Tuesday, October 28, 2008
quick work observation
Monday, October 20, 2008
We're number 1! We're number 1!
NEWPORT BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY RATED #1 (in Cali)
The Newport Beach Public Library received the highest ranking of California public libraries in its population category according to the recently released Hennen’s American Public Library Rankings (HAPLR). Newport Beach is rated number one out of forty-four public libraries in communities with populations from 50,000 to 100,000.The HAPLR Index attempts to identify the public libraries in America with the highest input and output measures. The study focuses on 15 key factors, including funding levels, collections, staffing, hours open, number of visitors and reference services. Rankings are based on nationwide public library statistics collected from over 9,000 public libraries.
The HAPLR Index for 2008 was announced in the October issue of American Libraries, the magazine of the American Library Association.
http://www.haplr-index.com/States%202008/ca.html
Thursday, October 2, 2008
There is none righteous, no, not one (political parties included)
"For people who feel lost and lonely, what's the best way to work your way back to home and wholeness? Does it make more sense to rely on faith or politics?
In this autumnal season of electoral fever - and of the Jewish high holy days - the choice between God and government significantly divides right and left, Republicans and Democrats.
At their Denver convention, the Democrats adopted the most unabashedly liberal platform in the party's history, including the following remarkable promise: "We will provide immediate relief to working people who have lost their jobs, families who have lost their homes and people who have lost their way."
While one can imagine frenzied Democratic efforts to muster "immediate relief" for lost jobs and lost homes, how, exactly, do they propose to assist those who have "lost their way"? For all the messianic pretensions of the Obama campaign, the junior senator from Illinois has not yet, to my knowledge, proclaimed himself "the way, the truth, and the life."
Nevertheless, the candidate's most devoted acolyte, Michelle Obama, has repeatedly suggested that the purpose of the campaign isn't just to transform our politics and to heal our earth, but to rescue shattered and stricken souls. On February 3, 2008, she told a rapturous crowd at UCLA: "We have to fix our souls. Our souls are broken in this nation." The next week she expressed similar sentiments to an audience in Green Bay, Wisconsin, declaring: "We are dealing with a basic hole in our soul of the nation- we are lost."
In other words, the wife of the presidential candidate echoes the Democratic Party platform in openly defining the campaign's goals in spiritual and not just political terms. Is it any wonder that the movement behind Barack Obama has taken on some of the weird, zombie-like trappings of a trendy religious cult? In promising the repair of broken souls and showing the way to those who are lost, this campaign has undertaken tasks usually reserved for religious institutions.
In the Jewish tradition, the fall season is devoted to repentance, prayer and restoration of the soul, even more than campaigning for your favorite candidate. Rosh HaShannah - the Jewish New Year which began on Monday night - introduces the "ten days of repentance" culminating with the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), which falls this year on October 9th. The Hebrew word for repentance - "t'shuvah" - literally means "return" and the whole purpose of the sacred season is to bring back lost souls (all of us, in actuality) to the Godly and honorable path we are meant to walk. Despite the sad fact that most American Jews feel passionately committed to liberal causes, our liturgy and tradition never suggest that we rescue the lost and repair our souls through supporting specific candidates or government policies, no matter how worthy. The process of slate-cleaning and fresh starts that we undertake every year at this time requires an intensive effort of self-examination and personal change, not the easier (and shallower) immersion in sweeping social movements.
For religious Jews and committed Christians, real change demands a commitment to God and His law, not just volunteer efforts for an inspiring politican. The very idea that government and politics can accomplish the work of spiritual renewal counts as a ludicrous insult, an obamanation. When it comes to the job of "fixing souls" or showing the way to lost sheep, the right response for any presidential candidate would be: "That's beyond my pay grade."
The leftwing tendency to view politics as a substitute for religion will properly worry more Americans than the right's habit of allowing faith commitments to impact political positions. It's true that social conservatives sometimes feel such fervent religious enthusiasm that we allow our faith to spill over into the political realm. On the other hand, liberals nurture the sort of political intensity and fervor that not only invades the religious domain but often takes the place of organized faith. Liberal denominations regularly describe their chief mission as "social justice" - meaning the agitation for redistributionist and activist government policies long advocated by the left. My friend, columnist Mona Charen, memorably described Reform Judaism (the most "progressive" branch of our ancient faith) as "nothing more than the Democratic Party with holidays."
If there's one message of this season's real holidays, it's that no movement, no political campaign, no public initiative can fill "holes in the soul" as effectively as nurturing a private relationship with the Creator. As Rabbi Daniel Lapin trenchantly observes, people will either worship "the big G" - God, or else they will worship "the little g"-government.
The adulation and embrace of government will undermine devotion to God, just as subservience and love for God will dilute the authority of government. That's why totalitarian systems of every sort distrust and suppress authentic religious faith.
This year, the month of October brings both political frenzy and religious reflection. In the dual spirit of this season, may we help to return the lost from their wandering and restore all broken souls, finding the strength and the insight to uphold the right "G." "
Friday, September 26, 2008
For those wondering where all the good library stories are...
Ex-library employee awaits appeals decision
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Sometimes a pen name isn’t cover enough, Sally Stern-Hamilton has learned.The publication of her controversial book, “The Library Diaries,” written under the pen name Ann Miketa, resulted in her termination as a Mason County District Library employee after 15 years on the job. She is appealing that firing.
Written in the first person and set in what she calls a fictitious Lake Michigan town of Denialville, “The Libraries Dairies” is a series of vignettes about mostly unsavory characters encountered daily at the library.
The Ludington Library is not the purported setting, however a small picture of the Ludington Library is on the cover. “After working at a public library in a small, rural Midwestern town (which I will refer to as Denialville, Michigan, throughout this book) for fifteen years, I have encountered strains and variations of crazy I didn’t know existed in such significant portions of our population,” “Ann Miketa” wrote in the book’s introduction.
Stern-Hamilton was notified of her termination in a formal letter from District Library Director Robert Dickson July 25. In that letter Dickson refers to a prior letter of “Suspension Pending Investigation” that he wrote to Stern-Hamilton July 15 in which he stated:
“The cover of your book includes a picture of the Ludington Library. Each chapter is devoted to a specific library patron or patrons. Your book portrays these people in a very unflattering manner. You describe individual patrons as mentally ill, mentally incompetent, unintelligent, and unattractive. You label several as ‘perverts.’ While you stop short of naming the individuals you targeted in your book, your detailed descriptions of their unique characteristics and mannerisms make them easily identifiable in our small community.”
Despite the picture in the cover collage, Stern-Hamilton is adamant that “The Library Diaries” — though it draws on her personal experiences as a library employee — is fiction.
“Most writers, anyone who writes something, some of it’s going to come from, be rooted in, your personal experience. I don’t think I could have come up with (the characters) on my own. They’re bizarre, idiosyncratic, so they are based on some real experiences, but of course there are embellishments,” said Stern-Hamilton.
She said she chose to use a picture of the Ludington Library because, “It’s a great picture. It looks just like a library. It epitomizes the American idea of a library. It’s a Carnegie library,” said Stern-Hamilton referring to more than 2,500 libraries built worldwide with money donated by businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie between 1883 and 1929.
Stern-Hamilton said she is unaware how Dickson came to learn about the 150-page book, which took three years to write. She said she decided to write “The Library Diaries” because, “I’m concerned about what goes on in public libraries everywhere.” She said she is particularly concerned that known sex offenders are given library privileges which allow them access to computers where they routinely view pornography— sometimes in close proximity to children.
“I don’t think they should be allowed in (the library) — these sexual predators,” said Stern-Hamilton, who claims that she had no intention of “pursue this as a commercial endeavor in Ludington.”
“Out of a town of 8,000, not many people were meant to know about the book. Publish America, my publisher, asked for addresses of people, and sent out announcements to people giving them a chance to purchase it. Publish America is a grassroots organization, and willing to publish people who are unknown, without charging the person thousands of dollars some self publishers charge.”
Publish America uses a business model known as publishing on demand which keeps costs to a minimum since books are only printed when ordered.
However, people in Ludington did learn of the book.
