Category: ThoughtStream

Things we think

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The deal

After a growing sense that my clothes weren’t fitting correctly – and an increasing view of myself in the mirror – I decided to challenge myself for the month of June.

I called it The Deal, as in, I’m going to make a deal with myself. The Deal was this: no desserts, no between meal eating, no extra bread (sandwiches were okay, but no roll or garlic bread with the spaghetti), and whenever I was asked to go for a walk – an evening habit with the females of the house – I had to go.

It was NOT an all-out diet, otherwise I would have limited my portions a little more.

The only time I broke the deal was one night when it really looked like it would storm at any moment and I refused to walk. (It didn’t storm.)

The hardest part of the deal was the walking. I enjoy the company and time with my girls. I just dislike the actual walking.

The Deal began on June 1st and officially ended at midnight on June 30th. The picture shows my start and end weights. I celebrated on July 1st by having French toast for breakfast, but the only other thing I’ve eaten that I wouldn’t have eaten during June was a chocolate chip cookie.

Now…time to make your own Deal.

20110702-042455.jpg

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Facebook Limbo

Just wondering – do you keep potential Facebook friends waiting in limbo like I do?

I currently have 6 people waiting there. Two of them will remain there as long as I have a Facebook account. I don’t want them as a “friend” – that sounds bad, doesn’t it? – but if I reject their request it just gives them an opportunity to ask me again. Leaving them in Facebook limbo lets me retain control. (Are you one of the two? Sorry.)

The other four people I don’t know well enough to decide on yet – though they’ve been there for awhile. Again, if you’re one of these people, I’m sorry. But my guilt won’t get you to be my Facebook friend.

How many people do you have in limbo?

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A bag of Jedi-hurt

Steve Jobs has called Blu-ray a “bag of hurt” because of licensing disagreements, so Apple hasn’t made any computers with a Blu-ray drive. But, Steve, please, for the love of Obi-Wan…

Amazon is now listing these for pre-order (and you might as well use my links when you buy them):

Star Wars: The Prequel Trilogy (Episodes I – III) [Blu-ray] – $44.99. (Worth it? Meh.)

Star Wars: The Original Trilogy (Episodes IV – VI) [Blu-ray] – $44.99. (Worth it? Really? Is that a real question? Isn’t this a must-have for Blu-ray player owners?)

Star Wars: The Complete Saga (Episodes I-VI) [Blu-ray] – $89.99.

Do the math and you’ll find that you save a penny by ordering the two trilogies separately. You’ll save a full $45 if you avoid the first three episodes – Hayden Christiansen might be the biggest bag of hurt.

Though the biggest pain might be that these won’t actually be released until September. Just more time to save your pennies.

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Random song in my head

Every once in a while I’m surprised by a random song popping into my head. Just a minute ago, I found myself humming, “…like a mighty sea, like a mighty sea, comes the love of Jesus sweeping over me…“.

Good song. Good lyrics. But really old and random. Does that happen to you, too?
Here’s the full song:

  1. My soul today is thirsting for living streams divine,
    To sweep from highest heaven to this poor heart of mine;
    I stand upon the promise, in Jesus’ name I plead;
    Oh, send the gracious current to satisfy my need.

    • Refrain:
      Like a mighty sea, like a mighty sea,
      Comes the love of Jesus sweeping over me;
      The waves of glory roll, the shouts I can’t control;
      Comes the love of Jesus sweeping o’er my soul.
  2. I see the clouds arising, the mercy clouds of love,
    That come to bring refreshing down from the throne above;
    The earnest of the shower, just now to us is giv’n,
    And now we wait, expecting the floods of grace from heav’n.
  3. The show’rs of grace are falling, the tide is rolling in,
    The floodtide of salvation, with pow’r to cleanse from sin;
    It’s surging through my being and takes my sin away,
    It keeps me shouting glory! through all the happy day.
  4. It’s coming, yes, it’s coming, it’s coming down this hour,
    A torrent of salvation in saving, cleansing pow’r:
    I hear the billows surging, I see them mount and roll;
    Oh, glory, hallelujah! they’re sweeping through my soul.

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Choices, rights, and privileges

I read a letter to the editor of the North Fort Myers Neighbor this morning on the subject of homosexuality, marriage, and the repeal of the “Don’t-ask-don’t-tell” policy. The letter, from Whitney Decker, is titled “Is it wrong to love?”, and favors the continued push for normalization of homosexuality in our society.

