Sword Fighting

Someday, I'm going to get my hands on this set.
I'd like to learn how to do this with Arthur...

Battle Swords in Action from Douglas Phillips on Vimeo.

Pianos, Harps, and Election Day

This last month, October, I officially made more by tuning pianos than I did working part-time as a custodian.  That's a good milestone for my business.
Today, November first, I tuned a piano for some folks, and when I was done I tuned a Celtic harp they had recently inherited, as the tuning pins were the same as on a piano.  I'd never played a harp before, let alone tuned one.  I guess I can put that on my resume.
Tomorrow is election day.  Everyone is making predictions, so here's mine:
Republicans will pick up 70 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, and 10 in the Senate.
I think there is a greater chance that I have underestimated than overestimated.  We'll find out tomorrow.

Deos tihs mkae any sncee?

I recently received an email, which said the following:

"fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too"

"Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can."

"i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae.. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt! if you can raed tihs forwrad it."

We all have them. People we know who are among our email contacts, who, everytime they receive one of those "cute" emails, without hesitation forward it to everyone. (Hint, Hint, Rosie).
But I digress. I don't completely agree with the above argument. I was able to read the scrambled words, but it wasn't just because the first and last letters were in the proper place (most of the time). It was also because it was in context. For example, consider this word:

"Psedenirt"
How long did it take you to figure out that word? Probably a while. Now, try this word, with some context:



"The Cutistotinon of the Utenid Saetts"
Much easier this time, right? That's because you had some context. You figured it out faster because it was in context, in spite of the fact that it was a longer and more complicated word. Don't just take what you read in certain emails at face value. There's usually more to the story.

What's Wrong with the Public Option?

Yes, I know: another video. But watch it. It's not long.

Alright. If you're a liberal, you might have to watch this a few more times to get it. Don't give up. It's not that hard to understand what everybody else already knows about the government.

Wow...

Amazing. I didn't realize such a great piece could be so effectively reduced to one guitar. This takes incredible skill.

So This is the Guy!

So, when I first saw this picture, I laughed. No, not because he looks funny (he looks quite intelligent and dignified, I think). Just two reasons, really. First, I've always wondered what this guy looked like (and kind of imagined a different appearance), so when I finally found a picture of him, I had to laugh. And secondly, just look at his expression. He's laughing about something. So naturally, I've got to laugh with him.
Who is this guy anyway? James D. G. Dunn, that's who. Everyone keeps thinking that I'm named after him. Dr. Will Varner at TMC was able to remember my name that way. I remember when he said to me in class, "You know you're named after a famous theologian, don't you?"
"Yeah," I replied, "But isn't he that New-Perspective guy?"
"Oh!" exclaimed Dr. Varner, hitting his forhead with his hand. "New perspective, the mark of the beast! No, really, he's a nice guy. I had lunch with him once, and he bought me a capachino. He's a great guy."
Yes, I agree. A brilliant man too, although I think he's quite mistaken about Paul's theology. But I don't want to get into theology at the moment; notice I didn't file this post under theology. I just like seeing a guy who goes by the same name wearing a nice big friendly smile. :)

More information on James D. G. Dunn:

• Wikipedia
• Theopedia