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elmothegeek
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Name: Chris
Country: Canada
State: British Columbia
Metro: Vancouver
Birthday: 4/27/1983
Gender: Male
Interests: literature, literary theory, theology, programming, contemporary art music, jazz, photography
Occupation: Student
Message: message me
Member Since:
10/7/2005
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| This week I'm going to try reducing stress (for myself and others) by paying more attention to my work environment. I will keep my desk tidy. I'm decorating my office with photos of friends and family.
I'm also posting visible and attainable goals for our team, and am bringing my technical book collection to work. I like goals, and I especially like the feeling of being surrounded by books. The idea that I just have to open one to learn something new and away from the mundane motivates me.
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| Cleaning houseI can't believe it's been nearly a year now since moving to Vancouver. Things are very different than they were a year ago, and that's a blessing.
I cleaned the kitchen, and it felt good. I enjoy mundane activities much more than I did... maybe for the respite they give from a hectic life, and maybe because I'm much less idealistic than I used to be. It feels good to have a job and pay bills and lay the foundation to one day support a family. Transforming the world is now a local, "kingdom" thing that does not require a radio show or a captive audience.
My priorities and goals have done a complete 180... and yet I feel empowered, expectant.
Most importantly, my faith feels stable, coherent, different. I am not swayed by every critical opinion I read. My theology is rooted in faith, rather than vice versa.
Enjoying life... and just had to record that somewhere. :)
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| A night out at the movies...on a budget?I went to see Pan's Labyrinth tonight. The theatre forgot to turn the house lights off when the film started; we had to go ask the concession staff (the only two employees working, I swear) to turn them off.
Fortunately. they were much quicker on the draw when it came time to leave. We saw about 5 seconds of credits (the director and writer's credits only) before they abruptly ended.
Nor did they waste any time shutting the lights off at the end of the film.
At least their responsiveness trended upwards.
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| Soorp soorpMy choir sang the service music for an Armenian wedding today.
First, I've never seen, nor will I probably ever see again, such a beautiful wedding (and I've been to more than my share). They had an unbelievable amount of white roses and orchids throughout the church; everything was meticulously decorated; they had three priests (at least two of whom were bishops) presiding over the service.
The whole service was in Armenian save for the personal message, so it was mostly lost on me. The bit that was in English, though, was an intriguing glimpse into a Christian faith I didn't even know existed until today. (In Googling later, I found out that the Armenian Apostolic Church separated from both the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox strains over the doctrine of Christ's nature.)
A fellow singer in the choir described the priests as "unaffected" (in the sense of "free of artificiality"), and that was a perfect description for them. They came across as humble, godly people who had no need to put on religious airs. I was deeply impressed, partly because "unaffected" is the perfect word to describe the faith I aspire to. (It's also the biggest reason why I can't see myself as a clergy member in the near future, because I don't know that I could be in that position and remain authentic.)
I also learned that Armenia was the first country in the world to declare Christianity the official state religion (I wonder what Hauerwas would have to say about that), and that as of 2001 there were just over 40 000 Armenians living in Canada. (That's not a lot of people.)
The idea that people could be "culturally Christian" used to deeply bother me, as though it were an obstacle to the Gospel, but now it intrigues me. Isn't that what we believers all are striving to become -- cultural Christians, not merely believers in proposition but also in language and life?
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| Pros and cons of being a packrat...Pro: Packrat C. wants to go for a run, but is not sufficiently motivated to run in the winter cold without music, and has lost his iPod earphones. Fortunately, said packrat happens to have a stash of miscellanea which happens to include a pair of Westjet headphones that happen to be iPod-compatible.
Con: Packrat C. has a messy house to clean, especially after upturning everything to find said headphones. | | |
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