him in the distance back at mile four. He was an older man, tall, skinny, and dressed in neon green shirt and shorts. He was difficult to miss. I would close in on him. Then I would stop to get something to drink or use the bathroom and he would pull ahead. I finally passed him around mile 6. About 6 or 7 miles later, he passed me, his skinny legs never missing a beat as he blew past me like a lime green juggernaut disappearing into the forest. I never saw him again. He might be halfway to Fairbanks by now.

It's an awkward situation, walking in a marathon. Even if the spectators clap and say something mildly encouraging, you can see the contempt in their eyes. (Does fatigue cause paranoia?) There were few spectators along this stretch, so one option would be to walk until I see some people ahead and then run a little bit until they are out of sight. A second option would be to walk along breathing heavily with my hands on my hips as if I had been running very hard until RIGHT before you saw me and am now taking a previously scheduled walking break. I chose option three: pretend I am not really IN the marathon, I just happen to be walking along this path that is, entirely by coincidence, also the route of some race they must be running today. This didn't fool many, apparently, because every once in a while, someone would clap in a half-hearted way and say something like, "Looking good!" or "OK, way to finish strong." Then I would turn on them and start shrieking, "Stop patronizing me!! And give me cab fare! Are you going to finish that Snickers?!" (But only in my mind. And ref. the note to mothers above.)

At the aid station at mile 21 I spotted some friends who were waiting patiently for me to run by. I remembered that my racing strategy called for me to run for a short distance right before mile 21 and then to stop there for a few minutes while I load up on some calories. So I made some time to visit with the Judges and the Potsanders. I like the kind of athletic event that allows one to just take a break and chat with some friends who are watching on the sidelines. I always viewed baseball as this kind of sport, which is why I was stuck in left field, where there is no one to talk to and nothing to do but look for four-leaf clovers and nobody ever pays attention to you and then suddenly everyone is yelling and pointing at you in an excited fashion but you can't understand what they are saying and people are running around the bases and isn't someone supposed to be throwing the ball? Where is the ball anyway? This is why I never made it past t-ball. Although, I did have two home runs that season--both of them ground balls.

Explaining the necessity of proper race nutrition, no doubt.

Anyway, it was great to see some fans on the course and it really lifted my spirits when they were low. We talked for about five minutes and then I was off. Meggan wanted at least one photo of me actually running. So I did my best "Chariots of Fire" impersonation and hit the trail. I had enough energy to run for another mile. Then I ran and walked for about 3 miles and then ran most of the last mile. Some more friends were waiting at the finish line, including Jesse and Jill who had run the Half Marathon that day. Rachel and Mitchell were also there to witness my titanic triumph. I was very glad to be finished. And glad that I could finish in better spirits than I had been in three hours earlier. I was tired but not completely wasted. When I got home I took a hot bath and laid down for about two hours, but I didn't sleep much. I had some blisters on my left heel, but nothing serious. I had heard horror stories about blackened toe nails falling off, but my toes were fine. The next day I felt a little sore, but not as bad as I had thought I would. I think people were disappointed that I wasn't limping at church. On Monday morning, I felt completely fine, no aches or pains at all. If I can't run fast, I can take some consolation in my recovery time.

I am glad I ran the marathon and I am glad it is over. Thanks to everyone who sent words of encouragement and who came out to cheer me on. It helped a great deal. I don't know if I will run another one, but if I do, I'm buying matching neon green running clothes.

26.2 is a looooong way to run

2008-06-20T09:58:00.002-08:00

Tomorrow I celebrate the summer solstice by running my first marathon: the Mayor’s Marathon in Anchorage, Alaska. I have been training for this for 18 weeks (illustrated by the training calendars that adorn my bedroom door). In that time I have run 350 miles. I have run a total of 60 hours. Only 26.2 miles and maybe five hours to go.

I am a slow runner, so I will be satisfied with simply finishing. I’d like to run the whole distance, but I might have to walk part of it. Hopefully the race-day excitement injects some extra energy.

The race starts at 8 AM ADT if anyone wants to cheer vicariously. A live, geo-positioning, webcast would be cool, but I don’t think my technological expertise is sufficient.

See more progress on: run a marathon

Mennonite History Reading List

2008-06-13T12:36:00.005-08:00

Mennonite Historical Bulletin, published by the Mennonite Church USA Historical Committee, has compiled “The Essential Anabaptist-Mennonite History Reading List.” This might be a fun reading goal for 2009. I can already cross out a few of them.

Mennonite history reading list

The Anabaptist Vision by Harold S. Bender
The Black Mennonite Church in North America, 1886-1986 by LeRoy Bechler
The CPS Story: An Illustrated History of Civilian Public Service by Albert N. Keim
Encircled: Stories of Mennonite Women, edited by Ruth Unrau
Full Circle: Stories of Mennonite Women, edited by Mary Lou Cummings
Global Mennonite History Series:

Anabaptist Songs in African Hearts
Testing Faith and Tradition

Harold S. Bender by Albert N. Keim
The Hispanic Mennonite Church in North America, 1932-1982 by Rafael Falcon
A History of the Amish by Steven M. Nolt
An Introduction to Mennonite History by Cornelius J. Dyck
Martyrs Mirror by Thieleman J. van Braght (Does anyone actually read this one?)
The Mennonite Church in America: Sometimes Called the Old Mennonites by J.C. Wenger
The Mennonite Encyclopedia
The Mennonite Experience in America series:

Land, Piety, Peoplehood: The Establishment of Mennonite Communities in America, 1683-1790
Peace, Faith, Nation: Mennonites and Amish in Nineteenth-Century America
Vision, Doctrine, War: Mennonite Identity and Organization in America, 1890-1930
Mennonites in American Society, 1930-1970: Modernity and the Persistence of Religious Community

Mennonite Historical Atlas by Helmut T. Huebert and William Schroeder
Mennonite Women: A Story of God’s Faithfulness by Elaine Sommers Rich
Mennonites in Canada series:

Mennonites in Canada, 1786-1920: The History of a Separate People
Mennonites in Canada, 1920-1940: A People’s Struggle for Survival
Mennonites in Canada, 1939-1970: A People Transformed

Mennonites in Russia, 1788-1988: Essays in Honour of Gerhard Lohrenz, edited by John Friesen
Open Doors: The History of the General Conference Mennonite Church by S.F. Pannabecker
Profiles of Anabaptist Women: Sixteenth-Century Reforming Pioneers, edited by C. Arnold Snyder and Linda A. Huebert Hecht
The Radical Reformation by George Huntston Williams
Stories: How Mennonites Came to Be by John D. Roth
The Story of the Mennonites by C. Henry Smith
Two Kingdoms, Two Loyalties: Mennonite Pacifism in Modern America by Perry Bush
Women Against the Good War: Conscientious Objection and Gender on the American Home Front, 1941-1947 by Rachel Waltner Goosse

Finished

2008-06-10T21:16:00.002-08:00

I finally finished The Brothers Karamazov. And it only took me five months to do it. Yes, it’s a big book, but it took so long because I would set it aside for weeks at a time. If I am going to complete my 19th Century Russian Reading List this year I am going to have to pick up the pace.

But I am content at the moment. I have finished the first of 2008’s goals and at least one more will be completed in about 11 days.

See more progress on: Read The brothers Karamazov

Bo Diddley

2008-06-02T10:25:00.005-08:00

Bo Diddley passed away today at the age of 79. He was one of the great bluesmen and musical innovators. No one was more responsible for the birth of rock 'n roll. You can still hear the "Bo Diddley Beat" on the radio today. Here are some videos of the man in action

Diddley is one of the most-covered artists ever. Search for "Who Do You Love" on Youtube and you'll find plenty of covers. (The most famous, of course, was George Thoroughgood's).

in the 90s, many people knew Bo Diddley from the Nike commercials featuring multi-sport athlete Bo Jackson.

