Tom Squared

I put this together as an opening for my final Midrash research paper.  I still haven't decided if it's staying in, since it sure doesn't read like a research paper.  But it was fun...  so I'll probably leave it :) *** John walks up to the podium and faces ten thousand people. He lightly taps on the microphone, making sure it’s still on, causing a loud echo to reverberate throughout the auditorium. A few people wince, others laugh but most sit in impatience waiting for this man to get on with it. They came to hear a good story, not a bumbling presenter. John proceeds to recite, word for word, the story of Sarah sending away Hagar and the angel who convinced Hagar to return. The eyelids in the audience begin to droop. It’s been a long day and this evening recitation doesn’t help to keep people engaged. If only there were fewer “thees” and “thous” they could at least understand the story. Besides, everyone has heard this sto...

I've recently reconnected with a bunch of different friends from high school through Facebook and been checking out their pictures to see how much they've changed.  I've continued to stay in contact with friends from college, but I also continue to be surprised when I see their pictures.  All I can think of is, man they're getting old.  Sadly, in many cases, they seem to be the worse for wear. Then. . . I look in the mirror. We keep the perfect picture of someone as they were when we knew them years ago.  Actually, we glorify them so much that in our mind they look even better than they really did.  Then when we look in their faces years later we recognize that our memory was just as flawed as theirs was. Yes. . . I'm not aging all that gracefully either. So, what's the point of all this?  I'm old and I'm happy with that.  The more I look at my hands I see the veins popping out.  I remember loving to push on my dads veins and see what w...

I'm coming up on 10 years supporting the same company.  There are a couple of things which happen when you have you ten year anniversary.  First, and least important, I should get a plaque.  I also get a whole lot more vacation time each year (over a month) which is great.  The problem I'm having though is the third thing I get, $500. Initially I'd understood Erin had laid claim to the money, so everything was good.  Last night I found out I get to actually spend the money however I want.  That leads to the obvious question, how do I spend the money (I have to boost the economy, right)?  Here are a couple ideas I have: Put it down for the deposit of an Aptera .  I like this idea, but don't really need a new car.  Erin said no, but what she doesn't know won't hurt her. Put it toward credit cards.  Not very exciting, but certainly more responsible. Buy a pair of PoweriZer Flying Jumpers .  Again, Erin said no to this o...

I came across this All 120 Crayon Names, Color Names and Fun Facts and fell in love with it.  I especially appreciate the hex colors since they can be used in Web design.  And, if it's a crayon color, you know it must be a good one (except maybe Spring Green ). Personally, I love Outer Space . It's great that Outer Space isn't actually black. In any case, check it out.  See how many names you recognize.  Personally, I can't say I've ever seen Fuzzy Wuzzy Brown , and I sure don't think it looks very brown. Peace, +Tom

I was just thinking about bone-in pork chops (I love pork chops, since I was allergic to everything but pork I ate well).  Those saws which cut through bone and meat at meat processing plants (or even the grocery store) must be incredibly sharp and strong. I'd be willing to bet they don't really encounter nay resistance cutting through a cow bone, and since cows are so big, they must have strong bones, right? That got me pondering. . . If you worked in a meat processing plant would it be easy to dispose of a body?  Seriously, just do the deed then throw him (or her) under the saw a few times and it's be easy to scatter the evidence, right? Now, me entire knowledge of meat processing plants comes from The Simpsons and Robin Cook's Toxin , so I'm clearly no expert. But you can't help but wonder. . .  What if? All I know is that I'll be respecting my grocery store butcher more now. Peace, +Tom

I came across this iPhone Unpacking slide show .  man I wish I'd thought of this for my Dash.  It's worth checking out. It's incredibly creative, and makes me wonder how we can all be more creative. Peace, +Tom

Reading Rob's recent post on his pet skunk Cyranose I began thinking about my own favorite undomesticated pet.  When I was in 5th grade our teacher lived on a farm.  This was extra appropriate because my school, Burgundy Farm Country Day School , was a working farm as well (this is cool, they have their own Wikipedia page ).  Because of her love of animals we had a couple of our own throughout the year. We got to raise a pig that had been born on her farm.  We had bunnies (when they had a litter I remember guying one for $5.  Nibbles was a great pet rabbit for years).  We had snakes, two great black snakes we got to feet mice each week.  We had mice which happily bred and got fed. . . to the snakes.  We had two rats as well.  This class, more than any, taught me that animals aren't to be feared, take responsibility and care, and that almost any animal can be a pet.  I continue to have a hard time understanding people who think any...