“I went for a hearing where I was able to respond to the letter of suspension that Bob sent me. I went to that meeting and spoke my piece and got a termination letter two days letter. I haven’t heard from any of my co-workers since.”
“The absolute irony is that the public library is a pillar of free speech, and leads me to wonder why the administration is so upset. It’s fiction,” she said. “If It hadn’t gone in the paper only a handful of people announcements were sent to in this area would have known about the book.”
Stern-Hamilton had contacted the Daily News asking for a review of the book, but before that happened, Dickson contacted the paper to report she had been suspended.
n his July 15 e-mail to Managing Editor Steve Begnoche, Dickson wrote, “As she is actively promoting the book I’m assuming that she has or will be contacting the Daily News to request help in promoting this book. The book is now in the hands of our attorney and we have undertaken steps to see what action we might take, including suspension and/or termination of her employment. While we recognize the difficulty for a library to undertake these actions against an employee who writes a book — the content of the book is such that we feel we have no option.”
The purpose of the e-mail, he said, was to request the library “be given an opportunity to provide a different picture, a more balanced view of ‘life in the library,’ than is offered in this book.”
That story ran July 18.
In the past week Dickson twice said he did not wish to comment at this time.
A call to the library board’s president went unreturned.
“In some ways I feel like my privacy was invaded since, after all, I did use a pen name,” Stern-Hamilton said of the brouhaha. “This is not Russia, this is not China. Apparently we’re not as protected as I thought.”
The surname Miketa is Stern-Hamilton’s maiden name, which may sound familiar to some because her father, Andrew Miketa, according to Stern-Hamilton, was a first string center with the Detroit Lions circa 1952. But Stern-Hamilton does not consider herself a Michigan native, as she spent most of her formative years in Chapel Hill, N.C., where she grew up and subsequently went on to study art history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She met her husband, Keith Hamilton — a Ludington area native— in North Carolina and moved to Ludington with him.
“My pen name, Ann Miketa, was chosen because my acquaintances on the East and West coasts would recognize the name Miketa,” she said. “Now that the cat’s out of the bag, the book’s available at Book Mark, Blu Moon and Maude’s Gallery.”
Stern-Hamilton has submitted a letter of appeal. According to grievance provisions contained within the Personnel Policies of the District Library, the library director and board have 10 days to review that letter.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Come on Down!!!
It then hit me that was the exact same thing I did as a kid watching TPiR at my grandma and grandma's house with my little sister. We would root for that wheel to hit 1.00, and then perhaps 1.00 in the bonus spin for an extra 10 grand. We would celebrate as if we were on the show, jumping, hugging, high fives. The family always wanted to go on that or the Family Feud, although now they are trying to convince me to go on Jeopardy. Great times, great summers.
It also brought to a moment of reflection when my grandparents lived with us in their twilight years. My grandma had dementia, Alzheimers, diabetes, and was unable to really talk, but on the days I didn't have college, I sat with her and watched Bob Barker and Rod Roddy work their magic. That was one of the few times my grandma would show any emotion. We would jump up and dance when a contestant would win, or both say ayyyye and have a mean expression when they blew it. It's funny how things can trigger certain memories!
I miss her.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
I'm going to walk/run in a half marathon!
Can you please help me in my cause to find a cure for Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis?
There is more information on my homepage.
Thanks,
Jeremy
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Obituary
I was somewhat shocked to read this on my lunch break. This guy was a legend in Lakewood.
John Sanford Todd, 89; his vision for Lakewood created the 'contract city' City of Lakewood
Then along came John Sanford Todd, a struggling attorney and proud Lakewood resident, who dreamed up a way to preserve his community's independence without it going broke: It would become a new kind of city, one that contracted out for police protection, trash collection, firefighting -- just about every service a city provides.
Todd's vision, dubbed the Lakewood Plan, became a model of local government that lighted incorporation drives throughout Southern California and beyond. Suburbia took shape in a rash of "contract cities," including Dairy Valley (now Cerritos), La Puente, Bellflower, Duarte, Irwindale, Norwalk and Santa Fe Springs, which sprang up in such rapid succession that some observers began proclaiming the end of big cities.
Todd was the architect of this transformation, "the first to say, 'Let's form a new city, but let's not do it the old way,' " said Charlie Martin, the longtime city attorney of Temple City, which became a contract city in 1960. "A lot of people thought it wouldn't succeed, but it did. He started a whole new trend."
His unusual legacy forms an important chapter in the history of the region, as creator of a form of city government that also was, perhaps unintentionally, a social experiment, a mechanism for reinforcing the social and cultural values that shaped community identity.
Lakewood in the late 1940s was largely a collection of bean fields and hog farms. But as servicemen returned home after World War II, it became a magnet for young families. In less than three years, Lakewood's developers -- Mark Taper, Louis Boyer and Ben Weingart -- built 17,500 nearly identical houses, laid out in a uniform grid, with all streets meeting at right angles, each block containing exactly 46 houses, and each house planted on a 50-by-100-foot lot. It was the largest subdivision in the world, offering what cultural analyst and Lakewood historian D.J. Waldie called "a compass of possibilities."
Within that grid was a community that was 95% white. Later generations of historians would take note of this homogeneity and read an exclusionary motive into the incorporation effort. "It was part and parcel of a larger rejection of big cities and urban life" and contributed to inner-city unrest in the 1960s, said UCLA professor Eric Avila, an expert on white flight who teaches urban planning, history and Chicano studies.
But Waldie, an assistant to the Lakewood city manager, says otherwise. Lakewood today is racially and ethnically diverse, with whites making up only about half of its 83,000 residents. Fifty years ago, the identity that the city's fathers wanted to preserve was related more to age and class than racial identity, he said. Most of Lakewood's residents were just starting out. When they looked at their big neighbor to the south they "saw an older city. . . . They didn't see the mirror of themselves," said Waldie, whose memoir of growing up in Lakewood, "Holy Land," was published in 1996.
Of course, when they looked at Long Beach, they also saw a big-city bureaucracy that might regard Lakewood as "a sort of hinterland" and disregard the special needs of young families like Todd's.
Born in Grand Forks, N.D., on July 27, 1919, Todd moved to Los Angeles as an infant when his father joined the psychology faculty at USC. He earned a bachelor's degree in political science at USC, then served in World War II as an Army Air Forces munitions specialist in Alaska and Guam. He married in 1943, finished law school at USC and moved to Lakewood in 1949, and by 1955 had two sons with his wife, Frances.
There was one other lawyer in town but, as Todd once noted, "the legal business wasn't exactly booming," so he and Frances began to get involved in civic affairs.
Soon Todd found himself arguing to close down Lakewood's hog farms on behalf of fellow residents, who regarded the farms as a smelly nuisance. In 1950 he was elected managing director of the Lakewood Taxpayers' Assn., the main civic organization.
In mid-1951, the city of Long Beach released a detailed report on the feasibility of annexing all or part of Lakewood. Of particular interest were Lakewood's country club and golf course. Todd became the legal advisor to a group of businessmen who wanted to devise a strategy to defeat Long Beach's plan. Petitions were circulated, and irate Lakewood residents showed up en masse at annexation hearings, but it was a long, expensive, wearying process and annexation appeared inevitable.
When Long Beach dangled a carrot -- a $10-million proposal to develop parks that would enhance Lakewood -- a county official told Todd, "You can't remain unincorporated, and Lakewood can't afford to incorporate."
That's when Todd saw a way to avoid a new city's costly capital outlays for municipal buildings and services.
Arguing for contracting with the county for essential services, he led a grass-roots incorporation drive that featured as its motto "Lakewood, Tomorrow's City Today."
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved the proposed incorporation Jan. 10, 1954, with one member declaring that one day Lakewood would be "showing us a thing or two about government." On March 9, the people of Lakewood voted in favor of cityhood by a ratio of 3 to 2.
Lakewood became the first city in the county to incorporate since 1939.
It received national attention in the New York Times, Time, Newsweek, even the Harvard Law Review. The incorporation movement Lakewood spawned was further bolstered by a legislative change in California that allowed cities to partake of sales taxes generated in their jurisdiction, which provided a revenue source.