And finally, the epitome of all blues songs: "I'm a Man." Ask most people to sing a blues riff and this is what you'll hear. Also covered (very well) by Muddy Waters.

Poor Man's Netflix

2008-05-27T08:00:00.003-08:00

Foreign films, documentaries and black and white classics are great. But have you ever browsed the DVD section of your public library, wishing that they would order some newer, more popular movies? If your library is like mine, the good news is: They do! The bad news is: You will never see them on the shelves.

Why? Because savvy library patrons put them on hold. There are so many holds on the more popular movies that they never make it to the shelf. I have a hold for No Country for Old Men. I am number 30 on the list. Some DVDs are leased which means that they may never come close to a shelf before they are returned.

If you want to watch Darjeeling Limited on DVD, but you are too cheap to pay $3.50 for a one-night rental or to buy a Netflix subscription, then you need to jump in line. Since these movies aren't on the shelf, you need to master the library catalog to hack your own poor man's (or woman's) Netflix.

First, use the advanced catalog search option. At my library, every record of a video recording has "[videorecording]" in the title field. So we will search for "videorecording." My catalog's advanced search page has an option for setting the media format. We will set Format to "DVD." We can also limit our searches to those items published by a date range, such as "2006-2008." Let's pick "2008." This search gives us a list of 154 results. Browse this list and put holds on any movies you would like to see.

I currently have holds on 33 movies. Some will be available the next time I go to the library. Some might not be ready until 2009 if everyone keeps the video for the 7-day maximum. Hopefully, I'll have a steady stream of movies that I haven't seen yet. It's not as speedy as a service like Netflix or Blockbuster, but it's free and convenient, all thanks to your local public library.

The Sunburn Song (WARNING for Memorial Day)

2008-05-26T09:17:00.000-08:00

My hero

2008-05-24T14:34:00.001-08:00

May 15

2008-05-15T22:53:00.006-08:00

Happy International Conscientious Objectors' Day!

Pray for Michael Barnes and his family. Michael is a soldier in the army here in Anchorage. He became a Christian and then applied for a conscientious objector discharge. He was denied, but recently won a court victory. Pray that the Army will honor his religious convictions and that his family will be supported in this stressful time. He was on the front page of the paper two days ago.

Soldier battles on to be conscientious objector (ADN, 13 May 2008)
Judge backs Christian soldier's conscientious objector petition (ADN, 14 May 2008)

Blog in the Future

2008-05-05T12:25:00.003-08:00

Yay! Blogger now allows scheduled posts. Just edit post options to a future date and your post will appear at that date and time. I have been looking forward to this. It's handy if you get on a roll and write several articles at once, but don't want to post them all on the same day. Not that this happens to me very often. Now if only we could schedule emails in Gmail.

Snow Record

2008-04-26T17:30:00.006-08:00

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather was warm and sunny. Temperatures were in the high-50s and low-60s, but it felt even warmer than that. Wednesday night, we ate and had Bible study outside on the Service Adventure deck in shirt sleeves. The bike trails were 95% free of snow. Surely they will be completely bare on Saturday, I thought. Wrong.
When I woke up yesterday, it was raining. The meteorologists said it would turn to snow, but there would be no accumulation. Anchorage got about 14-24 inches of heavy, wet snow. It did not stop snowing from morning until I went to bed. It is unusual for us to get snow like this in April. It's APRIL! It was funny to read comments on the Anchorage Daily News webpage. People were very angry with the meteorologists. As if predicting the outcome of thousands of random events is easy. This was the view from my living room window that afternoon.
This is the car I dug out today. In a short-sleeved T-shirt. Because already the temperature is up to 35 and it's all melting.
You can get a play-by-play from drizzle to avalanche here.

Hardy Heron Takes Flight

2008-04-24T10:39:00.009-08:00

On a happier note, Ubuntu 8.04 LTS "Hardy Heron" was released today. I already ordered my CD, but it might take a month to get here. If you want it faster, you can download it here. If you are really into Ubuntu, grab one of these very cool Hardy Heron T-shirts. But hurry, only 500 were made.

Land of the Free?

2008-04-24T08:49:00.002-08:00

The United States bills itself as the "land of the free," yet 1 in 100 adults is behind bars. We have about 5% of the world's population but nearly 25% of the world's prisoners. Our nation deprives more people of their freedom than any other country in the world. We have 2.3 million citizens in captivity. China, with four times our population, has 1.6 million. We also come out number one in incarceration rates. We have 751 prisoners for every 100,000 citizens. Russia is second at 627. The average rate is 125 per 100,000. Our high incarceration rates are mainly due to long prison sentences. Some European countries actually put more people in jail, but they stay there for shorter periods. We spend about $60 Billion a year on prisons.

The New York Times article linked below blames public sentiment and democracy itself for these obscene incarceration rates: judges and prosecutors are elected and feel pressured to hand down tough sentences in order to be re-elected. Yet the article never raises another factor that has lead to prison populations exploding since 1975: prisons are money-makers. Prison privatization has made human suffering profitable for corporations, especially since the bill is footed by the tax-paying public. When punishment leads to profit, we are going to suffer more punishment. The U.S. is one of only a handful of nations that permit bail for profit. In most countries it is illegal to post bail for someone in exchange for money. Another factor is our failed "war on drugs." Roughly 500,000 people are in prison for drug crimes. 53.2% of federal inmates are imprisoned on drug charges.

Couple these sad statistics with the fact that the United States is alone among Western democracies in executing offenders, and it is easy to see why we are increasingly viewed as a backward and barbaric nation.

Inmate Count in U.S. Dwarfs Other Nations' (NY Times)
Prison Population Around the Globe graphic

13 Miles

2008-04-15T08:33:00.002-08:00

I ran 13 miles on Saturday. At least it wasn’t snowing hard the entire time like it was last Saturday. It was still a tough run. I was doing well until about mile 9. Then coordination, concentration, focus and short-term memory all started to go. I went from running to jogging to lurching in the general direction of home—scaring small children who ran home to confuse their parents with Tales of The Bike Path Zombie. I had to walk the last mile. I was just too tired to lift my feet. You can see the degression in my mile splits:

10:08 – 10:53 – 10:48 – 10:34 – 10:49 – 11:37 – 12:00 (walked a bit at the half-way point to eat) – 10:51 – 11:32 – 11:29 – 13:08 – 13:27- 19:29

This run was roughly half a marathon and it took two and a half hours to complete, which means I am on pace to finish in five hours. I had hoped to do it in four. We’ll see what kind of improvement I can make in two months. The thought of finishing Saturday’s run and then turning around and doing it again is inconceivable. Like last Saturday, I got home, ate something, took a bath and then slept for about two hours.

I didn’t do either of the 6-mile runs on the last two Wednesdays. I taught both of those days and then taught a Bible study in the evening. There wasn’t much time. Tomorrow I don’t have that excuse, so I’ll be running seven miles. Hopefully that helps come Saturday, when I get a break and run a comparatively easy 10 miles.

See more progress on: run a marathon

Google Street View

2008-04-02T16:58:00.002-08:00

Google Street View has come to Anchorage. Yes, if you know my address (I am not going to post it here) you can "virtually" drive down my street and see my house. Kind of creepy actually. The photos were taken sometime in September or early October because I was borrowing a friend's Jeep while my car was in the shop, and that Jeep is in the driveway. You can see some of my neighbors walking around. Not all of Anchorage is photographed from street level, but you can head over there on Google Maps and see it for yourself.

