The 2 Second Gap

Alright, let's imagine for a second that we are computer music player designers. You know, the guys who make Windows Media Player and iTunes and stuff. Now, let's think about how people want their burned CD's to sound coming out of our players.



















People hate continuity. They would much rather hear a song fade out for a few seconds and then sit on an inborn deadspace in the CD, the 2 Second Gap, rather than go straight to the next song.



















If you give people space between the media you give them, a whole world of possibilities opens up. You can annoy them, for one. They always like that.



















You can also give the buzz from the last glorious song 2 seconds to fade. This is really cool because it can dampen the entire feel of the mix.



















A mix should wreck you, one hit after another. It should flow. It shouldn't just be a collection of songs. A mix is more than that. It's a gift from one person to another for a special occasion. A celebration of driving on the open road on a summer day. In order to get rid of this 2 Second Gap, you have to dive through a few menus into "Advanced Properties" and eliminate it. Who's in charge of this? Seriously.

Christian Egotism

While listening to a song by a Christian band today, I was struck by the egotism I found in the Creationist argument as described in the lyrics. The major implied points were:

A) Man is really special, different from everything else, and light years better.
B) The stars and Universe were put there simply to entertain us. There's nothing else out there.
C) If you don't believe the first two, you don't believe that God loves you.

Whoa, Nelly. When I was 18, I sat on the couch and looked at my hand and realized I am made of the same stuff as everything else. Big deal, right? Everyone assents to being a created entity in word, but I don't think everyone's knowledge and heart align with that simple idea. When people talk about Free Will, they are often clinging to a belief that they are somehow autonomous and can function outside of Creation as an independent agent. That's Egotism 1 right there: Believing that your decisions are made with something other than the brain/heart/etc. that God created. He made all your decision-making pieces. You can't make a decision without using only that which God originally made.

There's also this ancient concept that everything was made independently of everything else. Man was formed of the dust of the earth, not of mammals. How crude would making man from animals be? Evolution must be false, because we are special and better than everything else. This sort of egomaniacal thinking leads to planet-destroying industry, ozone layer holes, carcinogen-related cancers, and all sorts of tomfoolery that disrespects God's created world because we are somehow different from it. Egotism 2: Man is special, therefore the physical world is his toilet. Not so. "The Dust of the Earth" ain't really all that pretty. We are a part of this world and must take care of it in order to take care of ourselves.

The third concept I'm going to bother with today is that of the stars in the Universe. People would like to hold onto some primitive notion that there can't possibly be anything out there. They would say that God made the earth special in the Universe as the only place that could produce life, souls, etc. That idea first came around when people thought the earth was flat and that the sun and moon were two discs of light that traversed a dome that covered us, and that there was nothing outside of that realm but heaven and hell. Well, heaven and hell, maybe. I don't even think they were sophisticated enough to think that God lived outside of their realm. Just read the Tower of Babel story and see that they were trying to build a tower to where God lives. Shoot - digression! Egotism 3: Anything, like outer space, that is beautiful must have been created simply for entertainment purposes for humans. I don't know what the function of the Universe is - no one does - but it's a bit silly to think it's all about me.

These aren't really hard concepts and can probably be challenged pretty easily by the right sort of thinker. That's not the point. I'm more interested in the process of examining ways that traditionally defended Christian modes of thought can be unintentionally egotistical. I hope you see this as an encouragement to pursue truth. This blog didn't quite go as deep as I would have liked, but I try to keep 'em short so you can digest a little something then move on to more internetting.

They Love That Obama

I just grabbed an article on the web about the Clinton-Obama Youtube debate. It's the same old nonsense, but from people's bathrooms and in costume and whatnot. There was a massive string of comments at the end of this article, most of which said something to the effect of "Our guy is really smart and really talks about things, and yours is dumb and doesn't know what they're talking about."

Has any political discussion ever been any different? Nonetheless, the Obama people think they have started a revolution behind a first-term Senator from the Midwest. Last I checked, the only good thing to come out of the Midwest was hot chicks. They love him, though. All over the internet, they love Barack Obama. That's fine. Glad to see somebody loves somebody.

Do you know who votes, though? Do you know who actually shows up at the polls whether they care or not, whether they've ever looked at an internet doo-hickey? Old people. That's right, old people. With walkers and breathing apparatuses. They are the ones who determine the President of the United States. They always vote. Young people, despite rabid enthusiasm over whatever issue is the hip thing to be excited about these days, just don't get to the polls like their grandparents do.

What does this mean? The trendiest candidate won't be REALLY trendy until we see that candidate make a guest appearance on a Matlock rerun. Oh well.

