tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-118676182009-07-12T11:12:02.314-07:00"We do not quite say that the new is more valuable because it fits in; but its fitting in is a test of its value—a test, it is true, which can only be slowly and cautiously applied, for we are none of us infallible judges of conformity." - T. S. EliotAnnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.comBlogger136125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-3710786999543322762008-06-03T12:14:00.000-07:002008-06-03T12:39:23.166-07:00

It's almost a year now since I last posted. Too much water under the bridge to recount it all here and now, so I won't even begin. Sometimes I wonder if posting really matters. Other times I know it doesn't. Still, selfishly, I enjoy writing my mind and sending my thoughts out to Never-Never Land. I don't suppose I would ever see them again if it wasn't possible to save them all.Now, of what

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-27946005702102759582007-08-21T00:47:00.000-07:002007-08-21T00:49:52.897-07:00

I'm heading back to school shortly and blogging will be sporadic at best until I return in December. Instead of me up and running off without warning, I figured you deserved a heads up. Take care until then.

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-322934317196900612007-08-20T14:20:00.000-07:002007-08-20T15:03:35.989-07:00

Easing campus insecurity is a Good Thing To Do according to the Washington Post:New safety precautions will greet college students returning to some campuses this fall — part of the legacy of the Virginia Tech massacre in April.Sirens to warn of emergencies, text-message alert systems, committees to monitor questionable student behavior and anonymous-tip lines are all tools some schools are

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-28208877941462847442007-08-18T13:30:00.000-07:002007-08-18T13:30:47.144-07:00

Buttercup: You mock my pain.Westley: Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.I've always liked that exchange from The Princess Bride. (Come to think of it, I can't think of a line from that film that I don't like; it's pretty much one great quote after another.) Life isn't a walk in the park and it's a mistake to think it possible to have utopia-like

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-42845641540476932572007-08-16T22:35:00.000-07:002007-08-16T22:35:58.747-07:00

January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977Photo Credit: The Association of 3d Armored Division Veterans

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-46744572960189408052007-08-15T11:02:00.000-07:002007-08-15T11:35:35.953-07:00

Don't you just hate it?I do. After over a week and a half of not sleeping well, my sentiments have moved from hate to loathing, actually. Insomnia makes me into a silly little zombie. Poof! There go my higher brain functions! They were nice while they lasted.My calculus final is today, and I leave for college in less than a week. Did I mention that I rocked my last test? I did. Hoped for

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-28255294002962665272007-08-07T10:47:00.000-07:002007-08-07T10:51:16.316-07:00

What are the odds that so soon after I quoted Sarah Orne Jewett on a common past that this article by Michael Jonas of the Boston Globe should catch my eye: The Downside of Diversity.IT HAS BECOME increasingly popular to speak of racial and ethnic diversity as a civic strength. From multicultural festivals to pronouncements from political leaders, the message is the same: our differences make us

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-27646511802670146222007-08-06T18:40:00.000-07:002007-08-06T18:41:23.548-07:00

In The Country of the Pointed Firs, Sarah Orne Jewett wrote that "(conversation's) got to have some root in the past, or else you've got to explain every remark you make, an' it wears a person out."That shrewd comment made me think about life here in California. We tend to move about so much that it's considered an odd thing to stay put. You get to know your neighbors but most will move on

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-60025675473827135522007-08-04T21:01:00.000-07:002007-08-04T21:01:39.846-07:00

Hit the range today with my brothers and some friends. Oh, the joy and satisfaction in putting a fairly tight cluster right where you want it. ::grin::Driving over there, I couldn't help but notice the contrast (clash?) between the old country life and the new city. On one side of the road lay the occasional farm house, skirted more often than not by open pasture and shaded by towering old

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-32195189997579884972007-08-01T12:19:00.000-07:002007-08-01T12:19:14.331-07:00

As Christians, I believe we are called to be stewards of the possessions with which God has gifted us. Too often, though, we seem to forget that a steward's care is motivated as much by love as it is by duty. Love keeps us faithful in our duty. Love motivates sacrifice when there is no other reward. Love protects duty from ever becoming drudgery.Speaking of drudgery, how often do we develop

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-51339257248534896032007-07-31T10:31:00.000-07:002007-07-31T10:32:07.259-07:00

I have questions for you and perhaps you will think them strange.What makes a good story? Why do some stay with us, years after we first heard them, while others are redundant and trite? Why do some stories rise above the conventions of the genre in which they are presented, while others remain predictably enmeshed in those conventions?In other words, when is a story more than just a story? (

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-21106353209915009742007-07-28T19:47:00.000-07:002007-07-28T19:47:47.141-07:00

You may recall my promise over a week ago to write a post describing my activities last weekend. Contrary to all appearances, I did not forget that promise. The truth is that the time I hoped to devote to finishing the post evaporated faster than water on a hot day.Last Saturday (the twenty-first of July), yours truly and over one hundred others from churches across California converged on the

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-6393161275717542562007-07-24T00:23:00.000-07:002007-07-24T00:38:21.691-07:00

Rule No. 17 of Successful Blogging: Never post when you're tired, punchy, or when your judgment is otherwise impaired. It's a bad idea all around and usually gets to be a worse idea the longer you write.Since this post is definitely breaking that rule, I'm going to stop. In a little bit, that is. The truth is, I might actually have a decent bit ready tomorrow, er, today. The weekend was busy

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-32629832617882744952007-07-18T12:00:00.000-07:002007-07-19T19:52:55.180-07:00

Some days are enough to make me want to kick up my heels and run for the hills. In my experience, they can't be predicted or planned; they just happen. Of course, when they do, I'm always faced with a choice: to give in or not.Today the choice was "not."So I studied calculus with my coffee this morning, went to class and came back home. You know what the highlight was, the best part of it all?