Picking a Code Name

2008-03-26T22:42:00.002-08:00

Funny. I have a code name, but I'm not telling.

Ten Miles

2008-03-23T20:40:00.003-08:00

Yesterday I ran ten miles. I am up to double digits! It went well. It’s interesting that my Saturday runs are more fun than my Wednesday runs even though they are at least twice as long. A few explanations suggest themselves. One is that I rest on Fridays but run three miles on Tuesday. Maybe I am more “psyched” up for Saturday. I run earlier in the day on Saturday. Or maybe I am more cautious in conserving energy with a longer run ahead of me.

I’ve always been interested in why some days are easier than others. Mood plays an important role. If the weather is nice and I’m in a good mood, then I run well. If I’m grumpy or depressed, it’s miserable. It also seems like I finish every run with just enough energy left, whether it’s three miles or ten. I imagine that eating also determines how much energy I have, but I haven’t really tracked that well enough to discern a pattern.

The hardest parts of a run are often the beginning and the end. At the beginning, I’m cold and thinking about how many long miles lie ahead of me. I get a little impatient thinking that I’m going to be doing this for the next 90 minutes—maybe I should have brought a book? Somewhere in the middle, I usually settle into a comfortable pace and my mind wanders. Other than the occasional steering correction, I’m mostly daydreaming and thinking about other things. The return trip is always faster—in my mind at least, I haven’t timed any splits—just like a car trip. It’s as if the first half of the trip is stretching out a rubber band. The second half just snaps back.

But sometimes, that last mile is hard. Possibly I have rationed just enough energy for the run so I am running on fumes by that point. Another theory is that I have run that same last mile of trail hundreds of times over the years—always at the end of a run. So maybe I have conditioned myself to feel tired when I see those trees, that lamp post, that wooden bridge, even if I’ve only run four miles.

Of course, I have also noticed that the temptation to give up often grows strongest just before the successful completion of any endeavor. It’s like some part of my brain tries to trick me by saying, “It’s OK, you’ve proved your point. Since you are so close, why don’t you just stop. No one will fault you for quitting this far into it. This is good enough.” This is not a friendly voice, though it sounds so kind and understanding. I used to think that grace meant overlooking the failures of others. I’m beginning to think that saying “It’s OK. So what if you quit/failed/lost your temper/slept with the intern? Nobody’s perfect” is actually the cruelest, most disempowering thing we can do. It’s as good as saying, “You really aren’t smart/courageous/talented/good enough to succeed. You should just quit and go home.” It demonstrates a lack of confidence in another. Caring about people means holding them accountable to their own values and goals. Being gracious means sticking by someone and encouraging them when they fail, not giving up on them and making excuses for them. It’s often a thankless job, but something that courageous people do for the people they love. So next time your friend sneaks a cigarette or your kid does a half-assed job cleaning his room or your spouse stops writing the Great American Novel, don’t say “It’s OK.” Demand that they put forth their best effort and succeed at what they have started. They may complain, but they will appreciate it. Just make sure it’s something THEY want to do or have agreed to do, not something YOU think they should do.

If I quit running before this marathon, I don’t want someone to pat me on the back and say, “Oh well, you did your best. You never were very athletic.” I’d rather a friend smack me upside the head and scream, “You said you were going to run a marathon! Now get your +<(% out there and #*^$ start RUNNING you x%x#$!”

Years ago, when I was a camp counselor, one of our duties at the end of the week was to sweep the bare concrete floors of our cabin. But it was never enough to simply sweep once and and SAY we were finished. Randy, the camp coordinator, insisted on personally inspecting every cabin before we were free to leave for the weekend. And he didn’t just poke his head in the doorway and say, “Looks good. See you Sunday night.” No, Randy would get down on his hands and knees, whip out his flashlight and look under all the bunks. He would run his hands over the floor and if he felt any grit, he would say, “Do it over again.” Randy was not a harsh man. He is one of the kindest, most loving men I’ve ever known. And there was no way he was going to accept a mediocre job from his staff.

I think this was a tremendous gift to us. Sweeping that floor became a challenge. Passing an inspection on the first try was a source of pride. I usually swept that floor three times before I even considered looking for Randy. We didn’t sweep UNDER the bunks. We MOVED the bunks. On Saturday mornings, the screeching of children was replaced by the screeching of steel bunk beds being dragged across the cement floor in pursuit of cobweb-free corners.

When we passed that inspection, we KNEW we had done a good job. How many times in our lives do we really get that brutally honest and loving feedback that tells us we have done well? I imagine that many of us aren’t really 100% sure how well we are doing at work or at home. Even in school, I had teachers who were easy graders and those who were hard graders. I valued a B+ from the demanding teachers more than an A- from a “good enough” teacher. It’s always been a source of pride for me that no one in my high school graduating class had a 4.0 GPA. I was the valedictorian and even I had a B on my record. I scoff at these schools that have 6 valedictorians or students who boast of having a GPA greater than 4.0. All that tells me is that they weren’t challenged enough. Anyone who is living an easy life just isn’t trying hard enough. I’ll try to remind myself of that when I grind out that last mile. (And you thought I forgot this post was about running a marathon.)

See more progress on: run a marathon

Nine Miles

2008-03-15T22:14:00.002-08:00

Today I ran nine miles and felt good doing it. This is the furthest I’ve ever run. I beat my previous personal best of seven miles set only two weeks ago. I’m only about three weeks into my marathon training and I’m already running farther than I have before.

On Wednesday I only had to run four miles but I was dragging. Today I felt really good and only stopped or walked twice—once to put on my ice grippers when I reached the snowy part of the trail, and at the half-way point, when I scarfed down some raisins. Maybe it has something to do with eating half a box of spaghetti last night.

My pace was slow—about six mph, or 10-minute miles. I’d like to finish the marathon in four hours, so I’ll need to increase that pace to about 6.6 mph. But these long runs are about surviving, I can work on improving my speed on the shorter runs. Today I definitely felt like running 26.2 miles will be possible.

See more progress on: run a marathon

Addicted to LOST?

2008-03-12T14:57:00.004-08:00

You know who you are.

Why Am I Running? It's February!

2008-02-21T18:51:00.002-09:00

One of my goals for 2008 is to run the Anchorage Mayor’s Marathon on June 21. I started training yesterday and today I put my money where my mouth is and registered for the race. There’s no backing out now; I’m too cheap to forfeit the $60.

I’m using the novice training schedule from Hal Higdon. This is an 18-week program with short(er) runs on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and long runs on Saturday. I started out with 3-mile runs, which is the distance I usually jog in the summer. In the summer. Right now it’s February and I live in Alaska. We have had unseasonably warm weather this week. It’s been up to 40 degrees and the snow is melting and freezing, so the streets and paths are very icy. I bought some ice grippers that fit over my shoes and they have worked well. The warm weather is comfortable, but I think the road conditions will be better once it snows again.

It’s been about six months since I last ran, so I had to take a couple walk breaks even on these short runs. I’m supposed to run six miles on Saturday but my church is going on retreat so I’m not sure how I will arrange that. I suppose that the discipline of setting and achieving goals is about overcoming the obstacles in between—even when (or especially when) it isn’t convenient.

