I hear an interesting story on the BBC news on NPR today. Apparently the Vatican has "vetoed" three names informally proposed by the Obama administration as ambassadors to the Vatican City because of their pro-choice stance. I find this truly heartening - a religious organization standing up for their values in the face of enormous pressure.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to be some "Obama-basher", but I do think that if we are really to live Biblical lives, there are some lines we must draw. Notice that this was not a personal issue, and that the Vatican didn't try to shroud this in political spin, as so many would do. Instead, they shot straight: These candidates are inappropriate because of their beliefs on abortion. Period.
Now if someone happens to read this who disagrees with the Catholic Church and I on the abortion issue, let me make one thing clear: I don't think you have to agree with me on this issue to think this is an encouraging development. If you happen to disagree, chalk it up to a win for religion resisting the presssure to conform to the societal norms placed upon it.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7998688.stm
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Wandering thoughts...
This is from my rambling writings in March sometime. They're not done, and not edited, but I thought I should post it as a look into my brain... enjoy!
"Have you ever had one of those nights where you wonder what you life would be at different points if you had made different decisions? That's tonight for me.
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with my life. I feel like I'm going in the right direction, with some slight academic delays :) Everything isn't exactly as I would have chosen it, but I guess that's why I'm not God. I just sometimes look back on my life so far and see huge life-changing decisions that, at the time, didn't seem so earthshattering. Looking back on them, though, they truly changed the course of my life. Some of the decisions that did seem like a huge deal turned out to be no big thing (but some were a big deal - go figure). Now for the examples:
Late April of 2005 I was a senior in high school and I was trying to decide where to go to college. I'll let you in on my decision making process. I had been admitted to ECU, UNC-CH, NCSU, Campbell, and Wake Forest. I applied to Campbell and NCSU mainly for the scholarship opportunities, and when I didn't get what I wanted financially they pretty much fell out of the picture. I LOVED Wake Forest. I visited a couple of times and the campus was gorgeous. I could see myself there, and I love the philosophies of education that they put forth (study abroad, small classes, etc.). But even at this point in my life I was pointing myself towards medical school, which brings up two problems: GPA and cost. Going to a more difficult school doesn't necessarily show up as such on your application, but a low GPA does. I think we could have managed the price tag with some debt (at the time the numbers we were being given were aroun $42,000 a year). But having a lot of debt at the end of undergrad and needing another 4 year of education didn't seem appealing to me. So that left UNC-CH and ECU. The swing was two things: the MDin7 program, and Beth. So I admit it... the girlfriend might have somewhat swayed my decision. Is that a bad thing? I hope not. I firmly believe that God used some of these events to put me where he wanted me. I can't help but wonder what it would have been like to go to UNC. Would Beth and I have survived? Would I have gotten into medical school at the end of my four years? At all? Would I have had the same opportunities for study abroad or research? It's an endless thinking exercise.
That's what I mean - not that I wish I had gone to UNC, but I can't help but wonder what it would have been like..."
"Have you ever had one of those nights where you wonder what you life would be at different points if you had made different decisions? That's tonight for me.
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with my life. I feel like I'm going in the right direction, with some slight academic delays :) Everything isn't exactly as I would have chosen it, but I guess that's why I'm not God. I just sometimes look back on my life so far and see huge life-changing decisions that, at the time, didn't seem so earthshattering. Looking back on them, though, they truly changed the course of my life. Some of the decisions that did seem like a huge deal turned out to be no big thing (but some were a big deal - go figure). Now for the examples:
Late April of 2005 I was a senior in high school and I was trying to decide where to go to college. I'll let you in on my decision making process. I had been admitted to ECU, UNC-CH, NCSU, Campbell, and Wake Forest. I applied to Campbell and NCSU mainly for the scholarship opportunities, and when I didn't get what I wanted financially they pretty much fell out of the picture. I LOVED Wake Forest. I visited a couple of times and the campus was gorgeous. I could see myself there, and I love the philosophies of education that they put forth (study abroad, small classes, etc.). But even at this point in my life I was pointing myself towards medical school, which brings up two problems: GPA and cost. Going to a more difficult school doesn't necessarily show up as such on your application, but a low GPA does. I think we could have managed the price tag with some debt (at the time the numbers we were being given were aroun $42,000 a year). But having a lot of debt at the end of undergrad and needing another 4 year of education didn't seem appealing to me. So that left UNC-CH and ECU. The swing was two things: the MDin7 program, and Beth. So I admit it... the girlfriend might have somewhat swayed my decision. Is that a bad thing? I hope not. I firmly believe that God used some of these events to put me where he wanted me. I can't help but wonder what it would have been like to go to UNC. Would Beth and I have survived? Would I have gotten into medical school at the end of my four years? At all? Would I have had the same opportunities for study abroad or research? It's an endless thinking exercise.
That's what I mean - not that I wish I had gone to UNC, but I can't help but wonder what it would have been like..."