I've been re-reading the Ender's Shadow series by Orson Scott Card .  One of the things I had a hard time buying into the first time I read it was the influence that Peter Wiggin and Valentine Wiggin had simply by posting information on the Internet.  These were kids and teens who posted essays on the Internet pointing out actions that different nations were taking, were it could lead, and calls to action to make change.  I just couldn't get to believe that with all the billions of pages on the Internet anyone would find and listen to one post.  I clearly failed to recognize how Internet searching would improve. I've written a couple different posts reviewing, commenting or venting about different companies.  In almost every instance, within a day or two, I'll get a response from someone at the company.  My Red Gate post got a response from both a developer and a customer service representative. Just the other day I posted about a pretty bad exper...

This past Saturday my friends Mason and Miriam arranged for a mission trip fundraiser at our church.  They brought in the kids band Rocknoceros .  These guys were just great. They write and perform their own songs which range from simply silly to educational. . . and silly.  They had a kazoo and a vibra-bell (I think that's what it was).  Really though the music was just fun.  What really surprised me though was how they really recognized the needs of their audience. These guys are singing to kids anywhere from under 1 year old to over 7.  You can only imagine how much the younger kids wanted to sit still and listen to music for an hour. So, Rocknoceros also brought hula hoops and sidewalk chalk.  Some kids simply ran around and played but lots of people hula hooped, played with the hoops and drew on the sidewalk.  A lot of parents took the hoops and rolled them along, letting their kids run along after it.  They even had enough joke...

Last January my car was broken into and my incredibly nice navigation system, a Garmin 7500 was stolen, along with our portable DVD player.  State Farm was great, taking care of all repairs (after a call or two) and cutting me a check for a new navigation system. While I liked the Garmin I found the traffic information wasn't really very good (all reported traffic along my route seems to be at least half an hour (or more) behind.  So that by the time it's reported the actual traffic is gone, but something worse could be in the way. About a year ago I read about the Dash , which was set to release this past December.  In the end it was delayed until March 26th.  But man, when I saw it had shipped I was like a kid in a candy store. What makes the Dash different is that it connects to the Internet through a cell phone (or Wifi if you're near your house or when I'm at church). . . all the time.  So, when I search for a restaurant it actually searches Yahoo...

Tonight we decided to have a quick dinner at Cheeburger Cheeburger .  We hadn't been in a while, but from other trips we really like the restaurant.  While we've come to accept the 15 minutes to prepare our food, the rest of the service is great.  You can get just about anything on your burger, get it in any size (1/4 pound up to 1 pound) and they have frings (half onion rings half fries)!  to top it all off they have flavored sodas, about 12 - 15 flavored teas and more milkshakes than you can count.  Plus, one of my teens form church works there, so it's definitely a winner. . . Until tonight. We waited at least 15 minutes until we ended up finding a manager to take our drink order.  Then another 10 minutes for the waitress to show up and take our order, without an apology.  I had to point to and explain every menu item I wanted to order.  She even messed up our order, but after waiting for the food, we sure weren't waiting again :)  Afte...

I came across this video the other day and I'm completely hooked. Some information I came across these things is from flixxy stating: Powerbocking is the act of jumping and running, much like parkour, with elastic-like spring-loaded stilts. For some it is an extreme sport, for others it is a form of exercise or even a means of artistic expression. The use of the stilts to perform extreme jumping, running and acrobatics is known as 'Bocking' or ' PowerBocking ' after the inventor Alexander Böck. There are 3 main companies producing powerbocks for hobbyists: Fly Jumpers, PoweriZers and Pro Jumps. I can't think of a reason not to do this. Well, except that on Amazon one reviewer says that if you hit a pebble you fall on your tookus, and you can't stand still on them without holding something. But as someone who had Rollerblades within months of them coming out (best parents ever) I am all over these! Now. . . where am I going to get $...