See more progress on: run a marathon

Shopping is for Gatherers

2008-02-20T17:06:00.005-09:00

I had people over for dinner tonight so I decided to do the easy thing and make some red beans and rice from a box. I already had one box but decided I needed two, so I stopped at the grocery and bought another box. When I got home I realized that the box I had just bought was actually BLACK beans and rice. The two boxes look almost identical which brings me to my point:

Don't 'they' realize that men shop for food too?

A woman would not have been fooled, but no man can be expected to see through this trickery. The boxes are identical, the only difference is that the word "red" has been replaced with "black." I have enough trouble with colors when shopping for clothes, why do I have to be subjected to this when I just want an easy meal? Last week I was shopping for some pants. I picked a pair off a shelf at random, but I couldn't tell if they were black or navy blue. I wanted black, but even with squinting and holding them up to the dingy department store light, I couldn't make the call. So I did the safe thing: I put them back and bought a pair of brown pants.

Back to the grocery store. This is not the first time I have bought the wrong thing because marketers think that just putting a little "New! Fat free!" sticker on the box is sufficient to distinguish this imitation product from the real thing. Have you ever had that "silk supreme" milk? Yuck. Men are not conditioned by nature to notice little details like that. We don't have that feminine peripheral vision that can see an entire grocery aisle in one glance. This is why men can't find anything in the refrigerator unless it is on the top shelf, in the front, in the middle. While women were scanning the underbrush for berries, our masculine ancestors were gazing far into the wooded distance probing for deer. Men just aren't very good at picking up on trivial little details like distinguishing between colors, flavors, brands or babies.

That's right. While I'm on the subject, all babies look the same to us. Sorry. Don't you remember that episode of The Cosby Show when Cliff brings Rudy home from pre-school? He gets her in the house and starts to remove her hat, earmuffs, scarf, gloves, coat, boots and snowpants. He is startled to discover that the little girl calmly gazing back at him is not his daughter. How could he pick up the wrong child? He is a man--all little children look the same once the temperature drops below 30. How could he get away with someone else's child? Because the little girl he brought home was being picked up by her daddy, too. As Cliff frantically bundles her up again, the doorbell rings. It's dad number two, who also took home the wrong daughter. They exchange children and I guarantee that neither of them ever told his wife.

If food producers want men to buy their food, they need to be very bold and direct. Subtle does not work on men. (Women, you need to realize this too.) Fat-free variations should be in a different aisle. Just stop making changes to your product altogether. It's too confusing. The dinner turned out fine--I just had to make two saucepans of food instead of one big one. Fortunately, being a refined man of culture and distinction, I had two pots, but it was a close call. I have no idea what I'm going to do with six cans of creamed cron.

The Wailin' Jennys

2008-02-17T09:28:00.006-09:00

I saw The Wailin' Jennys in concert Saturday night. It was great; I wish it could have been longer. They have good songwriting, excellent harmonies and, for the second time in one week, I got to see an attractive woman play the banjo. AND the accordian. Have I mentioned the seductive power of the banjo?

I went with a couple friends from church, but it was a sold-out show and we didn't have seats together. They sat in the mezzanine while I had a seat in the orchestra section. I ended up sitting next to a Quaker couple I know, so I had someone to talk to after all. I actually saw many people I know at the concert.

The Jennys also had a boy "Jenny" who played fiddle. The group is based in Winnipeg and his last name is "Penner." Hmmm...I wonder if he is Mennonite? Odds are good that at least one of his ancestors was a Russian Mennonite, but I didn't get a chance to ask him. I highly recommend The Wailin' Jennys. If you'd like a little taste, you can sample their latest album, Firecracker 'Avila' is my favorite track. I was a little worried they wouldn't play it at the concert, but they were just saving the best for last.

Conscientious Objector

2008-02-16T15:09:00.004-09:00

Not at all an original post, but I have long appreciated this poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay so I thought I would share it.

Conscientious Objector

I shall die, but
that is all that I shall do for Death.
I hear him leading his horse out of the stall;
I hear the clatter on the barn-floor.
He is in haste; he has business in Cuba,
business in the Balkans,
many calls to make this morning.
But I will not hold the bridle
while he cinches the girth.
And he may mount by himself:
I will not give him a leg up.

Though he flick my shoulders with his whip,
I will not tell him which way the fox ran.
With his hoof on my breast, I will not tell him where
the black boy hides in the swamp.
I shall die, but that is all that I shall do for Death;
I am not on his pay-roll.

I will not tell him the whereabouts of my friends
nor of my enemies either.
Though he promise me much,
I will not map him the route to any man's door.
Am I a spy in the land of the living,
that I should deliver men to Death?
Brother, the password and the plans of our city
are safe with me; never through me
Shall you be overcome.

Web Work

2008-02-15T19:47:00.006-09:00

It snowed again last night, but I haven't taken my near-daily walk yet. Instead I spent about six straight hours in front of the computer finishing some projects I have been putting off for a long time.

Project One was to get back into recording and publishing my sermons. I only have about a dozen subscribers, but I am concentrating on preaching this year and I think it would help me to evaluate sermons if they are online and easy to share. I had to reinstall Audacity and it took a while to remember the right settings. I am also trying out a new host, which is down at the moment. I may have to reconsider; if they get it working again, you can hear my weepy sermon on the beatitudes.

My goal is to write a short essay to go with each sermon. I'm hoping that this will help me organize my thoughts better. They might also be of interest to people who would rather read an article than listen to a 20-minute sermon. This meant that I needed to completely change how I distribute sermons. I used to podcast sermons by manually editing the rss file, but this isn't a very efficient way of including a lot of text. So Project Two was creating a new blog and editing the css so it looks just like a page on the church website. That also meant editing a lot on the POPMC site. Let me know what you think of the new Sermon page.

Since I was already changing the church website, I decided to go ahead with Project Three, embedding the 'MennoWidget' I have been working on. I combined the "links" page and the "news" page. You can view the new "Links & News" page to see the MennoWidget in all its glory. You can even have a widget of your own--read the "About" section for details. You can also see the widget in the sidebar to the right.

I am ready to take a break from the computer and take that walk, but I would like some feedback from all of you. I put all this together with Firefox on Linux, so I am particularly interested in how those pages display with other operating systems and browsers. Thanks.

Winter is for Music

2008-02-11T15:45:00.000-09:00

I've heard some good music already in 2008. When it's cold and dark outside it makes good sense to warm up to some smokin' fiddle tunes inside. On January 12 I saw Ollabelle with Martha Scanlan. I was introduced to Ollabelle by a friend, Dawn, who gave me a mixed CD with some of their music last Christmas. And I already knew Martha from when she was in Anchorage with the Reeltime Travelers. If you have read this blog before, you already know that I'm a big fan of the Travelers. Martha technically opened for Ollabelle, but also sat in on some Ollabelle numbers; and the band backed her up on some of her songs, so it was more of a collaboration.

The last two weekends of January--and the week between--was Anchorage Folk Festival-time. The festival is a great free, public event, and I'm proud to say I've been a member for several years now. I enjoyed about 28 hours of live music, workshops and contra dancing (I took the Service Adventure unit dancing since it was my month to do something fun with them). The guest artists were the Stairwell Sisters, an old-time band from California, and the Savoy Family Cajun Band, a (you guessed it) cajun band from (where else?) Louisiana. Both bands were good, but I couldn't help but compare the Stairwell Sisters to the Flat Mountain Girls, another all-girl old-time band I saw last year. I'd have to say I preferred the mountain over the stairwell, but at the very least, it renewed my interest in listening to Idle Talk & Wicked Deeds a few times that week.