Today more than a fourth of California cities -- about 130 -- are contract cities, including Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, San Clemente and Laguna Niguel in Orange County, as well as Elk Grove in Sacramento County, Camarillo in Ventura County and Solana Beach in San Diego County.
But "all cities now are contracting for something," said Sam Olivito, executive director of the California Contract Cities Assn. "John Todd was a tireless individual who believed in what he was doing for the community. As a result, other cities have taken up that mantle" and are saving money by contracting out all kinds of services, including tree trimming, street light maintenance and road repairs, Olivito said. "He deserves a tremendous amount of gratitude."
Described by colleagues as unassuming but intense when challenged, Todd survived a number of political storms, including a rocky period in the 1970s when some residents, including members of the City Council, perceived him as too powerful and tried to oust him.
"He demonstrated he was one of the smartest people in the room," Waldie said. "He outlasted them all."
Todd is survived by his sons John of Lafayette, Calif. and Mike of Eugene, Ore., and five grandchildren. His wife, Frances, died in 1988 and his second wife, Millie, died in 1997.
Services will be held at 11 a.m. Monday at the Centre at Sycamore Plaza, 5000 Clark Ave., Lakewood.
Donations in lieu of flowers may be sent to the American Diabetes Foundation.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
just when you thought you had seen it all
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Sunday, August 31, 2008
This is why I sometimes don't like change
Saturday, August 30, 2008
RFKC - year 13
The week started out with nervousness after being sick for the entire week before camp, then moved to excitement once we started the drive up. However, on Monday, I found out that not one, but both of my campers weren't coming to camp. For the first time in my 13 years, I wasn't going to be a direct counselor. I was bummed-obviously.
It was wonderful to see the returning campers and the new ones!
I was able to buddy up with 3 other counselors and be on a team with 2 campers. They were great kids. On Wednesday I was asked to buddy up with 2 other counselors and 2 campers because one of the campers had such unique needs. Looking back I feel very fortunate that I was able to bond with 4 campers and 5 counselors!
We had a ton of fun, from swimming, to slip and slide,to carpetball, to water balloons, to arts and crafts, to a talent show, to a carnival and birthday party, to a ton of sports-mostly whiffle ball and slab hockey! Our campers were very athletic, and we were on the field for a good length of time.
My second half of the week campers loved their birthday gifts, especially the bug collection exploration kits they received. We spent almost all day Thursday looking for lizards and bugs. Our campers caught a couple of lizards, a BEAUTIFUL butterfly, a moth, three grasshoppers, a ladybug, a fly, a beetle, ants, and I think a couple of other items! Our portion of the talent show consisted of our two campers showing off their prized collection.
I love breathing in the mountain, pine tree laced air!
I can't wait until next year!
There is really so much more to process, but it is hard to communicate it all. I just really love those kids and enjoy sharing a week with them.
Friday, August 15, 2008
It's still a small world after all!
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Red Eye Flights across the country are not fun.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
It's a small world after all! - Well Hello Molly
So I am chilling with my parents at Mesa Verde Restaurant in the Denver Airport waiting for the flight to SNA, when I see a couple of familiar faces from the SGV walk by. I quietly asked "Molly?", and then when I noticed it was she and Lauren, I walked up to the entrance of the restaurant and yelled "MOLLY!" I think we were both in a little bit of shock.
She told me to update my blog.
Is this good enough for now?
More library stories to come as they are experienced. I have been off for 4 days!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
A Fellow Mayfair High Monsoon Alum...
ATHENS, Greece (AP)—Atlanta Hawks guard Josh Childress signed a three-year contract with the Greek club Olympiakos on Wednesday.
Childress was a restricted free agent, which meant the Hawks had the right to match offers from other NBA teams, but not from international clubs. Agent Lon Babby said the deal was worth about $20 million after taxes and was far more lucrative than what Childress could have received in the United States.
The money is guaranteed, and Childress can opt out of the contract after each year.
“It’s obviously a bit different, being the first player to do something like this,” Childress said on a conference call. “But I think it’s a great opportunity, and it’s going to be a great experience for me.”
Childress averaged 11.8 points and 4.9 rebounds as the Hawks’ top reserve last season.
Olympiakos finished runner-up in the Greek basketball league last year, behind rival Panathinaikos. It has boosted its roster with summer transfers— including Greece star Theodoros Papaloukas, who was signed from CSKA Moscow.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Library story of the day so far...
Most folk think the library is some outdoor promenade or at least a coffee house. We had a lady last year who turned our Local History room into her office, and when I told her we were CLOSED, she told me that she was on the phone with a client. We have people who are here all day- every day using our computers. I am no socialite, but for once even I would like to say "GET A LIFE!"
http://video.aol.com/video-detail/william-shatner-snl-get-a-life/53506221
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Geeking it
I guess that is why I continue to do Royal Family Kids Camp. This August will be year 13 for me. Last year was very tough as I was at a new camp, with new staff, and a pretty tough boy who only showed emotion at our very final goodbye. Look up the starfish story sometime. Making a difference, planting a seed, giving back, is the way to go!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Consolidation
It has been pretty busy at work with the implementation of our new integrated library system. We changed services and are now running the millennium software from Innovative. I used the system in my previous job, but not in a public library environment. Re-familiarizing myself with the software has been fun, but a ton of work, and I'm not even on the implementation team. Those guys have been going nonstop for well, 2008.
Because the Old Rivers blog is viewed by friends, family, and coworkers, I have kept things to a minimum; mostly pics or library stories, of which the latter can become so repetitive, that the stories lose their hilarity.
I would so like to go off on the media hype of Obama, a relative nobody politically who could be Prez, or McCain, who changes his mind more than I change lanes in my commute, or the Dodgers, or the dangers of liberal postmodern theology, or the apostasy laced churches in America, or relationship issues, but dont know if I should be that opinionated. Maybe I can improve in my self-examination?
Any suggestions ? :) Should I just be myself?
By the way, I haven't been posting pics here too much because I upload them to picasa and link them to my facebook. Here is the link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jrichrod
For now I will keep the family and library pics and stories coming!
I just got my tickets today to head back to Montana for my baby, little, and only sister's 30th birthday!
A boy named sue?
My ego has just been shot down!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Hello, he's Johnny Cash
I finally found the video of my dad singing at their church's Friday night get togethers!
Thanks Don!
Monday, June 2, 2008
Your library story of the day - it's magically delicious!
I'm looking for that book Molokai, which deals with the leprechauns.
I know I havent been back to Hawaii for over 25 years, but is this what is really going on out there?
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Friday, May 23, 2008
I feel safe in New York City. I feel safe in New York City.
JR
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
another PSA
| |||||||||
| |||||||||
If you would like more information on being trained as a speaker for Stop the Traffik please contact info@oasisusa.orgTuesday, May 13, 2008
These people live among you
A customer actually brought this into the library today. Yes it is a desktop computer and monitor and keyboard. We do check out laptops you know!
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Peaceful, like heaven on a Sunday
When we see this person approach the desk, we wonder what he will say next, and here it is:
"how is my favorite young drug pusher doing, can I get a fix?" He wanted 30 more minutes on the internet. Ten minutes later he asks my coworker the same thing. I wanted to say "I thought I was your favorite", but thought better of it.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Unbelievable
As if the person who hit two hole in ones on the same round wasn't enough (ironically in Iowa as well)...
Legally blind man, 78, bowls perfect game
By The Associated Press May 9, 4:27 pm EDT
ALTA, Iowa - A 78-year-old legally blind man nicknamed “The Hammer” has bowled a perfect game. Dale Davis of Alta, Iowa, nailed 12 consecutive strikes and reached 300 on Saturday night during league play.
“It’s a great sport. It’s something the young, the old and the handicapped can do,” Davis said Thursday. “I guess I count as the old and handicapped.”
Davis has suffered from macular degeneration, a chronic eye disease, for the past decade. He can’t see out of his left eye and has limited peripheral vision in his right eye.