I disagree with much of Ms. Decker’s letter, and though I could express my disagreement in a responding letter to the editor or by commenting online, I don’t know Ms. Decker, and I don’t want this to come across as a personal attack. She sounds like a reasonable and thoughtful person.

Happily, I have a blog.

Ms. Decker avows that she is a Christian and reads her Bible and can’t find any Scripture that forbids same-sex marriage. I don’t know if she is a Christian. I don’t know how much she reads her Bible. I do know that she doesn’t understand the Bible in the same way I do.

However, that is not the main thrust of her letter, and neither is it the point of this response. After using a weak and tenuous definition of love to open her opinion, she launches into her line of reasoning with this gem, “Every day, [homosexuals] are unfairly told they are not allowed the same rights as “normal” couples.”

“Rights,” she says.

Those that are trying to make homosexuality a normal and accepted lifestyle are succeeding. They have used every means possible to popularize their sentiments. We have reached the point where it is no longer surprising or shocking to see homosexuality depicted as normal on television or in movies.

Ms. Decker’s opinion is an example of the thinking that is becoming widely accepted as fact. It is thinking that is both reasonable and wrong. It’s reasonable because there is logic and reason that is used on a premise that leads to a conclusion. It’s wrong because the premise is wrong. The premise is that we are arguing about “rights.” In fact, those that are pushing for the normalization of homosexuality and any other aberrant behavior will always find it in their best interests to argue from this premise.

Quoting Ms. Decker again, “Every one, gay or straight, should have the same rights.” I agree. If we are talking about fundamental human rights, then the premise is correct. Are homosexuals human? Yes. Do homosexuals have the right to be treated as human? Yes.

However, the many other issues that come up regarding homosexuality are not “rights” issues, though popular opinion, as evidenced by Ms. Decker, would have you believe them to be so. Marriage? Adoption? Serving in the military? Those are not human rights. Those are societal privileges. Using the premise of rights to argue for the granting of privileges is nonsensical and misleading.

Should homosexuals have the privilege of serving in the military? That’s a different question than their “right” to serve. Should homosexuals have the privilege of adopting children? Should they have access to the privilege of marriage? Talk about these things from that vantage point and we can have a real discussion.

[For the record, I don’t think it is wise to allow homosexuals to have any of those privileges. It might surprise you to know that serving in the military might be the one privilege I could see homosexuals having. Giving homosexuals the privilege to marry just makes no sense.]

Every day, we are being told that we don’t have the “right” to treat a homosexual differently than a heterosexual, therefore it is wrong if we do. That’s astounding irony, isn’t it?

No one has the “right” to marry. No one has the “right” to be in the military. No one has the “right” to adopt children. No one has the “right” to be a school teacher. But when you equate the “rights” of being human with the “right” to do these other things, you have started with an incorrect premise, which leads to a false conclusion. The false conclusion we’ve been led to is that by taking away these “rights”, we are treating homosexuals poorly.

In the end, our privilege to disagree is being attacked. Once again, this is ironic. Those of us that disagree with the normalization of homosexuality are told that we can’t disagree, though even if we have the right to disagree, such disagreement is hateful and immoral and wrong, equal with being a Nazi or a anti-suffragist or slave-owner.

Thankfully, I still have the privilege of disagreeing. I still have the opportunity to say that homosexuality is wrong. Homosexuality is a lifestyle a person chooses, regardless of the inclinations of nature or nurture. A person is no more born to be a homosexual than they are born to be a carpenter or a thief. Just as no one has a right to be a carpenter, but only gains the privilege and opportunity, no one has the right to be a homosexual and to live as one. However, should they make that choice, they shouldn’t be surprised when their privileges and opportunities do not match those of people that have made the choice to live a heterosexual lifestyle.

Thank you for the privilege of sharing my thoughts.

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Did Santa visit you?

The conversation was via my cell phone to my parents’ home phone, Christmas Day:

Dad: Did Santa visit you?

Me: Yep. Did Santa visit you?

Dad: Yes.

Me: Did he leave a lot of coal?

Notice, I left off the crucial phrase “in your stockings.” I think if I had said “coal in your stockings”, everything might have been a little clearer. I’m not entirely sure that I didn’t say it, but we’ll assume I didn’t.

Dad: What?

Mom: No, we didn’t get much gold.

