Logocentric (adj).Regarding words and language as a fundamental expression of an external reality (especially applied as a negative term to traditional Western thought by postmodernist critics).
Sometimes I just write whatever I feel like. Other times I respond to prompts, many taken from the following places:
I have always enjoyed the longer distance running and skiing. The Marathon in Summer Olympics and the 50km Mass Start in the Winter. My wife can't understand how I can watch the same race for several hours. But they are fascinating to me. I like the Downhill Slalom, Bobsled and Luge sports. Attending a Winter Olympics remains on my bucket list.
My favorite sporting events in the Winter Olympics are the Luge, Bobsled, Figure Skating and curling. Initially, I thought I would be bored with curling but I'm not. It's fascinating how they determine each glide's angle and potential score.
When my children were younger we built them a luge course, they loved it. We were lucky that winter to have lots of snow to build up the walls and with some help with pallets that we covered with snow, it kept them and the neighborhood kids busy until it warmed up and melted. I was a lot more at ease with the luge course than I was when they decided to try arial jumps off our house roof. Never a dull moment when you live in Maine.
I am reading ESV through the Bible this time. Like you, I've explored a bunch of translations. My church uses NIV but my women's Bible study group (part of the same church) varies based on what Bible study we're doing.
Hope you enjoy the Olympics! I agree that the every four year thing makes them feel more special.
I read the New American Bible, which is a Catholic Bible. (NABRE) They include Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees, which generally aren't included in other versions of the Bible. I would be curious to read an orthodox bible or the Ethiopian Bible as I hear they have differences as well.
As for the Olympics, I love the Winter Olympics. I'm just crossing my fingers I have time to watch!
In terms of the original texts the NASB has the best reputation among conservative scholars. It looks at more translations, has a sensible hierarchy of text selection and the best principles for approaching the translation task. It favors original texts when possible. The ESV and NKJV are on a similar level. The Net Bible gives the best overview of the discussions in its commentary. The NIV renders the original text to make it more readable. It is a more functional text which is why many churches use it but it is also less precise. Greek or Russian orthodox are more Septuagint orientated and there is a considerable amount of ethical or emotional rendering to the text.The disadvantage of the NASB is that it loses much of the Hebrew poetical style in its effort to be precise as this does not translate into the English
I'm very fortunate to have met some practicing and humble Christians. Truly humble people seek to serve, not attain power and influence. The actions of many Christians make me run the opposite way... as fast as I can.
In his book, Sit, Walk, Stand, Watchman Nee states: "Nothing has done greater damage to our Christian testimony than our trying to be right and demanding right of others. We become preoccupied with what is and what is not right. We ask ourselves,' Have we been justly or unjustly treated?' and we think thus to vindicate our actions. But that is not our standard. The whole question for us is one of crossbearing".
Jeff, this is an excellent book. Perhaps one for your reading list?
I'm all for gender equity, so I might as well follow up an 80s rock ballad by Stan Bush with an 80s rock ballad from the incomparable Pat Benatar. She's better known for "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" and "Love Is a Battlefield" and "We Belong," but this one is up there for me right alongside "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" as one of her best. It wasn't from a particularly memorable album (it's from 1982's Get Nervous, her fourth album), and it got a little lost between the much more successful Crimes of Passion from 1980 ("Hit Me with Your Best Shot") and 1983's Live From Earth ("Love Is a Battlefield").
By the way, can we just for a minute recognize the incredible feat she accomplished with putting out seven albums in seven consecutive years between 1979 and 1985? That's an incredible amount of musical output, even by today's standards. This song has also been featured in The Goldbergs as well as the soundtracks for a variety of other movies, television, and video games. And like the Stan Bush track, this one is frequently on my workout playlist on account of the fact that it's just so energetic it helps me stay motivated while I'm working out.
It's been almost two years to the day since I last included a Stan Bush song in a Soundtrackers' Guilty Pleasures week. Back then it was his monster hit "The Touch" from the Transformers: The Movie soundtrack. I believe Beth's response as the time was, and I quote, "Oh lordy... 80's metal and cartoons... ." Well, Beth isn't here anymore, so I'm trotting out another Stan Bush classic for my inaugural Guilty Pleasures entry, this one from 1989's immortal Kickboxer, starring the Muscles from Brussels himself, Jean Claude Van Damme!