Posting Your Photos

Again we humans are faced with a challenge regarding the use of technological progress. It is such a treasure to find out that we can do things that no one stops to think if we should. Back in the stone age of computers, in 2006, it was only possible for users of social networking sites like myspace and facebook to post a few measly photographs of themselves and their friends. Now, our uploading abilities are virtually unlimited. Sure, it seems like there is a 60 picture limit on individual facebook albums, but there's no reason you can't post a second album and call it "part two".

This is great! Now we can actually surf through someone's vacation slides without listening to their mundane, 45-minute chatter. We are free to browse photos and move along to other internet treats like Dramatic Chipmunk videos. Could life get any better?

Wait...what's that? Is that the 5th photo in a row of the same ugly mug in the same pose? Is that the 3rd straight shot of the same chapel, just with different people giving lame and poorly posed picture faces in front of it? Hey, look, my eyes are closed in that picture and I have a pot-belly. Who authorized them to plaster that all over the internet?

Do you know why old people running through reels of projected vacation slides is now cliche? Do you know why everyone had such a terrible time? Because 10 good pictures are better than 100 bad ones. No one wants to look at your bad photographs, only your good ones. Please, edit your photo albums and select only the good pictures to upload. I was really looking forward to good cross-sections of life on facebook, but usually I only get through about 15 pictures before realizing what a waste of time it was for you to even bring your camera to the party.

Just because you can post all of your pictures, doesn't mean you should. Show a little class and self-respect. If it's too much bother to give your albums quality, don't bother posting anything at all.

This is Ann Landers, signing off.

Wedding Weekend

I went to my ol' buddy PJ's wedding in Virginia Beach this weekend. They met in August, got engaged in April, and were married in July. The entire weekend came at me just that fast.

Thursday: Hop in car, ride to Philly, go to dinner, get drinks, go to bed.
Friday: Hop in car, ride to Va. Beach, head directly to rehearsal, zip to hotel, shower and change to nice clothes, eat rehearsal dinner, go to billiards bachelor party, go to brews post-bachelor party, go to bed.
Saturday: Get tuxedo, swim, go to wedding, go to reception, stumble back to hotel, go to bed.
Sunday: Get lunch, ride from Va. Beach to Syracuse in 11 hours. End of story.

Most of interspersed moments of the weekend were spent with Gabi, high-school buddies Paul and Jeff, and their associated girlfriends. We met up originally in Philly. Total insanity all weekend long. In the end, PJ got wrapped up in a package and shipped off to Miami with his bride to cash in his V-Chip, so it was a rousing success. I even caught a lull in my inebriation to talk with old time Young Life superhero T-Nova for a few minutes.

Ridiculous.

Rise, Fall, and Rise

Becoming cool requires self-assurance. You can't care what other people think. Just do your thing. If you have enough magnetism deep down, people will dig what you do. Act like a nut. Act like you don't care if your actions will win you friends. Pretty soon, if you're anything like me, you'll start building an Empire of Good Will.

What happens after you've achieved this sort of enlightened state? People start admiring your lifestyle. They become your friends in droves. Everyone is so taken with your carefree attitude, they talk about your exploits when you're not around. You become a standard bearer. As Ben Folds said, "You wanted revolution. Now you're the institution." Now there's no room for those accidental geek moments anymore. You must exude cool 24 hours a day.

You can't. No one is that good. Moreover, once you are entrapped by all the eyes looking at you, once you are striving to maintain the image they want to see, you crumble from within. You're just a shell of that carefree kid that everyone first began to adore. Sure, it may still look good on the outside, but they start to have their doubts about you. So, you quit your job and visit many of them personally, wherever they may be. You regain some of that original magnetism. The day is saved.

Carpe diem!

The Blog vs. The Book

It's amazing how easily writing a blog comes to me. I'll sit down and stare at the computer screen for a couple of minutes, sometimes surfing around the same 5 sites I always look at, and then the ideas come to me. The words flow, the paragraphs could be endless. I have to restrict the size of the bites I throw out there for people to digest.

Trying to write a book, on the other hand, goes nowhere. The initial plan was to begin pounding it out as soon as my trip was over. If I put together three sentences on a single topic, my brain hurts. After a half an hour I have 6 or 7 such blobs of incompatible nonsense. My sentences are run-ons, my analogies forced. It's some of the worst writing I've ever done.

There could be several reasons for this. One is probably audience. I like to have immediate response to my ideas. If there's no one giving me the thumbs-up, I have no motivation to continue. Another is breadth. When I write a blog, I usually have just one topic to cover in three or four paragraphs. It's easy to build a small case and close it, without worrying about anything else I will have to write in the future. Starting a book, on the other hand, is an overwhelming task. How do I even begin to write about my first day? I can't leave anything out! What will the themes be by the time I'm done?