Davis’ perfect game came at a roll-off to conclude the league season at a four-lane alley in the small northwest Iowa community of about 1,800 people.
Century Lanes owner Clem Ledoux said Davis’ game didn’t draw much attention until he reached 10 strikes. That’s when folks poured out of the bar to watch his final two shots.
Davis, who stands 5-foot-8 and just 115 pounds, threw a “Brooklyn,” where a right-hander strikes the left side of the head pin, for his final strike. The feat brought wild cheers from Davis’ fellow bowlers and onlookers.
“It went down there and somebody hollered ‘Brooklyn!’ It was just a solid sound in the pocket,” said Davis, whose average score is 180. “It was quite a thrill. For just a few minutes there I felt like a pro.”
Davis, who earned his unique moniker as a child from his blacksmith father, moved from California to live with his sister in Iowa shortly after losing sight in his left eye in 1997.
She encouraged him to start bowling again. Davis now bowls twice a week, and his fellow bowlers help him with pin placement and in making sure he picks up the right ball.
Davis said the only time he sees the ball is when he picks it up, but he can usually tell how his throw went by sound. All 12 tosses sounded great to Davis, who bowled the first 300 that Ledoux could recall at the alley since he took over in 1984.
“He’s got good coordination. He’s got good timing,” Ledoux said. “We’ve always kidded him that we think his bowling ball has eyes.”
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Not much going on
At the end of this month I will be in New York for the first time ever visiting a friend and former co-worker from back in the old library days. I will also be going to a Yankees game, since this is the final season in the house that Ruth built (and Steinbrenner upgraded), and will be going to the baseball hall of fame. Hopefully by then I will have some fun pics and stories.
I did have an elderly woman call today, who was extremely fun to listen to. I cracked up on the phone after she said "...I have AT&T and they SUCK!"
Sunday, April 27, 2008
In the first 15 minutes at work on Sunday
"we got into the study room first but then some intimidating women told us they were there first; they had been waiting OUTSIDE longer..."
"the alarm for the computer room is going off..."-all staff
"could you please keep it down (us to a tutor who was almost shouting to (not at) her student"
"why is a woman like you working in a place like this?" -to a coworker of mine from an elderly customer
"could i get another laptop, because this one isn't doing what I want it to do with security issues."
It's time (again) for Dodger Baseball
The joy wore off a bit (I linked to it in the title),when the home plate umpire was hit right in the face with a Brad Penny fastball, and was knocked out. The ambulance had to come directly to home plate. It was pretty scary. Memo to all you who had your cameras flashing and cell phones recording, SHOW SOME CLASS.
I think that was the first time I had gone to back to back Dodger games ever, and to games in general since we had Long Beach Riptide season seats back when I was in college.
GO BLUE!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
A long, sentimental, nostalgic day
So I drove out to my alma mater, CSUF, to request a transcript to see just how many community college classes I would have to take to raise it to San Jose's standards.
*On a side note, if you see the picture of me in the hospital, that is close to what I looked like the last year of my college days. It was truly a miracle that I even finished! Anyway, I dont think SJSU would take that into consideration.
I still find it hard to swallow that over a decade of experience amounts to nothing if the GPA doesnt fit. I'm not an imbecile am I? I haven't been fired from a single job, let alone for incompetence.
All that being said, it was nice to be on campus again. It is the 10 year anniversary of my graduation, and I felt quite nostalgic. So for the first time in 10 years, I went to my favorite place on campus. I hit up the Carl's Jr right next to Langsdorf and University Halls! I recognized an employee from my school days.
I got home, and relaxed for a while, until it was time to go to my first Dodger game of the season (thanks Jack). The game went 13 innings, with a Dodger victory, and I got home after 1am, only to get up at 7 for work today.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Not my typical library story
A customer called, and what I first thought was a voice with a cold, was actually a deeply saddened person asking for a book (with a sad title) regarding coping with the "D" word as a parent. It nearly brought me to tears to hear the pain and anguish in the voice as their tears were trying to be fought off. Unfortunately we didn't have the title she was looking for.
There is a ton of pain and hurt out there.
Oh, I did help bun lady three times too!
Monday, April 14, 2008
Happy Anniversary to Me
I cannot believe I forgot to commemorate the anniversary (4/12) of my hospital exit after 9 days post successful right hemicolectomy surgery, April 12th. I am at year number 6 now, and have only had a few minor flare ups in those 6 years. I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease almost 10 years ago (that's not an anniversary I care to celebrate) after having symptoms for 7-8 years.I was almost all bones here. (6 feet tall, 129 pounds) I am doing a lame impression of the girl in "Airplane" where the nun knocks out her i.v while singing "there is only one river". I am thankful every day for my continued good health.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
National Child Abuse Prevention Month
http://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to raise awareness about child abuse and neglect and encourage individuals and communities to support children and families. Learn more about the history of the month, see examples of Presidential and State proclamations, and find strategies for engaging communities and supporting families.
The ayatollah of rock and rolla lives on!
It has been a while! Several friends have been planning a quick cruise down to Ensenada for the past couple of months. We just got back on Monday. I still have a rolling sensation! I don't have all the photos uploaded. It was a very relaxing weekend. However, there was one event I was looking forward to once I found out it wasn't as stressful (I was sick for a couple of hours) as the cruise I took on Carnival a few years back: THE CLASSIC ROCK NAME THAT TUNE trivia contest! My new friend Sarah (at left) challenged me, was talking a little smack, and giving me a hard time. Lucky for her, we had to be on a team of 2 or more, so she made the right decision and joined the ayatollah :) . We had to name the song and the artist based on a 5 second clip or so. We were a perfect 17 for 17! Unlike on Carnival, where I received a small trophy and champagne for winning (Royal Caribbean does give medals out for the non-trivia events), we got some Royal Caribbean schwag=a shoulder pack, and a nice ovation.Wednesday, March 26, 2008
You've heard that you can tell a lot about people by their friends? We believe it, and so we asked your friend to introduce us.
If you like live entertainment but settle for a movie or DVD more often than you'd like, you might be interested in joining Goldstar.
Tell us what kinds of live entertainment you like and the areas where you live, work and play, and we'll deliver dozens (or even hundreds) of half-price offers to comedy, music, theatre, sports, spas and more.
It doesn't cost anything to sign up, and you can do it in just a few seconds. You'll be getting out to great live entertainment and having a good time with friends and family right away.
Join Goldstar
click on the link and give me credit :)
Sunday, March 16, 2008
For the first time since 1978!!!
Titans earn spot in NCAA Tournament
CSF wins Big West title over UCI, 81-66, and automatic berth in the field.
ANAHEIM- Cal State Fullerton's past finally caught up with its present Saturday.
Thirty years after the Titans' lone NCAA Tournament appearance, they are headed to this year's tournament after beating UC Irvine, 81-66, in the Big West Tournament championship game to earn the automatic bid.
The Titans (24-8) will find out today who and where they will play their first game when the NCAA Selection Committee announces the 64-team field.
Moments after the final buzzer, Fullerton fans, many who were not born when the Titans reached the Elite Eight in 1978, rushed the court to celebrate.
“It is so exciting for the players and the program and everybody involved,” Titans coach Bob Burton said. “It's been a long time coming. Now I hope we don't go out and embarrass ourselves.”
With former players sitting among the 4,234 at Anaheim Convention Center, the Titans revived the memories of when they won the old PCAA tournament and then defeated New Mexico and San Francisco before losing to Arkansas by three points.
“After 30 years, you start to wonder if it's ever going to happen,” said Steve Shaw, the center on the 1978 team. “It's so exciting for the players. These are memories you have for the rest of your life. To be here, watching certainly brings back memories.”
Forward Greg Bunch said the way Fullerton beat Irvine was reminiscent of the 1978 team's championship victory.
“As soon as the clock started ticking down, I absolutely got goose bumps,” Bunch said. “I'm excited for the players because these are memories you probably will never experience again.”
Frank Robinson called the Titans run through the tournament “incredible.”
“It's one thing to talk about winning the championship and another to go out and do it,” said Robinson, who scored 12 points.