Just before church this Sunday Rachel began having the urge.  You know, the potty urge.  As she and Erin headed out to go potty Rachel said: We have to go now 'cause you can't pause church. It only goes to show that, like all three year olds, my kid is smarter than yours. TiVo has, without a doubt, changed her life. Peace, +Tom

Wednesday night we have WATCH (Wednesdays at Church) which is our bible study.  One of the great things about WATCH (besides prayer and being with friends - of course) is second dinners. See, every Wednesday we begin with a great dinner before we break off into groups for study.  Since I have dinner with the family before I head over, I've come to call these second dinners.  They're great because if it's something good I can always find room, if it's not so good, who cares, I already ate. Last week I got to choose the next weeks meal, and I chose fried chicken.  Fried chicken is easily my favorite second dinner.  Somehow I just go completely insane. This week I had some tortellini at home then went to church and had a breast of chicken and a leg and corn.  Then went back for potatoes and a thigh.  then went back for another breast of chicken. . . I was feeling pretty full.  I mentioned to one of the people I was eating with that I'd grab ...

One of the hardest things to learn in life is that we don't have to be all things to even one person. I was thinking about this the other day talking to a teen about dating, then thinking more about my own relationships.  Until after college I was always convinced that I had to be all things to the person I was dating. If she wanted to go dancing, I should go too, since it dhows I'm interested in her interests.  If I want to go on a fishing trip, it's better to at least ask if the other person wants to come along. In our constant drive to make our significant other happy we often forget what makes us happy.  We change to fit the other person, both for good and for bad. This stretches beyond dating.  I know a lot of people whose lives began centering on their kids life and never make time to go out with friends or do anything without the kids around. This also happens to married couples who spend all of their time at work or with their spouse, never making ...

Yesterday I went out fishing with a couple friends.  We had a pretty relaxed day, we even got there an hour early, due to a minor miscommunication from Rob , our fearless leader and me, our driver, meaning we had time for a great lunch with fried fish, crab cakes, key lime pie and Steelhead bites (lightly breaded fish bites, great stuff!). Now, this was a fishing trip out on a boat.  Anyone whose known me for a few years may remember my previous fishing boat experiences.  The first time I threw up near the beginning and was fine the rest of the day.  The second trip I puked the whole day.  I lay down the whole time and could barely stand, let alone ever reel in a fish. This time I was prepared.  I ate nothing since dinner the night before, and drank very little, some water and a not-so-good Thai Iced Tea.  I had nausea acupressure wrist bands on an hour before leaving and had my pack of Dramamine.  The weather was great, very little wind, me...

One of my favorite seasons is, without a doubt, turtleneck season. . .  but that's a story for another day. In the church calendar, my favorite and most memorable time of year is Easter.  It's far, far better than Christmas in my book, but don't tell Santa that. There's something about parading in with palms on Palm Sunday.  Growing up we paraded from a park about three blocks away.  It was sometimes cold (I remember the pond being frozen over one year) always exciting. After Palm Sunday we head into a week of, what can only be described as, silence.  The altar (that big table in the middle) is stripped bare and the church is empty. At no time of the year is Jesus more on my mind than around Easter.  I think constantly about his life, his death, and that it means I get a free pass into heaven and a friend to hold my hand. Then, Sunday and color!  From the flowers to the Easter eggs, the entire world comes alive. This Easter was no differ...

Chris, a parent at church, always, always, always pays me a compliment.  Even today during the sermon there was a statement about kind people or something, and she whispered my name, meaning it was something I did and she appreciated. Almost every week I see her she pays me a compliment.  For at least 3 years this has been going on.  Get's pretty repetitive and mundane, right? The funny thing is, it never gets mundane.  In fact, every time she says it I find myself pausing in whatever I'm doing for a second and smiling. Every compliment makes me thankful that I've been in the positions I've had at church, and makes me feel like I am both useful and have made a real difference in multiple people's lives. I wonder if I build people up the same way.  I try to compliment people a lot on both the big and little things things they do.  Sometimes I wonder if it's too much, and someone will think I'm being disingenuous. Having someone like Chris though h...