Last night I saw the Carolina Chocolate Drops at the Snow Goose. They were fantastic. The Drops are an African-American string band from North Carolina. They put on a great live show. They managed to project a lot of energy despite the fact that they sat down for most of the show. I could have seen them better if they stood. The only bad thing about the evening were the four people behind me who persisted in talking though the entire concert even though they were asked by at least two people, including me, to be quiet. Some people shouldn't be allowed in public until they learn how to behave. I really didn't know anything about the Carolina Chocolate Drops before the concert. I was interested to see that they played as a trio, with no bass or mandolin. After the folk festival I was actually looking for some old-time music with just this arrangement. I like the minimalist sound of fiddle and banjo with rhythm guitar. The trio also played the jug, the harmonica, the bones, the snare and one mean kazoo by Rhiannon (who was just too cute in braids and floppy red hat--there is just something about a woman who can play the banjo....) This added a fun "jug band" flavor. If I ever join a band, it's going to have to be on lead nose flute. I'm listening to Dona Got a Ramblin' Mind right now. The African influence gives it a different feel from more Appalachian-based music. They remind me a bit of the Duhks in that respect. If you like roots music, I recommend it.

Saturday night I'm going to see the Wailin' Jennys. This was another band on the CD Dawn gave me and the best-known of the bands I have mentioned here, so I hope to have a good report for you next week.

Mission Accomplished

2008-01-31T11:03:00.000-09:00

I exercised every day in January, so my goal is on track so far. On January 10 I decided that I would ski every day for the rest of the month. I did that too, even though about half of the ski outings were on a very short trail near my house and didn’t last more than 15 minutes. But I had a lot of good skis on the coastal trail and a great park that has many trails. I am a much better skier than I was a month ago and I have already skied more this year than I have in the last 2-3 years combined. Now that January is over, I’m not going to ski every day, although I’ll keep exercising. I have to start running in a couple weeks if I want to run a marathon this June, but I hope to go skiing when the weather and snow conditions are nice.

See more progress on: exercise every day

One Day = $720 Million

2008-01-24T17:45:00.001-09:00

A short video on the terrible cost of our war in Iraq:

Ice Skating

2008-01-23T12:53:00.001-09:00

After my unpleasant ski at Kincaid Park, I had two very nice skis along the Coastal Trail on Friday and Saturday. The sun was just beginning to set on the ice as it moved out on the tide. It was pretty, the snow was good and the trail was flat. This let me concentrate on my form instead of climbing and sliding. I can maintain a good diagonal stride for about 30 seconds and then it wears me out. But I am definitely improving.

Yesterday I did NOT go skiing. But it wasn’t lack of dedication! We have had some crazy warm weather the last few days. It was 40 degrees and raining a little yesterday and the snow just wasn’t very good. So I laced up my skates and went skating instead. I feel this fulfils my commitment to go skiing every day in January because it is still an outdoor winter sport. And it was more appropriate to the weather.

It also made me miss skiing. I am worse at skating than I am at skiing and it makes my feet hurt after five minutes. It makes my feet hurt a lot. Needless to say, I didn’t skate long. The ice wasn’t very good either. Today looks clear and cold, so I will return to the Coastal Trail.

On Friday, I drove to a trailhead about 10 minutes away and realized that I had my skis and poles but no boots. I had to drive another ten minutes home to retrieve the boots. Ordinarily, I probably would have gotten mad and given up. “I’m not going back our there.” But thanks to my resolution, I couldn’t. I just had to shrug and make the extra trip; and it turned out to be a nice day. Behold the power of a firm goal and the accountability to stick to it.

See more progress on: exercise every day

Ich bin keine Frau.

2008-01-16T11:04:00.001-09:00

Ich bin ein Mann. Ich bin nicht klein. The German class at the university filled up so I wasn’t able to get in. So I will attempt to learn German on my own. At least I save nearly $600 this way. I have been using Livemocha.com, a free web-based language learning site that offers exercises for learning several different languages. So far I am content, but I think it would be better if there was some actual instruction instead of an endless series of exercises. They never explain anything, you have to figure everything out for yourself. Maybe this is their pedagogical strategy, but I would like to have a bit of an overview. I like to see the map and not just the terrain. The helpful thing about Livemocha is the social aspect. Yes, we all need one more social networking site. But this networking actually serves a purpose. You can submit written or spoken assignments and they will be graded by native speakers. You can also correct these assignments for people learning English. Livemocha also has text and voice chat options so that you can practice your new skills with people from around the world. I chatted briefly with someone in Albania who was practicing her English, but we didn’t get very far.

Livemocha offers 50 lessons in German, which is supposed to take 200 hours to complete. I think my pace has been quicker. If I do at least 5 lessons a week I’ll be done by spring. I’ll need to do some additional studying to fill the gaps, but at least this method can teach that bizarre German pronunciation. This morning I learned of two more language-learning sites: babbel.com and mangolanguages.com I’ll have to check them out as well.

See more progress on: learn german

The ups and downs of skiing

2008-01-15T21:07:00.001-09:00

Five days ago I decided that since I am in Alaska, I should take advantage of the state’s recreational possibilities when working toward my goal of exercising every day. So I resolved to ski every day for the rest of January. I have skied five days in a row, which is more than I skied all winter last year-so I already feel like I have accomplished something-and I thought I was doing very well on my short jaunts. But today was a frustrating exercise in futility. I returned to Kincaid Park, which was beautiful and full of people on Saturday. Today, though, I spent 4/5 of the time herringboning up steep hills-two steps forward, one back-and 1/5 of the time careening down icy slopes at 20 MPH, usually sliding the last 15 feet on my face. The only thing that stopped me was the fact that the steep downhills eventually became equally steep uphills, so I had a little valley to crawl around in while looking for my pants. Unfortunately, that meant the cycle could start all over again. I suddenly remembered why I quit skiing. Who invented this @!*%# sport?

Zeus? Hades? Sisyphus got off easy. If the gods had been really angry with him, he would have to ski up a hill, aaaalmost to the top, only to slide back down, and fall on his face. For eternity. There is no need for the boulder. (This is where the city in Colorado got its name.)

Those of you in the south are welcome to try this great sport as well. Put a stepladder in your yard; climb to the top and then jump off. You may land on any part of your body except your feet. Do this over and over and over again while your friend or spouse hits you with blocks of ice and the occasional tree branch.

It doesn’t help that the trails are not marked very well. And the map is not always accurate. It leaves off details. Intuition says, “Avoid the trail called ‘Big Niagra.’” But when the map labels it a moderate trail and marks other trails as steep hills, but not this one, I tend to put my faith in the cartographer. The attached painting shows the artist’s rendition of Big Niagra. Of particular note is the sudden and drastic change in the size and relative spacing of the groomed ski tracks at the top of the hill, and of those waaay at the bottom. You will also note that there appears to be no intervening space between the top and the bottom. That’s because you can’t draw fear or cold.

I did make it back to the car and was surprised to find that I has been skiing for over an hour. My knees hurt and I will be sore tomorrow, but I will strap on the Mach sticks again and look for a trail called “Timid Kitten” or “Kansas.” My goal is to ski everyday, so as long as today doesn’t prevent me from skiing tomorrow, it was a good day.

See more progress on: exercise every day

Snow in Spenard

2008-01-10T16:10:00.000-09:00

It snowed a lot the last couple days. Here are some photos from a walk I took through the 'hood. I went back over this trail on skis later.

First Ski

2008-01-10T16:06:00.001-09:00

It has snowed a lot in the last two days. After my walk I was inspired to dust off the cross-country skis and ski through the neighborhood and down the path near my house. Considering I haven’t skied in nearly two years, I did rather well. I didn’t fall down but I did get that heart rate going. Skiing is not an energy efficient mode of transportation. You’re working hard or you’re standing still. There’s not much in between. Still it was good to finally step into the bindings and enjoy the snow.