Whether the Titans can win even just one tournament game is a debate for another day. This year's team was happy just to get past Irvine, which had won nine of its past 11 games.
But like their previous two meetings, the Titans used a combination of their outside shooting and Scott Cutley's defense to deflate the Anteaters. The 6-foot-5 senior forward scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds and made life miserable in general for the Anteaters inside.
Center Darren Fells was the lone Anteater to score in double figures with 21 points. Patrick Sanders finished with 11 and Kevin Bland had two and Irvine shot just 37.3 percent overall from the floor.
“The key to beating them most definitely is to contain Fells and Sanders,” Burton said. “They are the best 1-2 punch in the league and you have to stop at least one.”
Burton was equally pleased with his team's offensive output. The Titans shot 52.7 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from outside. Josh Akognon led the Titans with 23 points.
Fullerton stretched a 10-point halftime lead to 17 points, 55-38, on a 3-pointer by Marcus Crenshaw.
The Anteaters made a brief run, scoring eight consecutive points to trim Fullerton's lead to 55-46 with 8:32 remaining.
Akognon then buried his third 3-pointer to quiet the Anteaters and the sea of yellow shirts in the stands. Fullerton then went on to score 11 of the next 12 points for a 69-51 lead with less than three minutes to play.
The Anteaters didn't allow Fullerton to reach their normal speed limits, slowing their transition and making them work for their baskets. The Titans, who came into the game averaging 83.7 points.
-----------------
Titans Are Going Dancin' Again!
March 15, 2008
Anaheim, Calif. - For the first time in 30 years, the Cal State Fullerton men's basketball team is "dancing".
Tournament Most Valuable Player Josh Akognon scored a game-high 23 points while seniors Scott Cutley and Marcus Morgan each tallied double-doubles on the night as the third-seeded Titans defeated fifth-seeded UC Irvine, 81-66, to clinch the 2008 Big West Conference Tournament title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament in front of 4,234 fans on Saturday night at the Anaheim Convention Center.
Fullerton (24-8 overall) won only its second-ever Big West Tournament title - the last coming in 1978 when the Titans made their first and only NCAA Tournament appearance. The 24 victories are an NCAA school record and the win total ties the school's all-time record set by the 1961-62 squad that finished 24-7 overall, including the NAIA playoffs.
UC Irvine, which had won three games in three days, finished its season with an 18-16 overall record, becoming the lowest seed to reach the championship game since No. 6-seeded Cal State Northridge accomplished the feat in 2004.
Akognon hit 7-of-16 from the field and added five rebounds. Cutley finished with his ninth double-double of the year, scoring 22 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, while Morgan netted his first double-double of the season with 10 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds. Senior Frank Robinson also finished in double figures with 12 points.
Darren Fells scored 21 points and had 10 rebounds to lead the Anteaters, who were looking to make their first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Michael Hunter and Patrick Sanders also finished in double figures with 14 and 11 points, respectively.
The Titans trailed for the first time in their last four games when UCI's Patrick Rembert scored the first basket of the game. Fullerton trailed by a single point at 6-5 before exploding for nine straight points to take a 14-6 lead six minutes in. The Titans led by as many as 13 points in the first half as Akognon hit three free throws with :04 remaining, but Hunter banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer to bring the deficit back to 10 points at 37-27 at halftime.
Cal State Fullerton, which lost only twice when trailing at halftime this season, wasn't about to make it three as the Titans went on a 12-3 run after the Anteaters had closed the gap to single digits to build an 18-point advantage and they never looked back.
A 12-4 run by UC Irvine late in the half brought the Anteaters back to within 10 points, scoring on seven of nine trips down the court, but a dunk by Morgan sparked a 5-0 run to close out the game as the Titans became the first No. 3 seed to win the tournament since Utah State did it in 2003.
Fullerton shot 53 percent from the field for the game to UCI's 37 percent and the Titans held a 36-31 advantage on the boards.
2008 BIG WEST ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM Josh Akognon, Cal State Fullerton (Most Valuable Player) Scott Cutley, Cal State Fullerton Frank Robinson, Cal State Fullerton Darren Fells, UC Irvine Tremaine Townsend, Cal State Northridge Larry Cunningham, UC Riverside
----------------------
Cal State Fullerton advances to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1978
Josh Akognon had 23 points to lead the Titans to an 81-66 victory over UC Irvine to win the Big West Conference championship on Saturday night.
Bunch, a member of the 1978 team that lost in the Elite Eight in Fullerton’s only previous NCAA appearance, spoke to the Titans earlier in the season
For Akognon, it was his omission from the all-conference first team that spurred his breakthrough performance during the league tournament. Akognon, a transfer from Washington State, was selected the tournament MVP after leading Fullerton in scoring for the third consecutive game.
“It feels absolutely great,” Akognon said. “Being named second team all-league was motivation.”
Scott Cutley, the co-Big West player of the year, had 22 points and 12 rebounds for the Titans (24-8). He was one of several players that went bodysurfing among a sea of jubilant orange and blue fans that stormed the court to celebrate.
During Cutley’s two seasons at Kent State, the Golden Flashes reached the NIT, but not the NCAA tournament.
“This is unbelievable,” said Cutley, who transferred to Fullerton after his sophomore season. “I’ve been waiting for this since my freshman year in college.
“I’m just thrilled I got to do it my senior year and hopefully we can keep things going.”
The Titans shot 52.7 percent while making their fourth appearance in the conference title game and first since 1985.
Darren Fells had 21 points and 10 rebounds for Irvine (18-16). The Anteaters, seeking their first NCAA berth, were making their third appearance in the conference championship game and first since 1994.
Fells had four points during Irvine’s 8-0 run that pulled them as close as 55-46 but Akognon responded with a 3-pointer that halted the Anteaters’ momentum.
Irvine led twice in the opening 4 minutes before the Titans pulled away by using an aggressive defense that forced the Anteaters to take rushed and contested shots. Irvine made just 34.6 percent of its field goals in the first half and shot 37.3 percent for the game.
“The defensive effort was really good throughout the whole game,” Fullerton coach Bob Burton said.
--------------------
Cal State Fullerton scratches a 30-year itch
It has been three decades since Cal State Fullerton took a glass-slipper stroll through the NCAA basketball tournament, reaching the Elite Eight and enduring "Cal State Who" comments while beating two ranked teams.
The Titans' small fan base, those who were working on B.A. degrees at the time, can now show their AARP cards at the door for Fullerton's follow-up visit to the tournament next week.
The Titans took their fans down memory Saturday night with an 81-66 victory over UC Irvine at the Anaheim Convention Center in the Big West Conference tournament final, sending them to the NCAA tournament for the first time since they took Arkansas to limit in a 1978 regional final.
"They called it the 30-year curse," Fullerton guard Frank Robinson said. "We ended it at 30 years. Thirty years ago those guys made a name for themselves. They got there. We got it back."
Fullerton players were able to savor the moment after getting the Anteaters down and keeping them there. Scott Cutley, who had 22 points and 12 rebounds, stood near midcourt extending his index finger while dribbling the ball as the clock ran down. When time expired, a mass of Fullerton fans swept over the Titans players, some looking old enough to have done the same in 1978.
"It's a lot to absorb right now," Fullerton Coach Bob Burton said while being jostled and congratulated by fans. "There is so much to take in and I'm still in game mode. I'm still thinking we could lose this game."
The Titans (24-8) could have played all night and still come out on top. A 7-0 burst gave them a 14-6 lead six minutes into the game and they stayed ahead for the rest of the half. They led by as many as 13 points and by 37-27 at halftime.
Josh Akognon, named the tournament's most valuable player, had 23 points, 15 in the first half. The Titans shot 52.7% from the field for the game.
The Anteaters had to play one more tournament game than Fullerton, which tied for the regular-season title. They appeared to wear down by the end of Saturday's game.
"Our guys gutted it out for four days," Irvine Coach Pat Douglass said. "They gave everything they could."
The Anteaters (18-16) shot 37%, though the Titans had as much to do with that as fatigue.
"Last year, we lost [in the tournament] because of our defense," Cutley said. "It feels good to win because of our defense."