One of the most fascinating times I have as a youth leader is when it comes to listening and helping the students with their papers.  More and more teachers are giving vague topics which means that this is one of the great times when you get to really find out what the teens are interested in, since they are choosing topics that interest them. Last year one of the teens was telling me about the horrible condition of sweatshops, especially in China.  Truly, the reason China has become such a huge economic super power is because it is a country which treats it's people (especially workers) so poorly.  Christy figured this out in her paper.  while it wasn't news to me, sweatshops are awful, though I had thought it was getting better. BusinessWeek put together a comparison of How China's labor conditions stack up against those of other low-cost nations which is fascinating.  While fascinating, it further reminds me that I need to be watchful of what I'm buyin...

Since I'm on some kind of TV craziness, Doctor Who is coming back April 18th.  Yet another show that has been gone for far too long. . . but then a week is even too long when it comes to Doctor Who.  So, in that theme I was very excited, but could also safely guess, which doctor Who character I am. What Doctor Who character are you? (Tenth Doctor mainly) created with QuizFarm.com You scored as Rose Tyler You are Rose Tyler! You are very kind, adventurous and brave. You are not afraid to face the unknown and with the Doctor you can make it through most anything. You are very close to the doctor and you two get along wonderfully. Rose Tyler   94% ...

Last Friday one of the best shows came back on the air after more than a year hiatus. . . for one more season.  That's right, Battlestar Galactica is back, and it's great! Maybe this will make up for my earlier realization that the newer Episodes of Star Wars are better than the older ones. I stumbled across this quiz while perusing information for my next blog post. What New Battlestar Galactica character are you? created with QuizFarm.com You scored as CPO Galen Tyrol You never wanted to be a glamorous Viper pilot. You are happy knowing that without you to fix their birds, they cannot fly. You fell in love with the wrong girl, but is that so wrong? Maybe, but you don't really care. CPO Galen Tyrol   ...

I've been taking a Midrash class at VTS , a class which is essentially about how people take sections of the bible and find meaning or retell the stories adding in their own content "between the lines".  It's incredibly fascinating, my best class so far (out of three, I guess that doesn't say much) which is taught by a local Rabbi.  If you're looking for a class to help you get your head around the Old Testament, and even a basic lens to read the bible by, ,this is it. I mentioned Midrash at our high school bible study last night and one of the questions were, why would someone do that?  why does someone need to interpret the bible and add to it, it's pretty clear already, right? Here's my interesting bible fact (and really it's a couple).  We all know that the original Hebrew bible doesn't have punctuation and such (at least, we all do now, right).  There is also none of the section headings describing what is coming up.  Like that headi...

While I was home sick the last two days I decided to have a Star Wars Marathon (if you can count 2 - 3 movies a day a marathon).  I went from Episode I straight through to Episode VI, and unfortunately I've come to only one conclusion. . . The first three movies are much better than the last three. I know, I know.  Where does he get the gall to make such a statement?  How could anyone think that?  Three words. . . Jar Jar Binks, clearly Episode I - III are worthless for just that name. The thing in, the stories were just so much better and deeper.  Multiple plot lines were going on and you got a clear idea of the entire environment where problems were unfolding. Sure, the senate was for too focuses on Naboo, but the discussion around the fall of Democracy is reminiscent of just how long it takes to make any decision, and how even mistakes can be endorsed by the majority. Watching Episodes IV - VI (the one's from the 70's and 80's) there are two plot...

There's nothing like being incredibly sick for a few days to help you realize just how incredible a life you really have.  I got the flu this weekend, and I think it was about the most sick I've been in a really, really long time.  When I went to the doctor yesterday (yes, I went to the doctor for the flu, and she gave me this wonderful Robitussin . . . with codeine.   Did you know they made such a wonderful combination, I've been loopy for a day) she mentioned that this year the flu shot was only about 40% effective this year.  Apparently we were due since it was incredibly effective the previous two years.  We're so lucky. In any case, I slept horrible Saturday night, and when I got up at 6 in the morning to Colin crying, all I could do was stumble to the guest room where Erin and Rachel were sleeping (apparently my tossing and turning all night can make it hard to sleep.  Go figure) and tell Erin.  After that I began graying around the fringes ...