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Woodworking and Bad Attitudes
So it's exactly 33.6 degrees outside, which shouldn't be surprising at midnight in north Carolina. And it wouldn't be surprising if it hadn't been 80 degrees last week. In fact, I had turned off my heat and air conditioning for almost a week until I walked into the house tonight and it was freezing... which left me wondering if my heater had broken (my mind isn't as sharp as it should be!). My violin hates the changing weather - as indicated by the loose G string from the slipping peg this evening. I'm not a huge fan of the changes either - I had just gotten used to being able to wear my rainbows again!
Today has been the day of packages - I got three thing I ordered online today. One present for Beth, one set of calipers (yes, I'm buying calipers online - I'm a nerd), and a Japanese dovetail saw. I've gotten into woodworking to pass the time here lately. A set of chisels, a cross-cut saw, a dovetail saw and a coping saw got me started cutting dovetails. I've cut two sets of dovetails so far out of a 4" poplar board, both of which have been... interesting. I'm not very good at it. It turns out that the experts who film the hand-cut dovetail demonstrations online have probably practiced once or twice. Therefore, it might be irrational for my first two attempts to be on par with their pieces. That's OK with me - I can practice some. I'm hoping for a well-paying job to turn up in the near future so that I will be able to buy a few select tools.
So for the bad attitude part - do you ever get in a funk? That happened to me this afternoon. Sometimes there is a specific thing that sets it off, but today there wasn't anything in particular that upset me (except the truck that pulled out in front of me on Firetower Rd. - kidding!). But by the time I got to 20Something I was in an inexplicable bad mood for no good reason. I tried to reason my way out of it to no avail. By the time I got home tonight after dinner I was better, but it got me thinking about how oftern I have a really bad attitude for no good reason. Philippians 2:14 says to do everything without complaining or arguing, and lists the reasons we should do so. I can't help but think that this is an issue of the heart attitude as much as external complaining. I'm as good as anyone is at hiding my complaining, but the heart attitude remains, and that's what I really need to focus on.
Well, I've been sufficiently long-winded for one night. Until next time...
Today has been the day of packages - I got three thing I ordered online today. One present for Beth, one set of calipers (yes, I'm buying calipers online - I'm a nerd), and a Japanese dovetail saw. I've gotten into woodworking to pass the time here lately. A set of chisels, a cross-cut saw, a dovetail saw and a coping saw got me started cutting dovetails. I've cut two sets of dovetails so far out of a 4" poplar board, both of which have been... interesting. I'm not very good at it. It turns out that the experts who film the hand-cut dovetail demonstrations online have probably practiced once or twice. Therefore, it might be irrational for my first two attempts to be on par with their pieces. That's OK with me - I can practice some. I'm hoping for a well-paying job to turn up in the near future so that I will be able to buy a few select tools.
So for the bad attitude part - do you ever get in a funk? That happened to me this afternoon. Sometimes there is a specific thing that sets it off, but today there wasn't anything in particular that upset me (except the truck that pulled out in front of me on Firetower Rd. - kidding!). But by the time I got to 20Something I was in an inexplicable bad mood for no good reason. I tried to reason my way out of it to no avail. By the time I got home tonight after dinner I was better, but it got me thinking about how oftern I have a really bad attitude for no good reason. Philippians 2:14 says to do everything without complaining or arguing, and lists the reasons we should do so. I can't help but think that this is an issue of the heart attitude as much as external complaining. I'm as good as anyone is at hiding my complaining, but the heart attitude remains, and that's what I really need to focus on.
Well, I've been sufficiently long-winded for one night. Until next time...
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
The title
So I haven't read The Sound and the Fury. In fact, I don't think I've read anything by William Faulkner. Don't get me wrong, I love reading but this one hasn't come across my radar at the right time (i.e. in high school when I was forced to read novels!). Consequently there is a real possibility that I have no business whatsoever naming my blog such.
The name was merely a function of desperation. I am very bored tonight, and wanted to write (and a blog seemed an appropriate expression). Unfortunately for me, I had to name the blog something in the setup, and this phrase was the first to come to mind. It seemed appropriate on a purely literal level, as my verbal ranting frequently contains both sound and fury.
This blog will probably be an outlet for everything I think about, from ranting about politics to what God it teaching me, from projects to life updates, with a little creativity thrown in for good measure. I'll post my favorite quotes, website, and pictures as much as I can. Feel free to ask questions, comment, sound off... I'd love to hear what you think!
The name was merely a function of desperation. I am very bored tonight, and wanted to write (and a blog seemed an appropriate expression). Unfortunately for me, I had to name the blog something in the setup, and this phrase was the first to come to mind. It seemed appropriate on a purely literal level, as my verbal ranting frequently contains both sound and fury.
This blog will probably be an outlet for everything I think about, from ranting about politics to what God it teaching me, from projects to life updates, with a little creativity thrown in for good measure. I'll post my favorite quotes, website, and pictures as much as I can. Feel free to ask questions, comment, sound off... I'd love to hear what you think!
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