Irvine's last gasp was a rally that cut a 17-point Fullerton lead to 55-46 with eight minutes left. But the Anteaters then made only three field goals during a five-minute stretch that ended with Cutley scoring on a layup and adding a free throw for a 71-54 lead.
That left Irvine unfulfilled again. After 31 years, and 890 games as a Division I team, the Anteaters still haven't made it to the NCAA tournament.
The Titans, meanwhile, were able to dust off memories of 1978. Fullerton upset New Mexico, which had Michael Cooper, and San Francisco, which had Bill Cartwright, before losing to fourth-ranked Arkansas, 61-58.
"We knew all about that," Robinson said. "We talked about it a lot this year. They did something special 30 years ago. We wanted to work hard and achieve the same thing."
The same thing?
"They won two games in the tournament," Robinson said. "The way we're playing defense right now, who knows?"
chris.foster@latimes.com
----------------------
Ten years gone, I have never been more proud to be a Titan alum! We will probably lose in the first round, but who cares right now?
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Just one more win- The battle of Orange County
Tournament: Cal State Fullerton rolls past Northridge, 83-68
March 14th, 2008 · Post a Comment · posted by abalderas
Josh Akognon netted 24 points and was one of four Cal State Fullerton players to score in double figures as the Titans beat Cal State Northridge, 83-68, in the semifinals of the Big West Conference Tournament on Saturday.
The victory set up a showdown between Fullerton and UC Irvine, which beat UC Santa Barbara in the other semifinal game.
Akognon set the tempo with 19 points in the first half, helping the Titans build a 20-point lead.
Northridge got to within 10 points (55-45) when Jonathan Heard scored on a layup with 13:22 left in the game but the Titans hit the switch and pulled away again.
The last time the Titans played in the conference championship was in 1982, when they lost to Fresno State. Their only championship came in 1978.
Scott Cutley added 17 points for the Titans, while Frank Robinson and Ray Reed scored 15 and 11, respectively. Robinson also had 11 rebounds to complete a double-double.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
another library story-from Yahoo
Tue Mar 11, 1:21 PM ET
HELSINKI (Reuters) - A Finnish library-goer apparently thought 'better late than never' and quietly returned a book on loan for more than 100 years to a library in Vantaa, in southern Finland.
The library had long since lost track of the loan but welcomed back to its collections the bound copy of a 1902 volume of Vartija, an active religious monthly periodical at the time.
"We are unclear when exactly it was borrowed and who returned it. There weren't any documents with it," librarian Minna Saastamoinen told Reuters.
"There is an old note attached to the book which says there is a fine of 10 pennies a week for late returns," she added.
The library sticker inside the cover, and the old-fashioned handwriting on it, showed the book was last officially loaned out at the beginning of the last century, she said.
Finland is known for a comprehensive library network with more than 900 libraries for its 5.3 million inhabitants. In 2006, each Finn on average visited a library 11 times and borrowed nearly 20 books.
The periodical was borrowed such a long time ago that the Korso branch of the Vantaa library, where the tome was finally handed in, did not even exist when the book was borrowed.
| Who works for your Easter Bunny? | |
| Children love Easter Eggs, except the ones who are forced to make them. America is the world's largest consumer of chocolate. In 2000 we ate 3.3 billions pounds of chocolate and spent $13 billion on it. This year we're asking you to eat and buy differently. The US State Department's Human Rights Report acknowledged that some 10,000 children between the ages of 9 and 12 have been sold into forced labor on cotton, coffee and cocoa plantations in the northern Ivory Coast in recent years. This Easter you can be part of ending child labor slavery by purchasing fair trade chocolate for your loved ones, by teaching others about the issue or by raising money to supprt the campaign. The students at Azuza Pacific University made a difference this Valetines when they sold Fair Trade chocolate as an alternative, not only is the chocolate yummy, the profits help to change lives. For more information on how to get involved see Oasis USA | |
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
And you thought 25 cents per day was bad
6 Days In Jail For Overdue Library Books
Beloit, Wisconsin does not f*&% around when it comes to library books. When your books aren't returned to the Beloit Public Library, three overdue notices are mailed out and then you may be issued a citation that could possibly include a court date.
Beloit-resident Keely Givhan says she was in the process of moving and never got the notices. When she was pulled over in November, police saw that she had an outstanding warrant and arrested her, says the Associated Press.
She and her family couldn't afford to pay her fine so she remained in jail for six days.We are so glad that we do not live in Beloit. We're so forgetful about library books that we'd have like, a sentence of life in prison without parole by nowBeloit police Capt. Bill Tyler said he knows this case could sound like an overreaction. But he said a municipal fine is a municipal fine, and failure to pay for any reason can result in an arrest warrant being issued.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Greetings
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Signs Signs Everywhere There's Signs PART 2-Electric Boogaloo
Julia is in flight right now to come back to Cali to visit us all. I am at a branch library working, and a gentleman just walked right past me with a Traverse City (MI) sweatshirt. As I drove down to the Balboa Peninsula on my break, I saw a UM flag flying. Of course I saw another license plate earlier in the week.
And of course after work, as I am about to get on the freeway to go to LAX to pick Julia up, I am right behind a MONTANA car.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Well Well Well, Kel and Julia have given me inspiration and motivation (now if I can only apply the inspiration from Sarah )
At work today I was able to meet someone who you so-cal local tv news fans may recognize:
Manuscripts Literary Event - Stan Chambers
Don't miss a very special evening with Southern California legend, Stan Chambers. Chambers has covered every major news event in and around Los Angeles for KTLA, Channel 5, since 1947. He counts several Emmy and Golden Mike awards, the Governor's Award from the Television Academy, the USC Alumni Association Award from his alma mater, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame among his many honors. His new book, "KTLA's News At Ten: Sixty Years With Stan Chambers" is an insightful time capsule on the birth of broadcast journalism and a moving memoir of the godfather of the Los Angeles newsies.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
stupid library rants
I know, nothing classic. Havent got around to posting MI/IL/IN pictures yet.
Sundays at the library are classic. We open at 12, but the public arrives anywhere from 10-11:30 and waits. It is truly amazing to see the progression toward the library as the countdown to opening continues.
11:30-customers in cars or just arriving from the bus stop right in front of the library.
11:40 customers come out of cars and stand around in the parking lot.
11:45 some customers sit on library benches, 30 feet from the entrance
11:50 customers are all standing or sitting on the library walkway
11:55 customers noses are literally to the entrance door of the library. No one is looking at or conversing with each other.
12:00 stampede up to the second floor for one hour worth of internet
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Quick update
Right Now for | | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
IT IS COLD :)
Surreal to see Kel.
Dozens of pics to post.
Haven't had internet at hotel (okay so red roof inn charges 10 bucks a day that I wasn't about to pay).
Have it now at Jules' mom's house.
Getting home at 2-3am from travels does not a good blog make.
Even more surreal to meet a woman at church in Kalamazoo WHO FREQUENTED THE NEWPORT BEACH LIBRARY WHERE I WORK, and WHOSE MOTHER STILL COMES IN ALL THE TIME!
It's a small world after all.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
A Very Special Day
Sunday, February 3, 2008
And I think it's going to be a long long time
Next week will be different. I leave for Michigan on Thursday morning. Thursday night Jules and I are going to the L.A. Kings vs. Detroit Red Wings hockey game at Joe Louis Arena woo hoo! I am so excited, but I hope I dont get mugged for wearing a Kings jersey.
I think Saturday we are going to make the 2 hr drive or train ride to god FORSAKEN(my bad) Chicago :) (Bakersfield really isnt that bad! I have family there on the Northwest side.) to see at least one special friend! I will have a ton of pictures to post!
So until then, if I have any library stories, you definitely will be the first to know.
by the way, for those who hadnt read Molly's blog, then I apologize. I LOVE CHICAGO!
It is probably my second favorite city after Los Angeles in all of the 48. In fact, there are a few pictures on my little Flickr link to the right.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Signs Signs Everywhere There's Signs
By the way, the view is incredible today. Catalina Island looks like you could swim to it. Even San Clemente Island is visible today!!!!
