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?
My wife has been really big on reducing the number of plastic straws we use for a while now. Plastic waste is a huge problem facing our environment and we're incredibly wasteful with products that hurt the environment. And most have hailed the news, first from Starbucks and now by Marriott, of companies phasing out plastic straws as progress.
What's really weird, though, is that in the last couple of days when all of this anti-straw stuff is coming out, I've also been hearing things on a few different podcasts which kind of stand in contrast to the "straws are bad!" argument. The first was that plastic straws actually account for comparatively little of the world's plastic waste. I wish I remembered where I heard that so I could verify the source, but the implication of that piece was basically, "You shouldn't be stressing out over straws; you should be stressing out over plastic bags and single-use cups which are far larger contributors to the volume of plastic waste."
Another commentary was by a contributor to the Pod Save The People podcast, which noted that access to single-use straws is actually a necessity for individuals with certain physical disabilities that prohibit them from drinking directly from a beverage container, and that the sterilization process for reusable straws made out of metal, bamboo, glass, etc. at a place like Starbucks would not be practical on a large scale.
All of this got me thinking about what would be the right thing to do for people concerned about plastic waste. There have been some really good proposals about simply cutting down on the number of plastic straws used by introducing simple policies. For example, restaurants or coffee houses could furnish straws upon request only, rather than assuming you need a new one and providing it with every refill. Able-bodied people could bring reusable straws with them (or *gasp* drink directly out of a beverage container) when out in public. Although, as a side note, that didn't go so well for us the last time my wife and I went to a baseball game and they thought the stainless steel straw she brought it was either some kind of weapon, or drug paraphernalia. (Seriously, it took three security guards and a supervisor almost ten minutes to sort out that we weren't a risk.) And some eco-friendly places have actually started introducing sturdy cardboard-esque paper straws that actually last plenty long enough to finish your drink with.
For me, I think the bottom line is that we should all be doing something to help the environment with plastic waste, but it's impossible to do everything... and there will always be someone out there to make you feel guilty for not doing more. Maybe you're the one that brings your own bags to the supermarket or chooses paper over plastic. Maybe you're the one who buys big gallons of water or uses a water dispenser rather than buying dozens of smaller bottles each month. Maybe you're the one who reuses a water bottle or single-use cup several times. Or maybe you're the person who brings your own straw and gets detained at a ball game. As far as I'm concerned, as long as you're doing something to be a more conscientious consumer of plastic and trying to limit your plastic usage, you're a-okay with me.
You know who's not a-okay with me? The idiots in front of me at a juice bar last week who literally went through five different disposable straws between them for their two juices.
"Oops, I grabbed the shorter one. I wanted a taller straw." *throws away straw*
"Oh, that straw has a small tear in the paper covering." *throws away straw*
*finally manages to select two straws they like*
"Hey, grab an extra one in case we need it."
As far as I'm concerned, as long as you're doing something to be a more conscientious consumer of plastic and trying to limit your plastic usage, you're a-okay with me. 
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