For now, at least for the moment, I'll stick to blogging. It gives me that artistic outlet and keeps the creative juices flowing. See, in good books, they don't use cliches like "creative juices". Oh, the struggles...

Selling the Car

If you're ever thinking to yourself, "Man, it takes a while to sell a car," you should think again.

In the near future, I have to do something different with my life. Working in pain with bad knees for 25 hours a week as a waiter and a janitor isn't going to pay the bills for this college graduate. I was supposed to turn myself around in about a month from when I returned from my travels, but that all went badly. This is getting redundant for anyone who's been following along...

When I figured out that my insurance from one of my jobs wasn't going to do an adequate job of covering the repair of my knee, that became the catalyst for change. I guess if I'm not backed into a corner, I'll just roll along with the status quo. If there's anything to fall back on, like staying at my parents' house, I'll fall back on it. There was nothing more I could do with the knee at this time. I quit waiting around and kicked myself into gear.

After the 4th of July debacle, during which I could barely finish my shift, my manager at the restaurant suggested I take a leave of absence. I said okay. A couple of days later I put my car up for sale, figuring it takes a month or two to sell 'em usually. The car was finally to the point where nothing major (just 3 minor things) was wrong with it. I put it on Craigslist. I'd never bought or sold anything on Craigslist before. Apparently this guy Craig knows a lot of people. If you want to sell something slowly, don't try it there. Eight inquiries, three showings, and five days later, the car was gone.

What do I do now? I don't know. I have to look for jobs, I guess. Jobs where I can sit down. During this rough stretch of working on my feet with bad knees, I saw a scene from Rocky II where he told an interviewer, "I'd like to make a living sitting down, like you." That was a bit of an inspiration.

If it looks impossible to work and not own a car, I'll have to get another one. I really like not having a car, though. It's so much less to worry about. I still find myself comparing the feel of that old Subaru to other people's cars that I'm riding in, only to realize moments later that it has become immaterial to me. Disappeared from all points of physical reference. Fortunately, the past doesn't do the same thing. Someone will hire me to do something.

David and Goliath: Triumph of the Natural Man (I Samuel 17)

I flipped my Bible open this morning and began reading a few different random passages. Later, at church, my pastor recommended doing the same thing. That was cool.

After meandering through Job and Isaiah and whatnot, I landed in I Samuel 17, site of the famous David and Goliath story. I've probably heard that story, or references to it, at least 100 times in my life. I remember images from Sunday school that depicted David's brothers and the army of Israel as sniveling cowards. I remember countless references during upsets by small schools in the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

What I don't remember is the new angle to the story that I discovered this morning: The triumph of the natural man over civilization. What? Let me start the explanation with the idea that much of the Bible and the rules contained therein evolved out of practical knowledge. What is keeping kosher but eating healthy, really? We've all been taught that David was some mystical boy who blindly trusted God to help him kill someone who was obviously physically superior and who should have, by all rights, destroyed him. We are taught to trust God no matter how big the challenge is. On the side, we are told about David's shepherding adventures, where he learned to kill things with a slingshot. Let's read that part of the text again:

Then Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against the Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth."

But David said to him Saul, "Your servant was tending his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb from the flock, I went out after him and attacked him, and rescued it from his mouth; and when he rose up against me, I seized him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted the armies of the living God."

(I Samuel 17:33-36)

David was not a mystic. He was an example of the natural man. He had fended for himself in the wilderness for many years, not blinking when he was faced with a lethal animal. He had gained confidence through his experience with the natural world as God made it, and was able to see the giant as just another created thing that he could dispose of the same way.

I spent a little time in nature on my travels across the country. While experiencing the world in its original and godly setting, I could see that most of human history is a series of events demonstrating that civilized man just doesn't get it. All these men of the wars of civilization were camped out against one another, trying to devise a strategy on how best to kill one another. David just walked right into it, as nothing more than a boy, with more knowledge and experience at taking care of business on the natural plain, civilization removed, than the entire army put together. The first thing they wanted to do with him was to drape him in bronze armor. Civilized man thought you had to have the latest and greatest in military technology: armor, helmets, swords, shields, and the like - whether they were the best thing all the time or not. He tried it on and thought it ridiculous. So there went David, skills greater than any warrior with that dinky little leather slingshot and a couple of rocks, and took down a 9.5-footer. The triumph of the natural man, who saw the world as God made it and pragmatically used the best things at his disposal, with a clear head unencumbered by the latest in war fads.