Okay, back to topic...
Almost everywhere I have gone the past 3 weeks since Jules left, have been not only reminders, but perhaps signs? So I am at a library filling in on Tuesday. As I get there, I park next to a car with a Michigan license plate.
I come in yesterday after working at the other library, and again I park across from a car with Michigan plates. As my day at work is about to end yesterday, I was working on returning an interlibrary loan book borrowed from where? Bloomington, Michigan!
I help a customer yesterday morning who is wearing a faded University of Michigan hat. I park at dinner last night next to a car with a MSU Spartans sticker in the window.
I have seen Michigan plates all over the place since January 6th; from O.C. to Pasadena, to Santa Monica and everywhere in between! The weird thing is that I haven't been looking for this! Strange days have found me!
I am flying over there in 2 weeks. :)
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Why I am involved with RFKC
While walking on the beach one day, I saw a Starfish by the score.
And everywhere I looked it seemed, I saw a thousand more.
Then what to my surprise appeared? A boy of nine or ten.
And as the Starfish washed ashore, he threw them back again.
"One fish won't make a difference son; You can't change this situation."
He stooped and picked up one more fish, then looking right at me,
"I can make a difference for this one, sir" and returned it to the sea.
So I went and gathered all my friends, my brothers and my cousins.
We joined in with that little boy and save Starfish by the dozens."
There're still many to be rescued - many "Starfish" on life's shore.
And you can make a difference too...by saving just one more."
By C.A. Milbrandt
Monday, January 14, 2008
Today's call in definition
Now I know what you are thinking, but it was actually for the origin of the word in food terms, and not in slang!
Thursday, January 10, 2008
From the customer who brought you the classic questions: what do cleavage and skanky mean?
kahuna: as in "big kahuna"
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Will you still need me? Will you still feed me when I'm 64?
A customer comes up to me at the desk and addresses me as "young man". Now normally that is ok with me when being addressed by a senior citizen, but this dude was probably 7-8 years my junior!
On the age note, happy 73rd birthday Elvis!
Monday, January 7, 2008
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Today is the day
I will try to post some pics once I "acquire" them from the official party photographer!
It has definitely been a weird 3-4 weeks. I waiver between sadness and sadness.
Thursday, January 3, 2008
interesting article: Fear Not the Compass
Editor's note: CT Movies critic Jeffrey Overstreet has done many interviews to promote his new fantasy novel, Auralia's Colors. But lately, he's being asked about another fantasy novel, The Golden Compass, now in the news as a major motion picture from New Line Cinema, releasing December 7. The film is based on the first book of a trilogy by Philip Pullman, an atheist who has expressed his disdain for Christianity and who, in the course of his three books, has the protagonist—a young girl named Lyra—join people who are trying to kill God and the Christian faith … and they succeed. Many Christians have expressed their concerns regarding the film.
Overstreet recently blogged some common questions on the topic, and how he's answering those questions. His answers represent a calm, rational, and Christlike response in the eye of this Golden storm, so we're running an abridged version here. (You can read the full article here.)
Should Christians be afraid of The Golden Compass?
Mercy, no. Let's not be afraid. Discerning, yes. But not afraid.
God is not threatened by Philip Pullman. And people who stop to think through Pullman's story, and how he "refutes" Christianity, will see what a feeble "attack" against Christian beliefit really is.
 Nicole Kidman as Mrs. Coulter, a high-ranking official of the Magisterium  |
Pullman has painted a picture of the church—represented by "The Magisterium" in his stories—that basically reflects only those ways in which the church has abused power. And he has used that selective reflection as an excuse to write off Christianity as a whole. That's sort of like condemning the entire produce section in a grocery store because a few of the apples were bad. (And "Magisterium" is not something Pullman just made up. It's a very real word referring to the church, particularly the Roman Catholic Church. So he's not trying to cloak his intentions here.)
It's interesting to note that Pullman's dismissal of Christianity skips over one little detail: Jesus. Pullman's story never makes any attempt to explore or refute the claims and ministry and person of Christ. He has, in effect, set up a "straw God" rather than a "straw man," and his fans are congratulating him for knocking down Pullman's flawed perception of God rather than the God of Christianity. He's not really undermining Christian belief as he thinks he is; he is undermining the abuse of authority, something altogether contrary to the gospel.
Pullman points to bad people as a way of saying that the faith is wrong. For examples of religious folk, he illustrates people who abuse power. That's not God. And Christ would frown on the persecution carried out by The Magisterium. In the history of the church, followers of Christ have been persecuted and oppressed by others far more than the other way around. So when one of Pullman's heroic characters, the ex-nun physicist Mary Malone, tells our heroes (in the third book) that "The Christian religion is a powerful and convincing mistake, that's all," well, she's not talking about Christianity at all. She's talking about Pullman's misrepresentation of the church.
But here's a question worth considering: Why does Pullman have this wrongful impression of the church in the first place? Could it be that he's encountered arrogant, judgmental Christians? Could it be, to some degree, Christians' fault?
At any rate, no, don't be afraid. The gospel will survive the publishing phenomenon of Pullman's trilogy—and any movies that come from it—without so much as a scratch. It's not worth getting all worked up about it.
Do Pullman's stories pose a threat to children?
Yes, if … And that is a very big "if."
Pullman's trilogy poses a threat if our children read these books without any discussion about the claims made by the characters in the story, or without any parental guidance. The stories pose a threat if their parents and teachers are not reading the books too, and participating in the experience, talking about what the storyteller is doing.
They also could pose a threat if parents forbid these stories in such a way that the child becomes fascinated by the forbidden book. In elementary school, I discovered that adults had crossed out certain words from storybooks like Huckleberry Finn. This became the most interesting aspect of the book for me: I held the pages up to the light, fascinated by what had been crossed out. If we make these books seem more powerful and dangerous than they are, and outlaw them, we have just thrown fuel on the fires of curiosity. Better to teach our kids discernment, so that if they do read the books, they can see Pullman's deception for themselves. (And this raises the question: How many adults are discerning enough to read these books "with eyes to see"?)
Teachers who encourage children to accept Pullman's naive definition of Christianity are encouraging religious illiteracy, and exposing their own. In extreme cases, they're glorifying religious bigotry. The author has said, "If there is a God, and he is as the Christians describe him, then he deserves to be put down and rebelled against." For a man who likes to talk about the value of "tolerance," that's a pretty striking show of the opposite.
I've read The Golden Compass, and didn't find anything offensive. What's the fuss about?
This conversation—and the concerns that have resulted—isn't just about The Golden Compass, only the first book in the trilogy. That's like making The Fellowship of the Ring our subject instead of the whole Lord of the Rings trilogy.
The conversation is about His Dark Materials, the entire Pullman trilogy. The Golden Compass is just the first chapter, laying the foundation for all that will come after it. It is in parts two (The Subtle Knife) and especially three (The Amber Spyglass) that we get into the most controversial material. We won't see those movies for a while.
Is Pullman overrated? Is he a good storyteller?
Pullman is an amazing storyteller, with one of the most formidable imaginations since J.R.R. Tolkien himself. I was enthralled by The Golden Compass when I first read it: Colorful characters, fanciful creatures, a strong sense of mystery, and a compelling story about young and vulnerable characters being oppressed and abused by adults.
In the second and third book, when those cold-hearted and abusive adults turn out to be the good guys, exploiting children in their quest to destroy God, my feelings about the story changed. As Pullman's agenda became more important, my favorite characters began to lose their personality and color. So, we must take into account that, beneath the formidable imagination, there is a dagger concealed within this extravagant overcoat—and the intentions of the fellow preparing to use that dagger.
It's interesting that a man of such extraordinary imagination would have so little regard for the storytellers whose work his style resembles. Pullman scoffs at the stories of Tolkien and Lewis. He says, "The Lord of the Rings is just not interesting psychologically; there's nothing about people in it." And his scorn for Lewis's fantasy world has been widely documented. Pullman has said, "I hate the Narnia books. I hate them with a deep and bitter passion, with their view of childhood as a golden age from which sexuality and adulthood are a falling away." He has called the series "one of the most ugly and poisonous things" he's ever read.