See more progress on: exercise every day

Exercise Every Day

2008-01-04T10:33:00.001-09:00

Another goal for 2008 is to exercise every day for at least 30 minutes. All 365 of them. I think this is the best way to create a good habit. I don’t mean that I have to run 6 miles every day or lift weights six days a week. For the first three days of the year, my exercise has consisted of walking for 30-60 minutes. On Wednesday, this meant walking to the coffee shop, talking to a friend for a couple of hours and walking home. I think that is a sustainable exercise regimen. My goal here is to form a long-term healthy habit, not to become Mr. Universe. I haven’t ruled that out, but then I couldn’t have a pastry with that coffee.

See more progress on: exercise every day

19th Century Russian Reading List

2008-01-03T10:34:00.001-09:00

In 2007, I accomplished my goal of reading 50 novels. Most of them were science fiction, children’s books and humor—not a strenuous reading list by any means, but I was focused on quantity, not quality. This year, I have resolved to add some literary heft to my selections. And what better way than to read 19th Century Russian novels? I selected a half-dozen novels from Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, and Pushkin. I started “The Brothers Karamazov” once before, so I will start with that one this time. This time I’ll finish it—even if it doesn’t have Nac Mac Feegles, dragons or a plucky female heroine.

See more progress on: Read The brothers Karamazov

2008 Resolutions

2008-01-01T19:11:00.000-09:00

I'm not ordinarily a goal-oriented person, but my goal to read 50 novels in 2007 went well. And there are a few things I have been wanting to do. So I am making some resolutions in the hope that publicly stating my goals and sharing my progress might motivate me to accomplish those tasks. It's your job to offer encouragement and the occasional lashing ("Where there's a whip, there's a way") I'll post more in the following days about what those goals are. I'll be using 43things to track them, so you can follow that link to view the list so far.

Read 50 Accomplished

2007-12-31T19:28:00.000-09:00

I accomplished my goal of reading 50 novels in 2007. Yes, a great many of them were Terry Pratchett novels. So what, they are still novels. You can see a list of my literary accomplishments below. Or, you can view the covers.

"It's possible to own too much...."

2007-12-11T17:24:00.001-09:00

"A man with one watch knows what time it is; a man with two watches is never quite sure."
--Lee Segall

RIP

2007-12-05T10:10:00.000-09:00

Tonight I Googled myself. Imagine my surprise when I discovered my obituary. Apparently I am (was) a father, British, and dead. I think there may be some confusion, as I feel fine. It may even be possible that there is (was) more than one of me in the world. Quantum physicists have always claimed that this could be the case.

I discovered that you can also download--for free--my mp3 songs and ringtones. I think they mean sermons.

Old School Math

2007-12-04T11:42:00.000-09:00

I remember watching the Fat Boys on PBS' Square One TV. That was almost 20 years ago. It is an experience which has never left me. Now you can enjoy it too. I sometimes think of it whenever I see hamburgers or triangles or math.

More Fat Boys videos:
All You Can Eat
One Billion is Big (more Square One TV)
The Twist

Three-Legged Moose

2007-11-03T11:09:00.002-08:00

It's not a very good picture--I was in a hurry. I came out one morning and this three-legged moose was eating our crab apple tree. You'll have to trust me on that. She actually has four legs but is missing her right rear foot. I kept one wary eye on her while I scraped ice off the windshield. I started to walk around the car to get the other side when a calf surprised me. It was around the corner of the house. The calf wandered across the front of the house, investigated the front porch and peered into the front windows. This picture was taken later in the day. They loitered in the yard until evening. I'll probably see them again. There usually is a cow and calf in the neighborhood most of the winter.

PDF Calendar

2007-11-02T15:33:00.000-08:00

All I wanted was a simple monthly calendar for 2008. I have always printed out monthly calendars for use in my three-ring binder, but since I no longer have the Calendar Creator software, my current calendar stopped at December 2007. I thought that surely I could easily find some blank calendars on the internet that I could download and print out.

After about an hour of searching I was ready to give up. I couldn't believe that it was so difficult to find a simple monthly calendar. There were many sites that looked promising, but they wanted you to register, or the calendars looked awful or they were clunky Excel templates, etc., etc., ad naseum.

And then there was PDFCalendar.com. It was exactly what I was looking for. You can easily create blank calendars for any month. You can create calendars with up to 12 weeks on one page. You can customize the appearance and layout. You can choose between 14 paper sizes. It's fast and you leave with a PDF file that you can save, e-mail and/or print.

About the only option I would like to see added is the ability to print the days of the week white on a black background. If this could import holidays, birthdays and lectionary texts from an iCal file it would be perfect. (That's probably going a little too far. Its purpose is to create blank calendars.)

If you need to print out any calendars for any reason, try PDFCalendar.com. And, no, I didn't get any money for this. I just like to share the treasures of the internet with you, my good friends.

Deep Thoughts

2007-10-31T09:30:00.000-08:00

Remember those Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey from Saturday Night Live? You can glean inspiration from a different Deep Thought everyday at the Official Deep Thoughts by Jack Handy Site. It's the perfect way to start off each morning.

If Deep Thoughts don't inspire you, try The Way of Awesome. Rule Zero: Assume you are awesome. No problems there.

Mr. Beantastic

2007-10-29T20:44:00.000-08:00

Laptop Invasion

2007-10-24T20:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I looked up from my latte to count 17 laptops in the coffeeshop. Seventeen. There were only two customers (including me) who were not using a computer. People, this has to stop. Frankly I am a little tired of people who mooch wi-fi bandwidth off of Kaladi Brothers so that they can play World of Warcraft every day for the cost of a small drip coffee. (I see the same guy in there slaying digital ogres every time I go in there!) In the meantime, I can't even find an empty table because they are all in the process of Borg-like assimilation. It looks more like a computer lab than a place to meet friends and share a biscotti.

I find it very disturbing when people go into a public place and then plug themselves into their own private universe. It's rude. This goes for all public cell phone use, MP3 IV's, and public web surfing. If you have a sickness that compels you to plug yourself into a gizmo every second of the day, have the courtesy to do it in your own home. You are embarrassing all of us.

Public places like a coffeeshop are where you go to interact with other people, AKA The Public. Leave your silicon symbiotes at home.

On another topic, I learned today that there is a Thackerville, Oklahoma. If I moved there, would they hail me as their lord and master? Would I be crowned King of Thackerville? Or His Most Thackerness? More importantly, would there be any way of moving it out of Oklahoma? Not that I really have anything against Okies. I just wouldn't want to live that close to Texas.

Why it pays...

2007-10-18T10:10:00.001-08:00

...to ask your mechanic to give you any auto parts they replace. I had to take my Subaru in for new brakes. I also asked them to check out the blower fan, which had stopped working. Ordinarily I don't bother with repairing such trivial things like air conditioners, radios, windows that won't open, doors that won't open from the outside, dome lights, dents, missing bumpers, turn signals, etc. But with winter coming, I really do need that defrost working.

The mechanic called me back and said, "the blower motor's shot. You need a new one. That'll be $340" Oh well, there goes my PFD. Three days later he calls back and said, "The blower switch is bad, too. That'll cost $140." Now I'm ticked. If I had known it was going to cost nearly $500 I probably would not have had the work done. But I'm already $340 in the hole and it won't do me any good unless I throw another $140 in after it. Four days later ("Yeah, we'll have to order that from the East Coast.") he calls me and says, "Wouldn't you know? It still won't work. The relay (or something) is fried. That's another $106."

