methodist musings

i spent the day in champaign-urbana at the university of illinois photographing a graduation and getting equipment ready for the 4 (or 5) that we’re doing tomorrow. i came home, kicked back for awhile and went to start some laundry. got downstairs got everything sorted, started the washing machine, put in the clothes, set the alarm on my phone, and came upstairs to watch tv.

the phone alarm went off, i went downstairs and noticed i hadn’t ever closed the lid to the washer, so the clothes were just sitting in dirty water. i closed the lid, called myself an idiot, and went back to the tv. the alarm went off a second time, i went downstairs, emptied the washer, put the clothes in the dryer and started it. turned around and restarted the washing machine put in another load of laundry, and went to get the laundry detergent, poured it into the washing machine…and then, only then, did i realize i hadn’t ever put soap in the first load.

so………..they’ve been pseudo-washed, partially dried, and are sitting waiting to trade places with the clothes that really were washed…long days result in dirty clothes.

hey hey! the new info is up! check outthe website to get schedule, dates, hotels, and travel information.

fyi…the renaissance hotel (if you’re going to the nashville nywc) is attached to the conference center and the hilton downtown is just across the street.

i got this email today from one of my printing houses for photography called candid color systems

the subject line read”We are under a tornado warning and taking cover-Will be back on the phones shortly”

only a truly dedicated company would take the time to send an email to say they won’t be able to answer the phones while a tornado passes through

walking into best buy today to look at camera bags, i found a new layout for the store (no big surprise there), but what shocked me was the promininent black box stick up out of the ground. i mean a BIG box, like 30′ long by 12′ high; then i noticed the white apples in it.

that’s right, best buy now sells macs! imacs, macbooks, macbook pros, macbook air, software, and accessories. i was pretty surprised, but also a little saddened. it used to be that macs were special computers that weren’t used by the whole world. i hope that this doesn’t mean that macs are becoming so popular that customer service is going to go down the tubes too…guess we’ll wait and see, but for the time being, congrats best buy on picking up the better line of computing products!

i’ve been meaning to write, but have felt somewhat stuck in my writing…maybe trapped is a little better term. i’ve felt like writing about some random stuff, but also about photography…and, well, i felt like i couldn’t do that because this is a “religious” blog.

then i talked to michelle some and she pointed out that it’s my blog and that i can write whatever i want. the more i thought about it, the more i realized that there isn’t a need to keep myself restricted to write about church/religious/theological ideas because, in reality, everything is religious and theological.

so, watch for some new posts in the next few days…now i’ll blog about stuff, and not so much about my lack of blogging

the general conference of the united methodist church will begin in the next few days. a post by paul black, director of communications for the illinois great rivers conference, of which i am a part, is an encouraging piece which i encourage you to read. in case you aren’t one to read the entire entry, the following quote from jfk stirs something within me. i hope it does for you too.

For this country is moving and it must not stop. It cannot stop. For this is a time for courage and a time for challenge. Neither conformity nor complacency will do. Neither the fanatics nor the faint-hearted are needed. And our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to the Nation, and indeed, to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and freedom.

So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our Nation’s future is at stake. Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause – united in our heritage of the past and our hopes for the future – and determined that this land we love shall lead all mankind into new frontiers of peace and abundance.

what an amazing idea!

Topless meetings for team focus?: “

When it’s hard to stay focused, try going ‘topless’ to meetings - San Jose Mercury News

Our good pals over at Adaptive Path have been experimenting with banning laptops and other communication devices in meetings (something I’ve supported in the past). From today’s Mercury News:

Frustrated by distracted workers so plugged in that they tune out in the middle of business meetings, a growing number of companies are going ‘topless,’ as in no laptops allowed. Also banned from some conference rooms: BlackBerrys, iPhones and other personal devices on which so many have come to depend…

But as laptops have gotten lighter and smart-phones even smarter, people have discovered a handy diversion, making more eye contact these days with their screens than one another. The practice became so pervasive that Todd Wilkens turned to his company blog to wage his ‘personal war against CrackBerry…’

His San Francisco design firm, Adaptive Path, now strongly encourages everyone to leave their laptops at their desks. His colleague, Dan Saffer, coined the term ‘topless’ as in ‘laptop-less.’ Also booted are mobile and smart-phones, which must be stowed on a counter or in a box during meetings. It took some convincing, but soon people began connecting with one another rather than with their computers, Wilkens said.

‘All of our meetings got a lot more productive,’ he said.

[via Dan Saffer]

“

(Via 43 Folders -.)

maybe i’m crazy, but check this movie out. notyourtypicalbigfootmovie.com i really want to see it.

Bigfoot Movie Update: “I’m following the success of this movie like it’s my job. My involvement in the design of the poster was little but I fell in love with the movie which you probably already know if you read this blog often.

The film was very successful at SXSW and is continuing to be shown in movie festivals across the states. Last week Jay sent me a link to the Portsmouth Daily Times. The film poster made the cover of the local paper there. I look forward to Jay’s emails and the progress of this film. If you’d like to learn more about the movie the site address is notyourtypicalbigfootmovie.com“

(Via Freelance Graphic Designer in Cleveland, Ohio.)

…tried upgrading from windows xp to vista for about 6 hours and couldn’t get it to work. googled a LOT and read about 200 posts in 4 or 5 forums. a couple posts suggested trying a clean install, then reinstalling as an upgrade on top of the fresh install.

can anyone explain to me when a clean install works on an upgrade dvd, but an upgrade didn’t? logical, i think not, but it worked so i’m not complaining.

i have never had as many issues with an installation as tonight. i’ve been sitting at my computer since 5:30pm trying to get parallels 3.0 to install and to upgrade windows xp pro to vista home premium…what a nightmare

“Pope Benedict XVI greeted with 21-gun salute and National Anthems” is the caption reading on cnn during the pope’s speech at the white house.

national anthems…plural? did i miss something?

this show, at times, is really encouraging. the idea of a show based on giving back to other and society seems like a fantastic idea…but the more i watch it, the more aggravated i become. the message i take from the show is that money fixes everything. a couple contestants have had wonderful really great moments when they gave with their hands and hearts rather than with dollar bills.

i hope as the show draws to a conclusion in the next week, that they send a final message about serving on another, as jesus did…to give with hands, heart, and soul…to teach americans that giving is more than handing over cash or signing a check.