But Pullman is following in the footsteps of Lewis and Tolkien. Like them, he has created alternate worlds of fantasy that vividly manifest his own particular worldview and his perspective on spiritual matters. Tolkien and Lewis established the foundation of modern fantasy storytelling, adding to what George MacDonald imagined before them. And Pullman continues that tradition, especially in The Golden Compass.
It's also worth noting that his characters are interested in truth, freedom, friendship, justice, and love. People are drawn to Pullman's trilogy for the powerful writing, but also because it is another story about an oppressed minority rising up and striking back at an Arrogant, Cruel Authority figure—just like the heroes of Narnia rise up against the wicked White Witch, and just like Tolkien's Fellowship rises up against Sauron and his tyrannical power. The big difference is that Pullman has cast history's greatest champion of the oppressed—their Redeemer—as the enemy. He would rather leave us to our own fractured will, which is certain to doom us very quickly.
What does Pullman say about his own beliefs?
Pullman told the Sydney Morning Herald, "If we're talking on the scale of human life and the things we see around us, I'm an atheist. There's no God here. There never was. But if you go out into the vastness of space, well, I'm not so sure. On that level, I'm an agnostic."
 Pullman says God should be 'put down' |
On the one hand he says, "What I am against is organized religion of the sort which persecutes people who don't believe. I'm against religious intolerance." But then elsewhere he says that if there is a God, and he is as Christians describe him, then that God should be "put down."
For Pullman, embracing the questions of science, mathematics, art, and literature is a rejection of religion. He seems ignorant of the fact that much of modern science was discovered and established by very religious people, and that mathematics inspires many to faith, and that art is one of the primary avenues for religious discovery and expression.
His opinions have taken quite a turn recently, perhaps to make the movie seem more appealing. Now, he's saying things like this (in a Today interview): "As for the atheism, it doesn't matter to me whether people believe in God or not, so I'm not promoting anything of that sort. What I do care about is whether people are cruel or whether they're kind, whether they act for democracy or for tyranny, whether they believe in open-minded enquiry or in shutting the freedom of thought and expression. Good things have been done in the name of religion, and so have bad things; and both good things and bad things have been done with no religion at all. What I care about is the good, wherever it comes from."
That's quite an astonishing change of tone there from "My books are about killing God."
Why is New Line Cinema conspiring against Christians?
They're not. Just last year they produced The Nativity Story, and not so long ago, brought us The Lord of the Rings films. New Line is a film studio, a business trying to make money—not a conspiracy of blasphemers. And in the wake of their extraordinary success with Tolkien's stories, they went to the obvious follow-up—another fantasy saga that has become an international bestselling sensation.
Why are so many people, including many Christians, drawn to this story of people who fight against the church?
People are drawn to stories about brave souls who stand up against oppressors. And, for many people, the church represents fear, power, and condemnation.
The best way to make Pullman's stories look like gospel truth is to respond by acting like the villainous Christians in his stories. The best way to expose Pullman's lie is to respond like Christ himself: With grace and truth, not wrath and condemnation.
I'm not saying we shouldn't point out where he is wrong. His story is deeply flawed, and his religious bigotry is shameful. We should not ignore that. But we also should not ignore the excellence of his artistry.
We should encourage people to compare the church of Pullman's universe with the church in the real world, and how it is growing and ministering to so many needs—all around the world. We should remind people of the church that serves, and that Christ would not have wanted an oppressive church.
But isn't Pullman attacking all religions?
He calls the "God" character in the series "Yahweh." And his characters specifically condemn Christianity as "a powerful and convincing mistake, that's all." (Allah, on the other hand, isn't mentioned.) Pullman has said he wrote these stories "to undermine Christian belief"—quite a different claim than undermining religion in general.
Pullman's characters come to the firm belief that Yahweh is not the creator of the universe. In fact, he's just a big liar. And later in the series, when the Almighty shows up, he's a feeble, senile joke. And they kill him.
Isn't this just the Harry Potter controversy all over again?
No. This time, there really is a serious problem. But God forbid that we respond to Pullman the way we've responded to J.K. Rowling. We've just been through a decade in which fearful, judgmental people have burned Harry Potter books, called J.K. Rowling a witch, and warned us that children who read her books will become warlocks. (This reminds me of those folks who told me, when I was ten, that if I saw The Empire Strikes Back, I might be lured into Buddhism.) What we missed with Harry Potter was the power of fairy tales, which use magic metaphorically and symbolically to help us understand mysterious concepts and appreciate the marvelous, otherworldly reality of grace.
And we encouraged a generation of children to believe that you can't be a Christian and also value fairy tales—a devastating deception. As Lewis and Tolkien have discussed and proposed, fairy tales reflect the truth of the gospel in a unique and timeless way. In fact, Lewis became a Christian through discussions with Tolkien about fairy tales.
Many Christians also overlooked the fact that, in damning the Potter series, we were persecuting a Christian woman who has admitted that the process of telling those stories was a journey of sorting out her own faith and persistent doubts. We missed that there were Bible verses woven through the stories and glimmering with truth.
But Pullman is a different storyteller. He says, "I've been surprised by how little criticism I've got. Harry Potter's been taking all the flak. I'm a great fan of J.K. Rowling, but the people—mainly from America's Bible Belt—who complain that Harry Potter promotes Satanism or witchcraft obviously haven't got enough in their lives. Meanwhile, I've been flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God."
Okay, maybe we shouldn't boycott and complain. But what should Christians do?
These recommendations come from my humble opinion, and you're welcome to disagree.
Essentially, don't behave in ways that the Magisterium in Pullman's books would behave. You'll just make his stories more persuasive, by confirming for the culture around us that Christians only really get excited when they're condemning something.
Instead, respond with grace and love. And truth. Admit that, yes, Christians have committed grave sins in the name of Christ, and that those shameful misrepresentations of the gospel have made many people fearful of, and even repulsed by, the church. But Christians have been called to serve the oppressed, proclaim freedom for the captives, bring healing to the sick, to seek justice, to love mercy, to walk humbly, and to bring good news of "great joy." And by God's grace, many are living out that calling. They paint quite a different picture than what Pullman has painted.
Finally, educate yourselves and equip your kids with questions—lenses, so to speak—that will expose the problems in these stories. (Worried about padding Pullman's pockets by investigating the books? Fair enough. But there's always the library.)
What questions might you and your kids ask as you read Pullman's books? Some suggestions:
- If we cast off all "authority" and set up "free will" as the ultimate source of guidance, where will that get us?
- Has the world shown us that the human heart is a trustworthy "compass"?
- Does free will lead us always to the right choice?
- If the heroes accept the "truth" of the alethiometer (the compass itself), aren't they letting themselves be guided by just another source of truth—another "Authority"? But didn't the story tell us "Authority" is bad and we should only follow our own hearts?
- If there are "many truths," then aren't these heroes being as self-righteous and wicked as the oppressors by demanding that their version of the truth is better than others?
- What is so inspiring about the battle between the bears? Hasn't this story led us to a place where it's just "survival of the fittest" all over again? Should we really hope that the world falls into the hands of the strongest fighter, rather than into the hands of love?
Finally, pray for Philip Pullman. Pray about the influence of his work. And pray for humility and wisdom in your own response. Pullman is just a man who, somewhere along the way, got a very bad impression of the church. It's also worth noting that Pullman's father died in a plane crash when Pullman was only seven years old. I don't know if that had anything to do with his view of God, but many men who have struggled with the idea of a loving, caring, benevolent God are those whose fathers abandoned them or died while they were young. Boys without fathers often grow up with deep resentment, and having no focus for that pain, they target God.
I want to be careful here: I am not explaining Pullman to you, because I don't know him. But that detail made me stop and think about how little I know about his experiences and motivations. Shouldn't I be praying for him instead of condemning him? Shouldn't I be looking for ways to show love and respect to the man, even as I look for ways to expose the flaws in his work? Pullman's not likely to reconsider his notions about God if those who believe in God organize a full-scale assault against him and his work.