Do you like quotations? I’ve always enjoyed them, though i’m very particular. It doesn’t matter to me how famous or well-known the author is, nor how well the quote is known. I look for quotes that impact me somehow. It may be a quote that impresses me with its wisdom, or one that is profound in its application to life. Or it could just be a quote that makes me smile. Sometimes it’s a quote that dings me; you know, it hits home and hurts a bit (or a lot). I have been collecting quotations for about the last 30 […]
Why John Loves History
Let’s start out with the elephant in the room. The way history is usually taught in school is responsible for most of us hating history. We were forced to memorize dates, names, places and events. What we should have been taught is history as stories involving people. When you learn about people, when they lived, what incredible events they participated in, that sticks with you. In fact, it becomes both fun and interesting. I was lucky. My senior year in high school, i took an elective course called Russian History. It was taught by Mr. Perretta, and we learned about the […]
Book Review: What If?
The full title is “What If: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions” and it is the most fun and most enjoyable non-fiction book i’ve ever read. The author (Randall Munroe) is the creator and writer of the comic XKCD which is extremely geeky. The title is a very good description of what the book is about and the word ‘absurd’ is used with good reason. Here are just a few of the questions which are answered in a very scientific and fun way in this book: What would happen if everyone on earth stood as close to each other as they […]
Ask Me Anything
If you are a user of Reddit then you are familiar with the Ask Me Anything event. I have plenty of ideas floating around in my head waiting to escape and scream into the light, but it occurs to me that not all my crazy eclectic ideas may be interesting to you. In an effort to address that unlikely possibility, i’m asking each of you to give me one or two (or three) things you’d like me to post about in coming weeks/months. Just write a comment to this post so everyone else can see your ideas. Ask Me Anything! […]
What Does “Christian” Mean in Our Society
The post below is from May of 2014 by Ed Stetzer at edstetzer.com i am copying it in its entirety because it ties in directly with the post i made last week Can Music, Art or Books be “Christian” This post reinforces the idea that the adjective “Christian”, because of its cultural and nominal use has lost much of its meaning. It then goes on to draw inferences about what this means for the future. Ed Stetzer’s blog begins below. What trends must we consider when it comes to the state of the church in America? Despite what many think, the […]