At this point, I had to say, "Why couldn't you tell me all this at the beginning instead of replacing the first faulty part you find and then scratching your head when it doesn't work until you can think of another part that you can order from the East Coast and replace? If you had told me this job was going to cost $600 I would not have authorized you to do the work."

OK, I was more polite than that, but I did ask, "How do you know the motor was bad? Maybe it was just the switch."
The mechanic said, "No, we hooked the motor up directly to current and it wouldn't run."
I asked, "How did you test the switch? Did your mechanic test it or did he just assume that because the motor had been replaced, then the culprit must be the switch? And then when the switch went bad he replaced the relay as well?"
"No, no, we tested the switch. We hooked it up to current and it didn't work."
"OK, that's fine. Replace the relay, but I would like the switch back if that's not a problem."
"...no, that's fine. We can do that."

When I finally went in to pick up my car, TEN DAYS after I had dropped it off, LO and BEHOLD!
"Hey, turns out you didn't need a new switch after all! We tested it again and it worked this time, so it's just the blower and relay."
"Hey," I said. "That's good news."

Still, I won't be taking my car back to these guys again. I'm not saying that they were intentionally trying to cheat me, but it wasn't in their interests to be careful about correctly diagnosing the problem if they can make more money from replacing parts that may or may not be working. And I know that if I had not asked for that switch back I would be out another $140. They also said I had a faulty coolant temperature sensor which was causing some hesitation I had noticed. Since that part had been replaced in March by another shop and was still under warranty, I told them to leave it alone. I took the car back to the first shop to replace the sensor under warranty and they told me that that part was fine--I needed a mass air flow sensor instead.

I should have about $300 of my PFD left by the end of this. I just hope the car makes it one more year....

KL2HX

2007-10-17T13:09:00.000-08:00

Just minutes ago I finally became a licensed amateur radio operator (Technician class) when the FCC assigned me the call sign KL2HX. What should have taken three days took three weeks because the volunteer examiners failed to sign their paperwork after I passed the exam in September. You can still call me John David; just know that I have joined that elite fraternity of ham radio, um, hams. Yes I will soon begin wearing a baseball cap with "KL2HX" embroidered on the front, stick a big 'ol aerial (pronounced "Earl") in my back yard and put so many antennas on my car that I look like I was attacked by spear-hurling Pygmys. Yesiree. But first I need a radio.

Kink in the Hose

2007-10-11T18:42:00.001-08:00

Race in Northridge

2007-10-04T11:26:00.000-08:00

People sometimes have trouble believing me when I say that there were only six black kids in my high school. Yet these statistics I stumbled upon confirm my memories. I think that schools in the Northeastern School District are becoming more diverse. They are only 97% white now.

Northridge Elementary School

Total Students: 451
Full Time Teachers: 25
Student/Teacher Ratio: 18 Students : 1 Teacher

Race Distribution
Asian: 1%
Black: 0%
Hispanic: 1%
Native American: 0%
White/Other: 95%

Northridge Middle School

Total Students: 507
Full Time Teachers: 32
Student/Teacher Ratio: 16 Students : 1 Teacher

Race Distribution
Asian: 2%
Black: 3%
Hispanic: 1%
Native American: 0%
White/Other: 93%

Kenton Ridge High School
Total Students: 692
Full Time Teachers: 36
Student/Teacher Ratio: 19 Students : 1 Teacher

Race Distribution
Asian: 1%
Black: 2%
Hispanic: 1%
Native American: 0%
White/Other: 94%

I realize that the figures in the graphs do not match the figures to the left and that none of the percentages add up to 100%, but it's clear in any case that there's a whole lot of white people where I grew up.

People also have trouble believing me when I tell them how diverse Alaskan schools are:

Anchorage School District

Number of Schools: 98
Number of Students: 50,207
Number of Teachers: 2,857
Number of Males: 25,973
Number of Females: 24,315
Area: 3059.47 square miles!

And the school that I teach at most:

Tudor Elementary

Total Students: 552
Full Time Teachers: 26
Student/Teacher Ratio: 21 Students : 1 Teacher

Race Distribution
Asian: 15%
Black: 10%
Hispanic: 13%
Native American: 18%
White/Other: 45%

Quite a difference.

Moscow and Ritzville

2007-09-26T19:50:00.000-08:00

I returned yesterday from my trip to Washington and Idaho. Friday and Saturday I attended the Mennonite Disaster Service Region IV annual meeting. It was a good opportunity to meet MDS state unit leaders from the West as well as MDS bi-national staff from Akron. I learned quite a lot, shared a report on disaster recovery in Alaska and perhaps laid the groundwork for a potential MDS unit in Alaska.

My hosts were Jerilee and Terry, the pastor of Menno Mennonite Church in Ritzville, WA. I stayed with them for the PNMC annual meeting in 2003 so it was good to reconnect. Terry made sure I left with a bag of potatoes. He had stopped by a local Hutterite farm and they asked him if he wanted any potatoes. He said sure, so they filled the whole bed of his pickup with taters. As you can tell, this is farming country. You can barely see another building from the church. If you've only been to the west coast of Washington, it's hard to imagine how desolate the Eastern part of the state is. I drove for miles on state highway 23 without seeing another car. It's pretty, but very different from Alaska.

Saturday I returned to Moscow, Idaho to visit some former Prince of Peacers, Tammi, Pat and 11-month-old Skyler. Dr. Renee, who is currently working in northern Idaho, came down for the weekend, so we had quite the POPMC reunion. Moscow is a nice college town. I gave myself a walking tour of the University of Idaho campus (where Pat and Tammi teach) and downtown Moscow, including the Moscow Food Co-op and several coffee shops.

One highlight of the trip was meeting Skyler. Tammi was seven months pregnant when they left Anchorage so this was our first meeting ex-utero. He has a big goofy grin and is a very happy baby. Favorite word:

nan·a (năn'ə, nä'nə)
n. [Bt < (ba)nana]
1. food.
2. Tammi (at mealtime, see def. 1).

On Monday, Pat and I drove down to his family's ranch. We saw a deer, an owl and miles and miles of empty fields (the wheat harvest is over). On the way back, we stopped by one of over 20 dams in the Pacific Northwest on the Columbia and Snake Rivers. We also toured a salmon and steelhead hatchery--made necessary in part by all the dams which cut off salmon from their breeding waters. Later that night, I was reading about the Rampart Dam project that the US Army Corps of Engineers wanted to build in Alaska back in the 60s or 70s. This project would have dammed the Yukon River, creating a reservoir the size of Lake Erie and destroying a good chunk of Alaska. The monumental scope of their arrogance and foolishness is staggering. Fortunately they were not able to go through with it. None of Alaska's rivers are dammed and there is no conceivable reason to do so. We have very little agriculture, abundant surface water and little river travel.

It was a fun visit as you can see in the slideshow above.

$1,654

2007-09-25T13:17:00.000-08:00

$1,654!

This year's Permanent Fund Dividend will be $1654. That's $547 more than last year's. It will be well appreciated. Especially since my car is in the shop again.