Me: What?

Mom: We didn’t get much gold.

Me: I guess I need to spell it. I said did you get much coal, you know, C – O -…

Mom: …L – D. No, it hasn’t gotten cold yet. It’s cool, though. It’s supposed to get cold tomorrow.

Me: No, COAL. Did you get much COAL?

Mom: Oh. Well, I got a few things from Kohl’s.

Me: No, no! COAL. C – O -A -L!

True story.

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Reason, Hell, and Ricky Gervais

I’ve seen a couple of Christian blogs that have linked to this post by Ricky Gervais, most recently by Carlos Whittaker on Ragamuffin Soul. Says Gervais…

Why don’t you believe in God? I get that question all the time. I always try to give a sensitive, reasoned answer. This is usually awkward, time consuming and pointless.

What seems to catch everyone’s attention is both Gervais’s popularity and his ingratiating approach to embracing atheism.

I used to believe in God. The Christian one that is.

I like the tone he uses. I like that there is an appeal to reason and – though there are a couple of things he says that might be considered mocking or condescending – Gervais stays away from the nastiness usually exhibited in this kind of atheism/Christian discussion. Like many atheists, Gervais is bright, articulate, and funny.

Like every atheist, he is also wrong in his conclusion.

None of that is what provokes me to this post. The real question is…what would I say to him? What could I say to others who read his post and agree? There’s this challenge from Gervais…

Why don’t I believe in God? No, no no, why do YOU believe in God?

What can I say to that?

My reply would be this:

Dear Ricky,

I don’t think you want my answer.

For one thing, you don’t know me. You know people like me, Christians who love God and try to love people and don’t do either one perfectly. You know me as part of the larger group of “People Who Say They Are Christians and Don’t Get Nasty With People Who Disagree.” On the other hand, if you knew me personally, you sound like someone who would be interested in why I believe in God. But you don’t know me, so it’s unreasonable to think you would care about what someone you don’t know or have never heard of thinks about such an important topic.

Okay, let’s suppose you know me, and you might really be interested in why I believe in God.

In that case, even if I told you, it wouldn’t change what you believe. That’s not meant to be condemning or condescending in any way. I’m not saying you’re closed-minded or stupid or egotistical or that you would object to reason.

But your stated reason for not believing in God – “I don’t believe in God because there is absolutely no scientific evidence for his existence and from what I’ve heard the very definition is a logical impossibility in this known universe” – tells me you never will.

Yes, there is evidence, evidence I’m sure you’ve examined and found circumstantial at best. Asking for scientific evidence is misleading. I think it would be more accurate to say that you don’t believe in God because you have no proof of his existence. Proof is the issue. Proof is what you won’t find. Proof…well, I’m no philosopher or high-intellectual, so I might have this wrong, but all we can do with anything is give evidence. Evidence is what witnesses produce. There’s plenty of that.

Proof can’t be produced by witnesses. In fact, the only place you will find proof is in the mind of the jury. If the evidence doesn’t convince me, it will never be proof. Evidence can always be explained away. It doesn’t matter whether it comes from science, religion or some other sphere of influence. There is no proof until I accept it as such.

Of course, as you so eloquently and accurately put it…

…believing in something doesn’t make it true. Hoping that something is true doesn’t make it true. The existence of God is not subjective. He either exists or he doesn’t. It’s not a matter of opinion. You can have your own opinions. But you can’t have your own facts.

That is correct. What is equally true is that evidence doesn’t establish the facts. Science doesn’t establish the facts. Both – like religion – can only point to or away from them.

Do I exist? There is much evidence that would point to my existence. Is there any proof? If you don’t accept the evidence, even if I were to show up on your doorstep with documentation, witnesses and a big plate of cookies, it wouldn’t be proof.

The bottom line is this. I believe in God for the same reason you don’t – I’ve examined the evidence and I believe it points in a certain direction.

Yes, that leads me to the conclusion that there is eternal separation and punishment for those that reject God. This is not a happy conclusion for me. I find no pleasure in this fact. I am not shouting for “death to the infidels.” On the contrary, as a reasonable person, I am concerned and distressed at this outcome for people like you. Yes, for you.

I feel sad that this type of concern could come across as mean-spirited or judgmental, but I know that others have used these same arguments in a mean-spirited and judgmental way, so I think I get it.