Look at our culture. How much do we really know about how to interact with our world? How often are we restricted in our thinking by the latest ideas of civilized men, rather than basking in the freedom of an unfiltered God speaking to our clear and open minds? How often do we buy the "latest and greatest" crap, only to see it break or be trumped in 6 months by something even newer?

Just try standing outside for a few minutes. Where do you find the peace of God? In the sky, the trees, the birds, the grass...Where do you find that peace interrupted? Most likely, it is through the efforts of civilized man.

Anonymous poster on message board: So, some guy at work turned me on to this concept of "radical honesty". Here is what it is, in a nutshell:

Radical Honesty is a kind of communication that is direct, complete, open and expressive. Radical Honesty means you tell the people in your life what you've done or plan to do, what you think, and what you feel. It's the kind of authentic sharing that creates the possibility of love and intimacy.

The practice of Radical Honesty is based on the work and writings of Dr. Brad Blanton, a psychologist who found that the best way to reduce stress, make life work, and heal the past was to tell the truth.

So basically, you aren't allowed to lie, even little white ones to protect people's feelings, and you must tell people what's on your mind, without using the little filter between your brain and mouth that tells you to shut up sometimes.

I'm trying it out, but am not able to commit fully. I fear hurting people. An example of an early attempt:

Becky: At work today, I had to deal with this creep supplier that...

Me: Hold on, I have to pee.

Becky: Let me finish.

Me: I resent the fact that you're hurting my kidneys for the sake of a story I know is going to suck.

Becky: You don't have to be an a****** about it.

Me: (crickets, gone to pee).

Becky, upon my return: So, you want I should finish my story?

Me: I hope to god there's a payoff to this story for once.

Becky: F*** you, a******.

My thoughts on this:

1) This reminds me of the Seinfeld where Becky from Full House got Jerry to get angry and yell, and then he started puking these feelings of love all over Elaine and George. Becky looked hot in that episode.

2) I frequently combat the forces of "being real" that pervade 21st Century Christian thought, basically the same idea. The problem is, when you let your "real" thoughts out, they are usually the lesser half of who you'd like to be, the negative thoughts and doubts. I have good and bad thoughts about almost everyone and everything at every moment. I choose to verbalize and act on the ones that take steps toward me becoming who I'd like to become, instead of the ones that will only cause trouble or make me a weak and needy person. "Radical honesty" is bull.

It's not good to tell bald-faced lies all the time. Then, you become a liar who can't be trusted, which is presumably not the sort of person you want to be. If you refrain from being an a****** every now and again, choosing someone else's feelings over spewing out your own, you act selflessly and are actually being compassionate. These are good things. Continually spouting forth what you really think about things, regardless of other people's feelings, is selfish and not radical at all. Spilling your deepest concerns to anyone and everyone certainly spreads a lot of anxiety and worry, which are sins when you get right down to it. Down with "Radical Honesty"! Up with being a decent, caring, and stable person!

Welcome Back

It's been a while, but I'm jumping back onto the blog. After mercilessly pounding out a blog almost every day for 5 months of touring the country, I jettisoned the entire enterprise in favor of...nothing. I thought blogging was for the people out there reading, but someone pointed out to me recently how integral it becomes to the life of the writer. Thoughts get sorted out, days understood more clearly. It creates a rhythm.

Like any good blogger, I just sold my car and have no transportation. On top of that, I'll be finishing up my two part-time jobs on Tuesday of next week, ensuring that at the time of my friend PJ's wedding on July 21st, I will be unemployed. There's a lot of glory in these sorts of actions. The average American can't even think about being this daring.

People often ask if I'm independently wealthy. Is that how I managed to romp around the country on a five month road trip, without working, on little more than saved-up waiter's tips? The simple answer is no. I find ways not to spend my money. I probably could have put a down payment on a house, if I wanted to stay in one place a long time and had a steady job, but instead elected for 5 months on the open road and no annoying mortgage payment. It was just a choice.

Our culture discourages people from taking risk-laden adventures by promising more safe, respectable leisure activities than have ever been known in human history. You can run on a treadmill, watching television and listening to your iPod, next to ten other people doing the same thing, or you could run around a lake and feel the real world around you. It binds us to safe, respectable life with debt, retirement plans, mortgages, children, and 2 weeks' paid vacation. We get so caught up in the responsibilities and financial worries of the moment that our natural, earthly element becomes restricted to the stuff of dreams. I only do what I do because I think dreams and reality can be one and the same. I refuse to sit around and talk about what sorts of things I should do with my life. Instead, I find ways to do them. You can too.