Craigslist

We're moving. Yay! And sigh. We're trying to get rid of all of our stuff. I think we'll be successful. I just posted a bunch of stuff to Craigslist and I hope people are cool about it. I got these weird wackos asking to buy my stuff, but giving me all these weird deals. I can't really fault them though. I'm hoping it all sells on Craigslist because then I won't have to try and eBay them. If you're a weird wacko, maybe you're interested in our stuff:

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/hsh/1147964812.html (household items)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/hsh/1147972973.html (household items)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/hsh/1147982580.html (household items)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/for/1148002029.html (general for sale)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/clo/1148004244.html (clothing & accessories)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/clo/1148006207.html (clothing & accessories)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/hsh/1148010299.html (household items)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/sys/1148024639.html (computers & tech)

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/sys/1148068280.html (computers & tech)

Man of God

The Boss and I have been selling off our stuff. I suppose I could post the list of treasures that we have to sell at recession busting prices. But that's for later. Anyways, there were three folks interested in what I had to sell so I told them I'd bring the stuff down to the seminary on Monday. Here is a paragraph from that email (with the names edited for privacy):

I prefer cash. If you decide you don't want what you asked me to reserve for you, please let me know. I look forward to meeting you guys soon. [A Thai sounding name], if you are a woman, I apologize in advance. Hrm. I suppose I should also extend that apology to B* and P*, even though your names are traditionally male names for English speakers.

The Thai person responds with:

That sounds good. I am a man of God so you did not make any mistake

I wish I were a man of God.

nwcmptr.exe

Whoa. I just noticed that there's a tab in the Blogger interface called "Monetize". Interesting. It's spring again. That means most of my brain melts and pours out my nose. Actually, that would be nice. Instead it makes itself comfortable in my sinuses, eking out a living as super-thick nose jello. I can't wait till spring is over.

So I've been playing around with netbooks. I like them because they are small and they are relatively cheap. The Boss gave me permission to get one because

1. I told her that I'd use it for work.
2. It would give us two computers to work on but still allow us to keep one main computer.
3. It wasn't that expensive.

So it's been a while since I've been on a Windows computer. The last time I was on a Windows computer for a significant amount of time, I was rooming with another guy, Notorious BIG was killed, email was still fun, and I wore a pumpkin to one of my math classes. It is amazing, then, how much on Windows hasn't changed. The graphics are a little snazzier than Windows 95, but all of the confusion, obfuscation, and frustration are still there. But let's start with what I like!

1. I like that even though it's pretty confusing, Windows XP is pretty customizable. I was able to remove all of things from the Start menu that I didn't need or want, and I was able to customize (for the most part) a lot of the UI. But this was pretty hard to do.

2. I like that I can use Google Chrome. It's a pretty awesome browser; fast, clean, and fun to use.

And that's about it. On the hardware side, I like that my ASUS 1000HE is small and light; it's really easy to carry. It's got a pretty good keyboard for it's size. It's got really good battery life (about 7 hours of normal use). And it's cheap!

And I really think that's the big selling point for Windows. It's cheap. Most people I know that use Windows have pointed to the cost as a significant characteristic for them in decision making. And a lot of the issues that I have with Windows aren't an issue for them. Things like how the system tray is cluttered with things that I don't need. I mean, do I really need an icon telling me everytime I use a trackpad? Or how, when I try to figure out what startup items I can delete, I get names like ImScInst.exe. 

To be fair, things on the Mac or Linux side can get like that too. But, at least for the Mac side, most applications are self contained. They don't have a hundred different files in different parts of the system. When you want to delete a program, you just delete it. And the name of the program is something reasonable. Like Microsoft Entourage. As opposed to msimn.exe.

There are very few apps on the Windows side that make me think: Wow, they took a lot of time to get it right...and it does a bunch of cool things. The apps that I have seen that I think are relatively well done fall into two categories: Microsoft apps and games. Most Windows apps look ugly and aren't fun (this is admittedly subjective). And I think this says a lot about the development culture related to the two platforms.

So I guess the big question is "Well if you hate it that much, why did you spend $400 on it?" Well, because it was cheap!

A Link to the Past

amsomnia Is it presumptuous to enjoy my own writing? Well, I do. It's interesting reading some of the older entries. There was a time when I compared my writing then (circa 2005) to my writing way back then (circa 2000) and I found that there was a greater distance between the two. I used to be embarrassed about my older writing but (at least now) I don't find it as humiliating. (Maybe I should be embarrassed). I especially enjoyed my posts about dating.

Tenebrae

Judas, Peter because we are all betrayers, taking silver and eating body and blood and asking (guilty) is it I and hearing him say yes it would be simple for us all to rush out and hang ourselves but if we find grace to cry and wait after the voice of morning has crowed in our ears clearly enough to break our hearts he will be there to ask us each again do you love me

Luci Shaw If you know me, you know that I'm not much of a holiday guy. For the most part, it's because I feel they are commercialized. Holidays aren't special or sacred; they're just an excuse to sell me something. And, I admit, that's a very cynical view. I've met people that look at me with horror and pity as I tell them that I disdain Christmas. First they ask if I am an adherant to another religion: “Are you Buddhist? Are you Jewish?” Then, after finding that I am a Christian, their strategy changes. “But I love it because it's a time to spend with friends and family!” they exclaim, trying to persuade me from my grinchian point of view. “And what about the birth of Jesus! That's important! He's the reason for the season! <Insert any other clever phrase that you may have seen on a bumper sticker from a Christian book store>” And that, my friend, is why I absolutely love Good Friday. Here is a holiday whose purpose cannot be touched by commercialism. Who in their right mind what put on a “Death of Jesus” 50% off special? What kind of marketing genius would try to get people to buy crown-of-thorn shaped cards to give to one another? Or have a special “vinegar sponge” drink to commemorate the event? No, the sanctity and significance of this holy day are preserved, ironically, through it's horror and sorrow. We went to City Presbyterian Church in Denver. The minister shared a bit about his past. He was from Alabama and talked about the significance that the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial had for him. The most significant thing, though, for him was the shell of a burnt out Greyhound bus. He grew up in Anniston, Alabama and it was during the Civil Rights Movement that a group of citizens, both white and black, decided to go on a freedom ride. As they got into Anniston, they were heckled and jeered at, so they got back on the bus and continued away from the town. A group of white men followed, though, and shot the tires out of the bus. They began to burn the bus with the people still inside and barricaded the door, but as the tank threatened to explode, they retreated, allowing the people inside to escape. In looking at the blackened metal bus frame, the minister explained that this was the legacy of his hometown. Racism, hatred, shame. And those were the things that he felt attributed to him through this symbol. The connection to the cross was an easy one. I've come to realize that the cross is that symbol for me. It certainly is a symbol of hope, renewal, and joy, but it carries with it a bare, raw, unadulterated sense of shame, pain, agony. Things that are because of me. And as I thought of the feelings that flowed through the minister as he recounted the legacy of his hometown, the feelings of sorrow, pain, guilt in their stark reality, I realized that the cross should do those things for me, but oftentimes doesn't. That's why I love Good Friday. Here is a sacred day where I am reminded of the magnitude of my darkness, the magnitude of my shame, the magnitude of my sorrow, and the magnitude of his grace. It is in the solemn darkness that I can reflect upon Christ's goodness to me and that magnifies the brightness of God's love and his glory.