Sincerely,

Tim

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A new place for old stuff

Blogging is work. Not hard work like digging ditches or building a building. But it takes no small amount of effort. Mainly I’m thinking of the actual physical part of typing out words. There is also the mental part of determining what to write.

That’s my explanation for why I don’t post more often to this blog. I have found out – like many other people – how time-intensive regular blogging can be.

So, I started another branch of the blog.

Actually, I’ve taken some of the content from this blog and I’ve created a new place for it. You can now find the sermon series I have been posting in the “Learn” category of this blog at its brand new home – NUMB3RS.SarcasticMonkeys.com. It makes sense for the series to have its own place. Now it does.

In the meantime, I’m trying to determine what content I really want to blog about here on the S-M Home. Most of the content I produce is found elsewhere. SO…for both of you that check in on this blog…thank you and I haven’t forgot you.

As a side note, I’m considering changing the look of this blog again. If I can’t produce content, at least I can make the old stuff look different.

Now head on over to the NUMB3RS blog. I’ve just posted the next chapter.

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Dish, Fox prove their contempt for customers

Let’s get this out of the way at the top – I’m not mad at anyone.

This post is not a rant or flaming link-bait to get things off my chest. In fact, I will not link to any of the stories I mention in this post, though I will quote liberally from them. (If you really want to read what everyone else has to say about this, I would suggest the Google.) I think this is a somewhat-interesting story, about corporations that have no idea that I exist, yet they want to try to extract as much cash out of me as possible. It goes like this…

There is a disagreement between Dish Network and Fox Networks over fees. That much can be verified without dispute. Let me break that down. Only four things do we know for sure, because everyone agrees that these are true:

  1. There is a disagreement.
  2. This disagreement is between Dish Network and Fox Networks.
  3. This disagreement centers on the fees that Dish pays to Fox in order to carry the Fox programming. This includes FX, National Geographic channel, and 19 regional sports channels.
  4. Because of this disagreement, these Fox channels are no longer being carried by Dish.

Dish and Fox disagree about everything else related to this disagreement. Each says the other is to blame. They don’t even agree on who dropped whom. Dish says Fox pulled their channels. Fox says Dish dropped them. It amounts to the same thing – the end result being that Dish customers no longer have access to these channels.

Dish says Fox is being greedy and asking for a 50% increase in fees. Fox says that’s not true, that Dish is being the greedy one, trying to pad their billion-dollar profits.

Fox has a zippy little website – GetWhatIPaidFor.com – that gives their side of the fight.

Dish has countered with a host of web addresses, including WeOfferedFoxAFairDeal.com, FoxShakedownDISH.com, FoxRefused.com, HowMuchMoreCanWeTake.com, DISHWillContinueToFightForCustomers.com, ForceFedChannels.com, and JoinTheFightAgainstFox.com.

The spin from Dish is “Dish Network is Fighting for You!”, casting Fox as the Big, Bad, Evil Meanie, and themselves as the heroes that have come to save the day.

Fox has gone with a more subdued and defensive posture, choosing to use “Myth vs. Fact” articles to state their position.

I don’t know who is to blame. Both companies are doing okay financially, from what I can tell. There are thousands and thousands of companies that have to fight these corporate battles daily. Most of them I don’t care about. I wouldn’t care about this one, except for one thing – I’m a Dish subscriber. I have been for five years.

Until recently, I was receiving two of the nineteen sports channels that were just dropped from Dish, Fox Sports Florida and Sun Sports. I was grandfathered into the Top 200 package from Dish. (Fortunately, that’s the only thing I’ve been grandfathered into.) The Top 120 package does not have the two regional sports channels, and costs 39.99. The Top 120+ costs 44.99. The difference for those five dollars? The two regional sports channels. Then for another 10 dollars, you jump to the Top 200.

So, 120 channels costs $39.99 and 122 channels costs $44.99, what do those two channels cost each customer? In case you can’t follow the math, those two channels are costing the customer – me – $5.

As I said, I don’t care who is right and who is wrong in this fight. Probably both have valid concerns and probably both are being ridiculous about some things. The bottom line is – I’m paying $5 more than I should be, because that $5 is getting me nothing.

Dish is currently making other channels available in an attempt to appease their dissatisfied customers. “We know these channels are important to you which is why during the FOX Sports lock-out, we’re pleased to bring you 20 additional sports channels at no cost.” Here’s the thing – it’s not really 20 additional channels, because several of them, such as the NFL, NHL, and NBA channels, I already get. The rest of the 20 are regional sports channels, which are blacked-out in many instances for various reasons.

