So what exactly was accomplished there?

Saddam is dead. We hung him. Ok, the Iraqis hung him. Whatever. What good exactly did that do? Show that we can be as vengeful as he could? Somehow it reminds me of the logic my preschooler uses when he hits his big sister.

The silver lining is that I suppose this means that those guards who were busy making sure Saddam didn't make an embarrassing escape are now free to join in the attempt to keep the rest of the violence in Iraq down. May it be so.

On "home"

The first part of our holiday travels have taken us home. Susan's family's home that is, but after better than a dozen years of coming here regularly, it feels quite at home to me as well. There actually isn't one particular home - there's mom's house, dad's house, a sister's house, and the farm. The farm. I remember when Susan first spoke of the farm (then also the home of her grandparents), shortly after I met her; this city-boy-from-Illinois conjured up images straight out of the flatlands of the midwest. But its not at all like that. There hasn't been a crop grown here in decades - just some hay and usually some cows. And hills, ridges, creeks, and valleys with plenty of woods. And the lake. Lake is really more than it deserves - its really a pond, but it is called the lake. Close enough to the house to be easily accessible even on a quick trip on a day where the weather isn't so great, but far enough away to be transforming. Ducking through the woods off the upper field is almost like going thru the Wardrobe. No snow though, at least this time.

Since the house is empty most of the time and we are now four of us, we have been staying at the farm on our longer trips here, which has only served in increase my appreciation. For when one is staying here, sunrise & sunset, the coming and going of the moon, dew (or frost) on the grass, the general stillness; all are more thoroughly experienced. It is good to go home, even if it is an adopted one.

Merry Christmas

Aaah, vacation. The holidays. Ok, since we live 500+ miles away from any other portion of our family and have 2 young kids, I'm not sure that vacation and holidays belong in the same paragraph. They are quite fun (mostly), but, well, let's just say that my definition of "vacation" still needs a bit of adjusting. Quiet times of contemplation, resting, and sleeping these are not. But as my dear wife reminds me, this is but a short stage of life. A time will soon be here when Christmas is all too quiet. So I try to absorb and enjoy, not merely endure. Our kids are at the age where so much of the holiday season (and any season) is Wonder. The excitement is palpable. They are beginning to recognize traditions in our family. They are looking forward to seeing cousins and grandparents. And they know a few Christmas songs too. Benjamin was very excited to hear two of the songs he learned in preschool on the car radio. But in their 4 & 5 year-old way, they Get It, too. This isn't about them. This is about Jesus. They don't totally get what that means, I'm sure, but maybe, just maybe, there is a foundation building there. Merry Christmas.

C & Es

While wandering in Emergent Village I stumbled across a link to an interesting column by Marianne Mead Ward in in the Toronto Sun. While there's several interesting comments about the Emergent Church - of which I consider our Emmaus Way community to be attempting to be - it was her opening question that struck me most:

It's that time of year when churches try to woo the "seasonal" believers -- those folk who go to church only once a year, maybe twice, including Easter. I'm not sure whether this is a phenomenon experienced in other faiths -- do some Muslims go to the mosque only during Ramadan? Do some Jews only show up in the synagogue for Hannukah?

Growing up, my church called them "C & Es" - as in folks who only came to church on Christmas and Easter. It was a mixed blessing for a young'un like me - they packed the pews which made the likelihood of sitting next to a stranger and not being able to squirm much both highly likely... but they also ensured that any message was not too long and not too controversial. My favorite part for a few years was that the words to songs were printed in the bulletin, rather than sung from hymnals. The whole skipping lines thing was pretty confusing to me as I was beginning to read.

Anyway, I digress. Is there a Muslim or Jewish equivalent of C & Es? I wonder.

Does this sound like anyone you know...?

From the this week's lectionary text (Zephaniah 3:1-5):

"The city that wouldn't take advice, wouldn't accept correction, Wouldn't trust God, wouldn't even get close to her own god! Her very own leaders are rapacious lions, Her judges are rapacious timber wolves out every morning prowling for a fresh kill. Her prophets are out for what they can get. They're opportunists - you can't trust them. Her priests desecrate the Sanctuary. They use God's law as a weapon to maim and kill souls..." (translation from The Message)

Apologies for ripping scripture out of context, but there are times when the ancient words strike very close to home.

In this season of Advent, preparing for the celebration of the coming birth of our Lord and Savior, may we also pray for peace.

It was probably worth it...

I'm soooo jealous... driving a Zamboni is one of my life ambitions. Doing a drive-thru with one is just genius!


Idaho Zamboni drivers fired after trip to fast-food drive-thru.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - A slow run for some fast food in Boise, Idaho, has cost two city workers their jobs.

They were spotted on their Zamboni ice rink machines in a Burger King drive-through earlier this month.

The Zambonis are chunky vehicles with rubber tires that hit a top speed of five miles-an-hour. The drivers had to get through at least one traffic light to make the midnight "run" -- covering a mile and a-half, round-trip.

Neither the $75,000 Zambonis nor their $10,000 blades appeared damaged.

A city official say the two temporary city workers didn't seem to understand "the seriousness" of what they did.

(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Sgt Pepper

Its getting to that time of year again. When everyone publishes their "best-of" list and their year-in-review. I'm not sure if its driven by a great human need to reflect back on periods gone by, or more from a lack of media content to fill the pages & airwaves during the holiday season. Regardless, most of the time it drives me nuts and I ignore them.

I've also never been one for celebrations of birthdays, anniversaries, and the like. I realize that many folks (my wife for one) enjoy marking the days with celebration, and that's fine. For me, its just fine to know that people are thinking of me and that's about all.

However, I have this bizarre habit of remembering random anniversaries. Not so much of people, but of events. Like today is the 2nd anniversary of the announcement that eventually freed me from Big Blue and made me an employee of Lenovo. Overall, its been a good thing... although there are still those here who like to point out that the anniversary also coincides with that of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Oh yeah... and I'm not sure if anything really important happened 20 years ago today, but for some reason the song popped into my head when I started thinking about anniversaries.

One of the many reasons I love Durham

Gotta love a town that is comfortable enough with itself to allow a pawn shop to have a float in the Christmas parade! :)

Sorry, no picture - camera is in the shop :(