Life Lessons from Google Reader

I had a folder titled "Fun" to include light-hearted blogs. I opened
it today and found this judgmental message.

Have any good suggestions for fun blogs?

Rollin' in McMinneville

Last weekend, we went to Hotel Oregon in McMinneville, Oregon, for a weekend with Eric and Maria. Kristie and I went there years ago for our anniversary, and have wanted to return. We made reservations in March, and we were excited to spend the time with our friends.

We did a bit of wine tasting, including this place in Carlton, Oregon. Cana's Feast had a view that reminded us of Tuscany. We played a couple of games of bocce ball. I think I won all of them. It must be the Italian in me.

At night, we watched Julie & Julia, a movie that I'm a bit embarrassed that I enjoyed. I never thought that my interest in Julia Child would be piqued by a movie.

Sotomayor!

Sotomayor: Biased, partisian, and probably a little race-elitist. Is
this the best choice for a Supreme Court Justice? Bad pick, Obama.

A Philly Macchiato

Walking around the Italian area of Philly, I found this cool coffee
shop where I ordered a macchiato. It reminded me of my many trips to
Italy. Not the taste or the atmosphere, just the ordering of many
macchiato.

From Okinawa to Denny's

I'm in Denny's waiting for Joe to come eat breakfast. My trip to
Seattle was unexpectedly extended when my car broke down on the
highway. It's been a fun trip with Kristie's folks, and they haven't
kicked me out yet!

I'm pleasantly surprised with how good Denny's coffee is. Have I been
away from the U.S. too long?

At Wilco

I'm currently waiting for Wilco to start their set. Who cares about
opening acts?

My Coffee with Steve Wozniak

On my way back to Portland from Salt Lake City, I ran into Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Computer. For those hardcore Apple fans out there, this is a big deal.

We chatted for awhile because I invited him to coffee. We went to Starbucks, and talked technology for about an hour. It was the geekiest time I had, and I mean that in the best possible way. I had a bit of a hard time following him, partly because he was talking over my head, and partly because I kept chanting in my head, "I'm talking to Steve Wozniak! I'm talking to Steve Wozniak!"

Steve (can I refer to him by his first name now?) was a friendly, animated guy with lots to say about what he has done and what he is doing. He works with a company called Fusion IO, as well as participating in a Segway Polo Team, and he prints his own money (!). He took out a pad of two-dollar bills, uncut, and told me he sells them for $5. I wanted to ask further, but I was afraid that I'd get involved in a counterfeiting sting operation. He talked briefly of Steve Jobs and his pot-smoking days at Reed College. I thought about asking about how Jobs screwed him out of the Atari Breakout money that could have cost Apple an early partnership with Intel, but I decided against it. Steve Jobs is quietly recovering with a new liver, and I'd hate to jinx the man.

We had a nice, uninterrupted conversation until some little kid asked, "Were you on Dancing with the Stars?" Steve said that he was, and the mom took a picture. After that, many others came up to have their picture taken with the guy from Dancing with the Stars. This barrage of fans stopped the nice flow of our conversation. Stupid fans... At least I knew that he was the Apple cofounder. (All fans think that they, and they alone, are the special fans unlike the others!)

This was one of the best experiences I've had in some time. It sure beat my playing around on my iPhone. Rather, I went right to the source!


Steve had on this strange watch with tiny hourglasses. I should have asked him about it.

A View from My Hotel

Here's a shot from the lobby of our hotel in Utah. It's a great place.

My Hell

5 children sitting within 2 rows equals many frustrating moments ahead
on this flight from Tokyo to San Franscisco.

I wish they had kid-free flights. I'd give up my bag of peanuts if
that was possible.

Getting Abe's Mail

I am often confused with Abraham Lincoln. It must be the height. Or
the hat.

Another Reminder to Avoid Twitter

Jared from Subway in Okinawa

He spoke today in our school. All this talk about junk food made me want a Little Debbie oatmeal pie.

I wanted to shake his hand, but I was afraid that it would smell like baked bread.

Sushi Time

Dinner with Kristie and Steven at a sushi place. We walked here on
this beautiful evening with a great sunset.

Noodles

On the way to the north part of the island, Stephen and I stop at one
of our favorite noodle shops. It's the vegetable noodles, but for some
reason it has chunks of mystery meat.

Wavy

This ferry rode home is far more motion-filled than the one there. The
annoying crying baby doesn't help.

Ferry Undressing

Kristie and I are on a ferry to Zumami Island for a weekend of camping
with friends from church. We are trying our best to obey the rules
outlined in this sign.

Looking for Sushi

Kristie and I are trying to find a place to eat. Beautiful evening in
Okinawa.

A Day at the Beach

78 degrees in Okinawa today.

More Cowbell

Meaning of the Cross

From The Valley of Vision (pp. 76-77),

Christ was all anguish
that I might be all joy,

cast off
that I might be brought in,

trodden down as an enemy
that I might be welcomed as a friend,

surrendered to hell's worst
that I might attain heaven's best,

stripped
that I might be clothed,

wounded
that I might be healed,

athirst
that I might drink,

tormented
that I might be comforted,

made a shame
that I might inherit glory,

entered darkness
that I might have eternal light.

My Saviour wept
that all tears might be wiped from my eyes,

groaned
that I might have endless song,

endured all pain
that I might have unfading health,

bore a thorny crown
that I might have a glory-diadem,

bowed his head
that I might uplift mine,

experienced reproach
that I might receive welcome,

closed his eyes in death
that I might gaze on unclouded brightness,

expired
that I might for ever live.

O Father, who spared not thine only Son that thou mightest spare
me,
All this transfer thy love designed and accomplished;
Help me to adore thee by lips and life.
O that my every breath might be ecstatic praise, my every step
buoyant with delight. . .

Jesus Wants the Rose

Here's an excerpt from Matt Chandler's excellent sermon in the last Desiring God conference. The full sermon of "A Shepherd and His Unregenerate Sheep" can be downloaded here.

Comparing Tunes with DownloadShopper.com

Downloadshopper.com allows you to compare the prices of song and albums between iTunes, Amazon.com, and Walmart.com.

If I found this earlier, I would have seen that U2's new album was $9.99 on iTunes but only $3.99 on Amazon. That's six buck I could have spend to feed my old 80's Christian metal nostalgia.

It's worth looking around to save a few bucks.

Teleprompter Blues

Hey, Dum-Dum, Austrian is not, nor has it ever been, a language. Austrians speak German. You speak only teleprompter.

My Rejection Letter

From: Steinbeck Institute <steinbeckinstitute@gmail.com>

Date: April 2, 2009 10:10:26 AM JST

To: ron.coia@mac.com

Subject: Steinbeck Decision

Dear Ron,

The review of applications to our summer institute, John Steinbeck: Voice of a Region, Voice for America, has been completed, and we regret to inform you that we will be unable to offer you a place in the institute.

We received 157 applications for only 25 positions. The decision-making process was challenging, as there were many more excellent applications than we could accept. Consequently, a considerable number of deserving applicants had to be passed over. We can assure you, though, that the selection committee reviewed each application with great care, and that the criteria for evaluation were fairly applied.

As you know, the National Endowment for the Humanities plans to continue to offer seminars and institutes in subsequent summers. We urge you, therefore, to apply again next summer.

My co-director, Mary Adler, and I are honored by your interest in our institute and commend you for your remarkable service to the intellectual development and growth of your students.

Sincerely,

Dr. Susan Shillinglaw

Professor of English

San Jose State University

New iPod Shuffle

Sounds a bit ahead of its time, but not in a good way.

http://www.apple.com/ipodshuffle/guidedtour/tour/medium.html