Part of the current corporate strategy is to use Facebook and Twitter to win friends and influence your customers. On all of the sites, including their social feeds, their strategy has included the push for customers to rain down buckets of hate on Fox. “Call, email!”

Simple question – Dish, Fox…why should I try to solve your problems? If you want me to negotiate on your behalf, I’ll be expecting a consultant’s fee. Otherwise, get to the table and work it out!

Here is the Twitter conversation I’ve been having with Dish:

ME: Dear @DishNetwork – no, I will not call/email anyone on your behalf. Please solve your own problems…and send my refund while you’re at it.

DISH: @TimMcDaniel If you would like us to look into the refund be submitted send us a tweet. *M

ME: @dishnetwork looks like I’m paying at least $5 too much for regional sports I’m not getting. (A 922 would ease the pain 🙂

DISH: @TimMcDaniel We are not offering credits or free equipment because we hope to have this resolved quickly. Do you get the free previews? *JH

ME: @dishnetwork I’m not paying for free previews. They wouldn’t be free, would they? I’m paying for channels I’m not getting.

ME: @dishnetwork When you resolve, then I’ll pay. For now, you’re taking money for services not delivered.

DISH: @TimMcDaniel Customers sign an agreement that states programming is subject to change. Working to reach a fair deal with FOX! *JH

ME: @dishnetwork nice. Difference between my package and one $5 less is those regional fox sports channels. My subscription is subject to change

DISH: @TimMcDaniel I can help you temporarily downgrade your programming if you’d like! *JH

ME: @dishnetwork Thanks. You’ve already done that.

While I don’t know the details of this fee disagreement between Dish and Fox, and I don’t know how unreasonable Fox is being in this matter, I do know that Dish is coming off as being as slimy and despicable as any politician. Blame and finger-pointing don’t build credibility.

A perfect example of this is this quote from Dish’s website – “While FOX is spending money on scare tactics, DISH Network is negotiating in good faith.” Um…yeah. Maybe. And employing many scare tactics of your own. And refusing to refund money you are taking under false pretenses.

I love this quote from TVPredictions.com – “At this point, there would appear to be no winners or losers in the battle over whether Dish should provide additional compensation to Fox to carry the channels. (Their old fee agreement expired on September 30.) The one exception, of course: the Dish viewers who can’t watch some of their favorite channels; they are clear losers.”

All in all, this is contempt for me. The customer. The Dish viewer. At least for now.

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Bible resources and shameless linking

I usually just use free stuff that is available on the web when I am doing Bible research. BibleGateway.com is my favorite place to go. And I’ve also found some really cool commentary stuff through Archive.org. They have old commentaries, like from the 1800’s. In a lot of ways, the older the commentaries are, the more I like them.

I have tried different Bible software. Quickverse used to be really good, and I tried them, but on the Mac…it just wasn’t a good experience.

Recently I used Logos Bible Software on Pastor Steve’s PC. It was rather good. The only problem with Logos is the price. It’s really expensive. I like free better.

However, the Logos software is really good. But until now, their newest product, Logos 4 hasn’t been available for the Mac. They will soon be releasing Logos 4 for the Mac, and they are trying to do a lot of promotion for it.

They are running a contest, getting people to tweet and blog and link to their site, doing promotion for them. I’m in. They have good prizes, so if this helps me win something, great. If not, well, you should still check them out. Like I said, it looks like really good software. (But did I mention that it’s pricey?)

Here’s the sample post they give to put in your blog post, to be entered for a prize…

Logos Bible Software is giving away thousands of dollars of prizes to celebrate the launch of Logos Bible Software 4 Mac on October 1. Prizes include an iMac, a MacBook Pro, an iPad, an iPod Touch, and more than 100 other prizes!

They’re also having a special limited-time sale on their Mac and PC base packages and upgrades. Check it out!

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Big Trip 2

Nine years ago we embarked on what is known as “The Big Trip”, a 30-day, cross-country odyssey that took us to Seattle and back. The Big Trip was built around two events that I was attending – National Bible Quiz Finals, which was being held in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that year, and the National Church Business Administrator’s Convention, which convened in Seattle.

