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?
"Blog Harbor" PROMPT (DAY 17): Moment of truth time. If someone were to put your entire music collection on random, what would be the most mortifying song to come up? In other words, of all the songs you own, which one is the most embarrassing to admit to? C'mon... fess up!
Yes, I purchased this song on iTunes. Yes, I'm one of the 119 million people who have viewed the YouTube music video. No, I am by no means proud of it. Actually I own two versions of this song; the original and the cover from the cast of Glee. Which is actually an interesting existential question, if you think about it. Is it worse to buy a terrible song? Or a terrible song covered by someone else? I mean, I suppose the Glee kids at least have decent voices...
The best part of this song (and video) is that it's produced by ARK Music Factory, a label created by Clarence Jey and Patrice Wilson (the latter of whom also features in the song but insisted on not being credited) which is clearly in the "I'll produce any album you want as long as we get our fee" music space. What I love more than anything is that this is - by far - the biggest hit these two guys have ever had and I'm pretty sure it was completely unintentional. Not that it's stopped them from subsequently claiming to be geniuses and taking other people's money...
While I do grudgingly admit it's a little catchy, this song abuses Auto-Tune like it's going out of style. Auto-Tune was "originally intended to disguise or correct off-key inaccuracies, allowing vocal tracks to be perfectly tuned despite originally being slightly off-pitch" (Wikipedia). Or, you know, apparently it can be used to engineer a terrible voice within an inch of its life until a robotic, overly-processed version meets the bare minimum of what could be technically considered music. Using Auto-Tune in this manner is like using the drive assist feature a lot of cars have these days and, rather than correcting for minor curvatures in a relatively straight road, expecting your car to drive you around town while you run errands. That's not how it's supposed to be used, and it's going to result in a wreck!
And yet I still bought the song. Twice. And at least a dozen of the video's views are mine, if not more. So who's the real idiot here?
"Blog Harbor" PROMPT (DAY 16): Soundtrack songs. Which song from a movie/TV/game/etc. soundtrack has the most emotional impact on you? What song, when you hear it, brings you right back to the scene in question and gets you teary-eyed, overjoyed, amped up, etc. all over again?
It's pretty hard to top the iconic Kenny Loggins song "Danger Zone" from the action blockbuster and allegedly homoerotic fantasy film Top Gun. From the opening montage (which is actually the "Top Gun Anthem" and another iconic song), you're immediately thrown into the world of fighter pilots. Later on, when "Danger Zone" kicks in while jet engines ignite and fighters taking off from the deck of an aircraft carrier, you can almost feel the adrenaline coursing through your veins.
I always forget how much fun it is to watch this film until I catch a glimpse of it on TV or catch some clips on YouTube. It's delightfully over the top in the way that only an 80s action movie can be, and so most of the iconic moments only get cheesier and cheesier with time. I was a little too young to catch this on the first run in theaters, but I remember watching it on home video years later and being amazed at how they shot all of the plane stuff. It's kind of a cliche these days that a movie should show you a world you never knew existed, but it's a cliche precisely because of movies like these where audiences were awestruck at the idea of actually getting a sense of what it's like to be a fighter pilot. Or, in the case of Backdraft, a firefighter. Or, in the case of Lethal Weapon, a renegade loose cannon of a cop who plays by his own rules.
Enjoy the video for this song too; it's 80s Kenny Loggins at his best, back when music videos for movie soundtracks were basically clips from the film intercut with the artist singing in one of the film's cheapest-to-recreate scenes. I mean, seriously, is the idea here that Kenny Loggins is singing from the same bed that Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis boned in? I guess so!
"Blog Harbor" PROMPT (DAY 15): Songs you hate. Tell us about one or more songs that you would be perfectly content to never hear again in your life, ever.
The irony of having to find (and therefore) listen to a song in order to link a video to it in a blog post about songs I hate and would be happy to never hear again is not lost on me. And all that said, while I ultimately picked "Dreams" the song to feature, I would be perfectly content to never listen to another track from The Cranberries ever again. "Dreams," "Zombie," "Linger" ... you can keep them all. My wife loves them but I just find their music so... whiny.
There's no doubt their music has made an impact on people. 40 million records sold and eight Top 20 singles is no fluke. In fact, there's probably a lot of people in my generation who would list them as one of the most important bands of their formative years. And, sure, I can appreciate the complex emotions in their songs and the whole tortured artist thing. I really can. It''s just that their music is so... whiny.
Despite my distaste for their music, I was sad to hear that lead singer Dolores O'Riordan died earlier this year. It's never easy when a music icon passes away, especially someone who passes at the relatively young age of 46. She and her band had an immense influence around the world and I really wish I liked The Cranberries more than I do. It's just that their music is so... whiny.
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From the opening montage (which is actually the "Top Gun Anthem" and another iconic song), you're immediately thrown into the world of fighter pilots. Later on, when "Danger Zone" kicks in while jet engines ignite and fighters taking off from the deck of an aircraft carrier, you can almost feel the adrenaline coursing through your veins.