This song has had a bit of a resurgence lately, thanks to being featured in several episodes of the popular sitcom The Goldbergs, so clearly there's at least one other Stan Bush fan out there in show creator Adam F. Goldberg. It really is the perfect cheesy "keep fighting for your dreams" song, complete with synthesizers, electric guitar solos, and power-ballad vocals. Whether you're competing in an underground international kickboxing tournament or just trying to finish the short story you're working on, I defy you not to be inspired by "Never Surrender."
At least one Stan Bush song is usually in rotation at any given time on my workout playlist... and at present, it's this one (and "The Touch"). There's just something about rockin' 80s music that helps get the heart rate into the red zone.
First, I would just like to point out the excessive lengths someone at Wikipedia is going to in order to point out that the name MKTO came from a combination of the duo's initials: "They later formed as a duo and came up with the name MKTO, which represents the combined initials of their names and surnames, MK for Malcolm Kelley and TO for Tony Oller." Thanks for making that crystal clear, Wikipedia! It was also fun to realize that these two met each other while filming a television series for Nickelodeon.
I like the vocals in this song, and it has a pretty catchy beat. I haven't listened to any of their other stuff so it's hard to say whether MKTO (which stands for the initials, first name and last name, of Malcolm Kelly - MK - and Tony Oller - TO, FYI ) will be making repeated appearances on my Current Playlist or if this is a one-and-done kind of thing.
Honestly, the band they remind me most of is Nico & Vinz, a previous Soundtrackers entry of mine from 2015: {entry: 840534}. "When That Day Comes" isn't perhaps the best comparison, but there's a link to "Am I Wrong?" which I think is a very close comparison. Anyway, probably like Nico & Vinz, I'll keep MKTO around for a while until the simple lyrics start to feel a little tired.
Move over, ABBA, Roxette, Ace of Base, Avicii, Cardigans, Europe, and Eagle Eye Cherry... I have a new Swedish artist to add to my Current Playlist favorites! For the record, Roxette's "Listen to Your Heart" is the only other song from these bands that is actually currently on a playlist of mine. Not that I don't love "Save Tonight" and "The Final Countdown" ... they're just not in the current rotation.
I've heard a handful of Zara Larsson's songs before, but none of them really stuck until this one. It's the single from her upcoming third studio album (second international release). It's a little unusual for me to choose a pessimistic song about a toxic relationship (I'm usually more of an upbeat messaging kind of guy), but the beat and the rhythm are just so catchy in this song I can't help but keep listening to it.
Even though she's only 21, she's actually been around for over a decade, ever since she won the 2008 season of Talang (Sweden's version of America's Got Talent). She signed with a record label in 2012 and released her first EP in 2013. That EP would eventually be certified 3x platinum in Sweden and get her on the radar of record labels around the world.
I initially found this song on the To All The Boys I've Loved Before soundtrack. Which is actually a fantastic soundtrack, by the way. This song has been on my current playlist since that movie came out in August of last year, which makes it one of the longest-running tracks on my Current Playlist. I really like the simplicity of the beats, and he's got a unique sound. He's relatively new to the music scene; after a brief stint producing music for other acts, he started his own music efforts in earnest in 2014 and released his first EP in 2015. This song was released in 2017, gained immediate popularity, and resulted in Lauv joining Ed Sheeran on the Asia leg of his Divide Tour.
Lauv is also one of the few artists to have more than one song featured in my Current Playlist. I don't like to sample too much of the same artist when I put together a playlist because I like a variety of music, but I just couldn't help but add his follow-up "There's No Way" (featuring Julia Michaels) to my playlist as well. This song was released in September of last year, but it took me a couple of months of listening to "I Like Me Better" on repeat before I stumbled across this song. It has a lot of the same hallmarks of his other songs, though. Fairly simple beats and lyrics, but still very catchy and unique-sounding.
I have a feeling he's going to be one of my new favorite artists. At least at the moment, I'm definitely excited to see what he comes up with next.
That's an incredible amount of musical output, even by today's standards. This song has also been featured in The Goldbergs as well as the soundtracks for a variety of other movies, television, and video games. And like the Stan Bush track, this one is frequently on my workout playlist on account of the fact that it's just so energetic it helps me stay motivated while I'm working out.
Comment 
." Well, Beth isn't here anymore, so I'm trotting out another Stan Bush classic for my inaugural Guilty Pleasures entry, this one from 1989's immortal Kickboxer, starring the Muscles from Brussels himself, Jean Claude Van Damme! 
It was also fun to realize that these two met each other while filming a television series for Nickelodeon.
) will be making repeated appearances on my Current Playlist or if this is a one-and-done kind of thing.