Taking Credit

This will be an amazing week!

Ever since November or so my credit card bill has been way high thanks to fall tuition. But this is the week things change! I'll have it down to 3 digits by week's end, and that's all the more motivation to knock it out. Then I hope to save money for next year so that I don't get myself in a similar situation.

Credit is useful, but it feels so good not to have debt. Not that I know what that's like. (All student-loan holders, "Amen!") But the less people I owe, the better. I don't have to worry that MasterCard is going to break my thumbs between work and the apartment.

Twitter Tracker

In case you want to see what kind of ridiculous things are on twitter, without actually subscribing, check out Conan's twitter tracker.

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Twitterpated

Tuesday night I saw something that made me laugh out loud.

I laughed a lot.

There's this Twitter craze going on out there that really makes me wonder, "Does everyone have so many interesting things going on that they need to update the world about? Am I just a loser?"

Conan O'Brien, new host of The Tonight Show, is apparently wondering the same thing. And he doesn't seem too keen on the Tweeting celebrity culture. Or maybe he's just doing what comics do best by taking a partial stance on an impartial subject.

Whatever the case may be, this was pretty hilarious.



And in case you feel like reading what one author has to say on the subject, check this out. Oh, and this is for the nerds.

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Poiema

I'm not sure I ever thought it would happen, but Ian and I finally have a name for our band: Poiema.

It's Greek. You'll find it in two different places in the Christian Scriptures (aka the Bible).

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Eph 2:10

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. - Rom 1:20

There's the creative aspect there. Something was made, for a purpose. It communicates something. And hopefully that something is enjoyable.

We'll be playing our first show this Friday. Crazy, eh?

Poiema, Eric Landshaft
Jenny Lane Coffeehouse
180 N Webber Rd
Bolingbrook, IL

Digital Clutter

I always feel overwhelmed by clutter.

Clutter in the bedroom, on my desk, in the kitchen, bathroom, floor, closets... all over. There's clutter everywhere.

Today I took a step at de-cluttering my internet.

I erased 130 emails from my gmail account. Why do I have that many?? And I'm a compulsive deleter. Really I just hate having things I don't need. I once tried to throw away my baby pictures. (I was 8.)

If you're as cluttered as I am, become uncluttered. It's a good thing.

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What would you do for a Klondike Bar?

It's wasn't exactly a Klondike, but going to J. P. Licks, a fave Massachusetts ice cream joint, was worth a 4.2 mile walk around the city. And here it is:

 

I'm actually super bummed that June's flavors of the month include Fresh Banana Oreo and Peanut Butter Cookie Dough! Man... I'm jealous of you Bostonians.

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Isn't life grad?

Turns out I've said nothing of my change in grad school plans.

I'm joining the circus!

Not really.*

I changed degree programs. This shouldn't be a shock to anyone who has ever met me. I change my mind more frequently than I change my socks, and I change my socks once every few days, at least.

Over the past month or so I decided to switch from an MA in general theological studies to an M.Div or Masters of Divinity degree. First, the difference between the two: the MA is more academically oriented, the M.Div more practical/ministerial.

Why the switch? Well, I'll tell you.

The MA is for a person who wants more education and wants to do thesis work. This path is most often trod by those who wish to pursue Ph.D work. I thought I wanted to do that, but being the extrovert that I am, I fear I will find that pursuit incredibly disengaging.

The M.Div is the degree path chosen by those who typically wish to be pastors. "So, do you want to be a pastor?" My instinctual answer is, "Not really." But that's because, as Krista brought to my attention, I have in mind the traditional preacher/head pastor figure-head, and that's not what I want. I enjoy playing a supporting role, especially with music and community building. So, I want to be pastoral, but I don't plan on being a Hybels or MacDonald or Osteen. (Though I wish I had that great smile!)

Why the switch? Part of it is a sense of calling. I believe the Lord led me to Judson, and to Northern, and now to this new program. I have this sense of peace about it, and also excitement. Those are both good things. Second, it's practical. It really opens up more doors to do an M.Div as far as potential career choices. I plan on being bi-vocational (work in a church and have a "normal" job), but if for whatever reason I did want to be a pastor in a church, the M.Div is the highest masters in that field, so it would give me many opportunities to serve. And many schools still use it as a pre-req for doctoral work, so I could still do that.

Practically speaking, what does all this mean?

1) I won't graduate til at least Dec. '10.
2) I'll have a lot more full-time classes to attend.
3) I'm looking at becoming a resident of Illinois.
4) I'm taking hand-outs if anyone wants to contribute cash, food or guitars.

I've still got decisions to make regarding classes, papers and more, but that's the background info for any later rants on the subject.



*Actually, some people actually did join the circus, so I guess maybe it's not a joking matter.

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Guest Fail #2: Worst. DTR.* Ever.

Today we have a story from guest blogger Anders. The only successful part of this story was that she successfully boarded the fail train.

I had been e-mailing back and forth with this guy almost daily for… well… way too long. And I felt like we weren’t on the same page. (Note: sending mixed CDs sends a mixed signal.) I didn’t want to lead him on since I just wanted to be friends, so I tried to clarify our quasi-relationship.

I was de-friended.

Fail.

Once I fully analyzed everywhere I went wrong, I was given two great pieces of advice. One was quite lovely and very Shakespearean: “Get thee to a nunnery.” Being that I was raised Lutheran, that’s a little tricky. But I do like the idea of a Lutheran convent, so I haven’t given up on that idea.

The other comment was that I needed a tone editor. I wanted to be defensive and claim that HE was the one that needed a tone editor. But then I thought, “Well, don’t we all kind of need one?” Not only in how we speak to people but also in how we interpret them. How many times do we ascribe motives to people that aren’t there? Or read into things that weren’t meant to be there? I think about how people love to read between the lines when there’s truly nothing written.

So just in case I have to DTR again, I think I’ll keep a tone editor handy.

And in case that doesn’t work out, I’m working on that Lutheran convent.

* Define the Relationship

Outre Paraphernalia

I'm a big fan of dictionary.com.

It's true. I look up words often, usually when I realize I have never seen them in print before.

Today's search: Paraphernalia.

I would give you a definition of it, but something strange happened. I looked it up (for spelling purposes), and it gave me four definitions, for a different word: outre. The primary definition is as follows.

–adjective: passing the bounds of what is usual or considered proper; unconventional; bizarre.
(i.e. "Looking up paraphernalia and finding outre is outre.")

I used to be a big fan of dictionary.com*.



*This link has nothing to do with anything posted, except that it is more accurate than dictionary.com.

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Fail #3: Max Hold

Is there any more than "max"?



I went to Target hoping to get some inexpensive hair gel that would work decently well so that I could continue putting up my increasingly lengthy mop of a do that I am currently refusing to pay $15 to have trimmed. (I re-read it. It's a real sentence.) What did I end up with? I figured since I had Suave shampoo and conditioner that work well, I'd get the gel. And not just any gel...

MAX HOLD!

I was like, "Dang. There isn't anything past max." So I picked it up and put some in before work. Well, I sure hope there's something past max, because this gel really doesn't work well. Seriously. It just makes my hair kind of wet, but not stylish at all.

So today, I looked at the bottle, and noticed something strange. On a scale of 6-10, "max" is an 8.

I guess the other two are the equivalent of turning up your amp to 11. But even if that's true, judging by what 8 is, I don't think 11 would be near enough. I'm a bit disappointed and saddened by my gel purchase.

I guess that's what I deserve for paying two bucks for something that should make me look awesome.