I had the brilliant idea that it would be great fun to take the whole family along for a once-in-a-lifetime road trip. In the end, it actually was a brilliant idea. We began the journey on July 3, 2001 and returned to North Fort Myers on August 1. In between, we got caught in a monsoon at Turner Field, saw friends in Michigan, did our week in Iowa, traveled through the Badlands, froze at Old Faithful, experienced Montana, Wyoming, and eastern Washington, the rest of the gang saw the Seattle zoo and we all saw the Space Needle, celebrated Summer’s 5th birthday in Wyoming, endured Nebraska, and visited family in Missouri.

It was epic.

Tomorrow we begin The Big Trip 2, though this one will be less big and carry less passengers. Only Summer and Sawyer will accompany Trudi and I on this one. Once again, it is a journey based on the fact that I am attending National Bible Quiz Finals. This year it’s in Troy, Michigan.

When I can, I’ll be posting bits from our travels on my Tumblr account. That’s why the look of this page has changed – to include the Tumblrstream on the right side of the page. (See it?)

Time to load the van…

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WordPress vs. WordPress

A little technogeekery for the non-technogeeks.

SarcasticMonkeys.com is a WordPress blog. That means that I use the WordPress software to create, post, and manage this website. The WordPress software is open-source and can be downloaded for free from WordPress.org.

DreamHost is my hosting provider. Not only do they host the domain – SarcasticMonkeys.com – they host all the sub-domains that I have created, including Shae.SarcasticMonkeys.com, TBQ.SarcasticMonkeys.com, and SarcasticMonkeys.com/Sammy.

As you can see, having a hosting provider provides me with more flexibility and control. There are also some sub-directories you can’t see in my account that I use to store different things. I have a couple of websites that I play with – but I’m the only one who knows they are there. (If you’ve found them, let me know!)

The disadvantage of this strategy is that I have to keep the software up-to-date. While DreamHost makes this very easy (the video at the top shows how it’s done), it is still another step I have to take.

The easier path is to use WordPress.com. One of the reasons I went to my own hosting provider was because I wanted my own domain name. This wasn’t possible through WordPress.com.

Now it is. And this makes WordPress.com much more attractive. It is also – in most cases – much less expensive. If I’m only using my hosting provider for one domain, it only costs $15/year through WordPress.com. That’s less than two months hosting with most hosting providers.

WordPress.com also has a lot of built-in features, including stats, that can only be done through plug-ins with WordPress.org software. Working with plug-ins can be very time consuming.

I have also used Blogger.com and all the Googleness that it has.

But if you are considering beginning your own website, I would recommend looking at WordPress.com.

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The “Is that contestant on American Idol a Christian? Scorecard”

Hey and howdy and thanks for stopping by. Most of you are probably here specifically to see today’s guest post from the fabulously funny Jon Acuff, author of Stuff Christians Like. So, without any further razzle dazzle, here’s my part of the 130-blog group effort…

The “Is that contestant on American Idol a Christian? Scorecard”

46. Each time after the judge says something negative, they immediately say, “I’ll pray for you” = + 2 points

To add up your score with over a 130 other ideas on this scorecard, visit stuffchristianslike.net.

(#47 is here.)

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Company’s coming

A few folks might be dropping by the blog in the next few days. Jon Acuff, creator of the Stuff Christians Like blog, and author of the book by the same name (get it on Amazon), is promoting his stuff and including regular and irregular bloggers like me while doing it.

His post tomorrow will link to a number of blogs, including this one. Each blog will have a piece of the whole.

It won’t be as confusing as I’m making it.

But that means there could be some new people here, poking around, looking for treats.

It will be like having Halloween in April.

I’m not doing too much to get ready, though I feel I should straighten the living room or something. Most will probably only come to the front door, read Jon’s contribution and move to the next blog.

But if you’ve made it down the page this far, welcome. Thanks for stopping by.

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Just checking in

For anyone who happens through this part of the blogosphere, I want to assure you that I’m still here and I plan to continue the Numbers series and do other things with the blog.

As many bloggers who are not “writers” discover, committing to writing regularly is a sometimes difficult thing. It’s not easy.

I started to create a post last night. It was going to be a one paragraph thought-dump at 11pm. It turned into a multi-page story at 1:30am. So I’ve taken it off-blog and I’m working on it to make it something else.

Anyway, thanks for stopping by. Maybe next time there will be punch and cookies.