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-64596631174358593722007-07-17T09:16:00.000-07:002007-07-18T11:12:29.667-07:00

Whether you appreciate soccer or not, the arrival of David Beckham and family could hardly escape your notice. Even before their touchdown in Los Angeles, this glamorous and shamelessly vulgar couple been showering us with proof upon proof that nothing is too low for them. Why we should embrace them with open arms when they have all too clearly misjudged their market is quite beyond me. And I

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-89503078034687033222007-07-16T22:00:00.000-07:002007-07-16T22:00:16.378-07:00

When I posted Part One, I knew that a "part two" was needed. Issue blogging is easy. Careful, considered blogging takes more effort.I already criticized a woman for flying our flag upside-down in "protest." Let me further clarify by saying that I do not believe all protest is ignoble or false, let alone out of place. Fellow citizens, following the dictates of their conscious, should be allowed

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-34056386302177122252007-07-14T15:40:00.002-07:002007-07-14T23:28:07.452-07:00

Over at Blackfive, the Wolf (Mr. Wolf, I believe) posted about a woman in Colorado who decided to fly her American flag upside down. Every time I read of displays of this sort, my immediate reaction is one of outrage and disgust. My blood boils and I see red. Today, after my b.p. returned to normal, I started to wonder why I had that reaction, why I always have that reaction to displays of

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-21312110109882301062007-07-13T13:45:00.000-07:002007-07-14T14:17:31.094-07:00

Enough of politics for a while.Our valley saw some rain earlier this week. It wasn't much, but it was enough to cool off the ground. I like it when it's so hot that my skin prickles when I step outside, but it's draining in the long run. When you stop to think about it, isn't it amazing how much heat builds up from day to day? Even a cooling breeze at night, while it takes the heat out of the

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-11400023265352345442007-07-11T11:20:00.000-07:002007-07-14T23:18:11.899-07:00

Breitbart just posted an article that caught my eye, Sheehan Launches Pelosi Challenge.CRAWFORD, Texas (AP) - Cindy Sheehan bid farewell to her former "peace camp" near President Bush's ranch and began a nearly two-week trek Tuesday toward Washington, D.C., with her sights set on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Sheehan, a Californian, officially announced that she intends to run as an independent

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-26120117728937215322007-07-09T21:06:00.000-07:002007-07-18T11:13:15.996-07:00

Thanks to Noel O'Blog's link to the appropriate Haloscan forum, the much-coveted and highly-anticipated Trackback function from Haloscan appears to be up and running. I wish I could say that I read science/chemistry/technical blogs for fun, but I must confess that I found the site through a Google search. All the same, I found the particular post to be quite helpful for my little project--

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-41372552515758917012007-07-09T18:36:00.001-07:002007-07-09T20:09:55.964-07:00

The template bug has struck yet again.This time around, I'd like to add HaloScan's trackback feature without also changing my comments section. ("Hah!" you say, smirking, "What comments?" Good point. Lucky for you, I'm going to ignore it.) The truth is, I just don't like their comments feature's appearance. And aesthetics are very important here in the Hollow Valley.I have seen a few how-to's

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-75215008505068832872007-07-07T22:24:00.000-07:002007-07-09T20:21:04.552-07:00

So the weather reporters are telling me it's getting warm here in California. Really? Is that what we call it? I was confused, you know.I don't mind the heat that much, really. Unlike the in the East or South, our heat here on the West Coast is fairly dry. Inland a bit, heading into the Southwest, "dry" takes on new meaning, but it's a nice middle ground where I live. Once the mercury rises

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-29446960095735462622007-06-29T13:04:00.001-07:002007-06-29T13:14:03.501-07:00

This just in from Drudge: not one, but two car bombs were set to detonate in London today. According to Sky News:...sources say one of the first police officers on the scene of the Haymarket car bomb may have saved dozens of lives by defusing the explosives before the bomb squad arrived.It is believed the quick-thinking cop recognised that the car was wired to blow up, jumped in and

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-1613908914876123842007-06-28T12:32:00.000-07:002007-07-14T23:15:15.613-07:00

A number of my friends have recommended The Guardian (Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher) to me over the last few months. Knowing my interest in education, their recommendation originally stemmed from one of the training scenes that contrasted educational philosophies (book-learning vs. experiential). Or that's how they sold it to me. Since I had the time, I finally broke down and watched it

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11867618.post-10488733549328266502007-06-26T22:03:00.000-07:002007-06-28T12:33:16.463-07:00

Finding a job is hard work these days. With unemployment so low, prospective employers are few and far between. Yes, I'm a-hunting for employment this summer and it's slim pickings. The real trouble is that I just want summer work; by the end of August, I'll be flying back to school. Most of the jobs I've looked at are more permanent (temp-to-hire) or require prior experience. I'm not giving up--

Annhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00907133211705619957noreply@blogger.com0