ADN Story

Deezer Playlists

2007-09-05T17:42:00.000-08:00

Update: It gets even better. If you register for Deezer you can save playlists and share them with others, even post them on your blog or website. Like this:

Deezer

2007-09-05T16:47:00.000-08:00

Website of the Moment: Deezer.com

Finally. A website that lets you listen to any song or artist you want (within limits). It's like a free jukebox. If it sounds too good to be true, there is speculation around the web that it won't last long. It's up and running for the moment, so enjoy. Audio quality isn't stellar, but my speakers aren't that great anyway. (I decided against buying those nice Logitech Z-2300 powered speakers) and there are sometimes problems with buffering, but it has been fun to listen to songs I haven't heard in a long time, as well as to discover new songs and bands I haven't heard before. And the music industry still thinks this kind of thing is bad. How would I ever have known that I liked Flogging Molly otherwise? It's not like they are getting any radio play.

Songs of the Moment:
I suggest you go to Deezer and listen to some of these gems:

Day-O by Harry Bellefonte
Convoy by C.W. McCall (the WFO Collection version)
Rag and Bone by The White Stripes
Another Bag of Bricks (acoustic) by Flogging Molly
(bonus) Queen Anne's Revenge by Flogging Molly
(OK, I couldn't resist) Coconut by Nilsson Schmilsson

Cockroach

2007-07-31T15:44:00.000-08:00

Hee hee.

The Simpsons in Alaska

2007-07-31T10:03:00.000-08:00

I haven't seen The Simpsons Movie yet, but it sounds like Homer J. is taking a page out of the "Life of John David," moving from Springfield to Alaska. Reflections to follow.

Incidentally, you can now git yerself "Simpsonized," which I also have not, as of this moment, done. I can't find a suitable photo of myself. If you do, send me a copy of your yellow doppleganger. Maybe I'll start a gallery.

Potter

2007-07-22T22:10:00.000-08:00

I finished the new Harry Potter book today. No, I did not stand in line for hours to buy a copy at midnight. C'mon, at $30 a pop I had no intentions of buying a copy period. I got my copy from the library. The guy at the circulation desk said the library had 70 copies. And 130 holds for the book. I was number 13. I must have placed that hold about four months ago. I was surprised to get the book so quickly. I thought it might take a week or two. But I got the email notice Saturday morning, so figured I might as well pick it up while I was in the neighborhood--just 10 hours after the fanatics received theirs (you know who you are) and for free.

The book itself was OK. I've never been a huge fan, but it's a quick, easy read with likable characters, although Harry is not one of them. But it's the same old, tired "good defeats evil through evil means while somehow remaining good" story that Hollywood and New York churn out over and over again. Of course, if we keep buying it...

Flat Mountain Girls

2007-06-30T22:10:00.000-08:00

Tonight I went to see the Flat Mountain Girls at the Organic Oasis. The Girls are an all-female old-time string band from Portland, Oregon. As I listened, I thought that the guitar player's voice sounded very familiar. It took me a while to figure it out, but at the set break, I went up to her and said, "You played in Spigot, right?"

She (Nann) admitted it, so I told her this story: About five years ago, I was in Portland with a sunny Sunday afternoon to kill before I flew back to Anchorage. I hopped on a bus and rode it until I found a fun neighborhood to explore. I wandered into a music store and found a band called Spigot playing on a low stage in the back. There weren't many people in the store, so I sat on a couch and enjoyed the serendipitous concert. I really enjoyed the music--they describe it as

... a scrap metal heap. A steamy compost pile. A splintery porch swing. Green gutter water. A pack of flea-ridden ferals. Best put, Spigot burps out an urban-rural junkyard mishmash o' tunes....pulled directly outta the derrier. And we have a hoot-uv-a-time doin' it, that's fer sure.

I listened for an hour and chatted with some of the band members while they packed up. Then I flew back to Anchorage. Later I regretted not buying a CD, so I emailed the band and Nann (as it turned out) mailed me a CD. I still listen to it and would recommend it if you don't mind a few potty words.

"Wow." says Nann. "I actually mailed it to you? I'm usually not very good at that kind of thing." She narrowed her eyes. "You're not asking for a refund are you?" Nope. I even bought the latest Flat Mountain Girls CD, Idle Talk & Wicked Deeds.

If you like it old-timey, check it out. Listen to Radio Spenard (right sidebar) to hear some Spigot samples.

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars

2007-06-27T20:16:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday I saw a documentary on Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars. The All Stars is a group of Reggae/West African musicians who fled the civil war in Sierra Leone. They met in refugee camps in Guinea where many of them lived for ten years until they were able to return to their homes.

The next night, I saw them in concert here in Anchorage. It was a fantastic show. I love reggae music and it was encouraging to see them in a refugee camp one night and on stage in Alaska the next. If you have a chance to see the movie or buy the album, take it. Living Like A Refugee is my most-played album of the moment.

Mixplay

2007-06-26T12:48:00.000-08:00

Just to show that Japan offers more than bizarre game shows...

Big *#$ Table

2007-06-26T12:06:00.001-08:00

Surface is the epitome of digitized eye candy, but, well, yeah... It's pretty big. And expensive.

Straight from the Horse's Mouth

2007-06-15T15:26:00.000-08:00

Dubya's Speech Writer

2007-06-14T16:23:00.000-08:00

This explains a lot.

It's like listening to a Middle School Forensics match. Seriously. Who made this guy president? Oh yeah, the Supreme Court.

Will Ferrell would make a better president.

The Mangroomer!

2007-06-13T21:30:00.001-08:00

Finally! The perfect gift for Father's Day: the MANGROOMER Do-It-Yourself Electric Back Hair Shaver!

Children's Story II

2007-06-12T21:39:00.000-08:00

More Children's Story Quotes:

Storyteller:
"Have you ever done anything wrong?"

Six-year-old boy to his younger sister:
"Raise your hand, because you know you have!"

The Lighter Side

2007-06-07T11:54:00.000-08:00

In lighter news:

A man in a wheelchair was taken for a high-speed highway ride after his handlebars became tangled up in the front grill of a truck. Story

"Celebrity heiress Paris Hilton has been released from jail after serving just three full days of her sentence." Surprise, surprise. No one saw that coming. It's a good thing she's rich, white and famous, otherwise she might have to actually serve the full term. Meanwhile the jails are full of poor dark-skinned people. Story

"US researchers have successfully tested an experimental system to deliver power to devices without the need for wires." Kind of cool, but only 40% efficiency? That's a lot of wasted electricity. Unless they can greatly increase the efficiency, this technology will do more harm than good. If we are using this to power low-watt compact fluorescent or LED lightbulbs, then we are right back where we started. Story

Lee Eshleman

2007-06-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

News travels slowly to Alaska. I just learned that Lee Eshleman took his own life on May 17. Lee was one half of the comedy duo Ted & Lee. Their performances were always among the highlights of the Mennonite Church General Assemblies. I loved Ted & Lee's performances of the confused and awed disciples Peter and Andrew. They portrayed the gospel with humor, insight and humility. I had longed fantasized about getting them to Alaska someday. I'm sad today. Lee will be missed.

Lee Eshleman Memorial

The Dumpsters of Bethel

2007-05-25T15:57:00.000-08:00

Now that Google offers a slideshow, I proudly present:
The Dumpsters of Bethel, Alaska

100 Sheep

2007-05-03T10:31:00.000-08:00

Children's Story last Sunday:

Me: There was once a shepherd who looked over a flock of sheep. He ...
5-year-old Boy: Excuse me! Did he have 100 sheep?
Me: Errm, I don't know, maybe, sure.
Boy: Because it always seems like in these stories there are a hundred sheep.
Me: OK, fine, he had 100 sheep.

Prison Privatization

2007-05-03T10:26:00.000-08:00

Headline: "Police: Ohio Couple Put Son in Cage"

Shocking! Outrageous! Biza...aaumm, wait... Isn't that what police do? Put people in cages? They must resent the competition.