I love CNN. An article today on CNN.com made me smile. Click to read it.
Take notice of the 5-7th paragraphs. Basically, they’re saying we technically aren’t allowed to report this, but here’s our loophole in this violation of the freedom of speech and of the press.
So, it finally happened. LOVE took over my top 10. I don’t see that ever changing, so I’ll start putting my top ten plus my top ten non AVA songs. That should give a view of to what I listen when I’m not listening to AVA. In a new to me band appears, Hey Monday. Check them out. I like their pop punk sound, and lead singer Cassadee Pope is definitely easy on the eyes.
1. Shove-80
2. Young London- 72
3.The Flight of Apollo-70
4. Epic Holiday-69
5. Hallucinations-60
6. Soul Survivor(…2010)-45
7. Letter to God, Part II-41
8. Clever Love-39
9. Et Ducit Mundum Per Luce-37
10. The Moon-Atomic (…Fragments and Fictions)-37
Non-AVA
1. Madi Don’t Leave by PlayRadioPlay!-37
2. When Love Has Come Along by Adam Wheatley-36
3. Arizona by Hey Monday-32
4. Homecoming by Hey Monday-27
5. Feeling This by Blink-182-25
6.Candles by Hey Monday-20
6. My Life Would Suck Without You by Kelly Clarkson-20
8. How you Love Me Now by Hey Monday- 19
9. Stockholm Syndrome by Blink-182-18
10. Cassie by Flyleaf-18
Last night was week 4 of Worship at the Horseshoe, now located at the State House.
Attendance was down a bit, but I was pleasantly surprised to see how many people showed. It’s exam week, and students are busy studying away. Nevertheless a large group of them still decided to take time and come together to worship.
The speaker talked about the importance of Christian fellowship, and having friends that are there to face life’s challenges with you. Tonight was the last one of this year, but I hope it picks up right where we left off when students return in August.
I’m sure most of yall have heard of the controversies in the past few years over the depiction of Mohammed. Muslim groups have been angered by non Muslims depicting their prophet in cartoons. Now there is a cartoonist in Seattle that is advocating an “Everybody Draw Mohammed Day” I have mixed [and a bit contradicting] opinions on this whole issue, and would like to hear your thoughts on it.
1. The Muslims that are getting upset and threatening cartoonists are absolutely ridiculous. It’s a cartoon, and I don’t care what your religion says about drawing your prophet. The cartoonists aren’t Muslim, so they’re not obligated to live by your rules.
2. Then again, is it really smart to intentionally provoke them? We’ve seen what the extremists can do.
3. Should I as a Christian show them the same level of respect I’d want from them? I wouldn’t want them to defame Jesus, even though he is not their deity.
4. Aren’t these “depictions” of Mohammed really dependent on a caption? Seriously. We know what Buddha looked like [or at least have a mainstream image]. Jesus, though probably incorrect, has a very easily recognized visage. But show me a picture of “Mohammed” and I wouldn’t know it without a caption.
5. South Park is known for their crude humor. I highly respect the principles for which its creators fight. Freedom of speech for all is important. I think Christians, who are often criticized for their opinions, should support this principle of protecting unpopular speech . I do find this to be in poor taste however. In making a point against Islam and censorship, they are continuing their tradition of intentionally disrespecting religions.
If you read yesterday’s post I asked readers what they would do it they won the lottery.
Today my challenge is “Do It”
Go on that mission trip you want. Give to that charity you support. Start up that business you have planned.
Just because you don’t have $250 million doesn’t mean you can’t do those things. Aside from buying a yacht and traveling the world, I’m pretty sure most of our lottery dreams could be accomplished today through a ton of hard work. Don’t sit around waiting for that day to come.
What would you do? Today’s Powerball lottery is at $252 million. If won, the lump sum after taxes would be well over $80 million.
So my question is simple. What would you do with the money?
Spend it? Save it? Give it away?
How would you live your life differently than you are now?
Would you be more generous to charities? Would you spend more time focusing on certain goals or issues?
Please leave feedback below. I’d love to hear your responses. I’ll be posting mine later.
Sunday night I was lying in bed a bit anxious about the future. In 4 weeks I’m going to Nicaragua. The day we get back I have to move out of my current apartment. I don’t have a steady income, nor a place to live for the summer. I then realized that it was absurd to be worried. I knew that God would provide, prayed, and drifted into a peaceful sleep.
Monday morning. I’m cleaning my apartment, rocking out to the tunes of Hey Monday. suddenly I hear the faint sound of Angels and Airwaves. I turn off my iPod and pick up my phone. I didn’t recognize the number, but a familiar voice greeted me when I answered. The caller asked me to come by her office, and there she offered to hire me.
I could not have asked for more perfect timing. It’s a job I love doing, and will provide for me through the summer months. Anything after that is not set in stone yet, but I’m not worried.
PS
To make that Monday more awesome, I came home to Charleston to find not one but TWO letters from Luis. He’s getting to be a pretty good little artist. I’ll try and post some of his work soon.
I have a friend in Venezuela. We’ve never met in person, but I feel like I’ve known her forever. You may know her as @misspicture. She is returning to North Africa as a missionary. Why am I telling you this? Because she needs our help. She has to raise about $35,000 in support.
I’m asking all of my followers to help her in this. You have been wonderful in the past. You’ve come together to support Project TwentyTwo, you’ve helped me fund my trips to Haiti and Nicaragua. Can yall step it up again and help her get to North Africa?
You can follow @misspicture on twitter and read her blog. You’ll be able to see her heart for missions, and hopefully be able to support her through prayers and finances.
I recently had to make a trip to the Apple store in Charleston and pay a visit to their Genius Bar. For those of you that don’t know, the Genius Bar is their customer service counter that handles diagnostics, repairs, and advice for problems customers are having with any Apple product. The staff their is very friendly and helpful. My problem took a while to solve, so I was able to se several other people around me at the Bar during my visit.
A visit to the Genius Bar typically begins a day or so before the trip to the store. You can make an appointment online and tell them what your problem is. When you walk in the store an associate will ask your name, and mark you as in the store in their system. They must make a note of your clothing, because within a few minutes of waiting around playing with the newest gadget [the iPad on this visit] a Genius will come find you and take you back to the Bar.
One woman came in with a computer that had an incorrect memory card stuck in the slot. The Genius was able to get the offending card out of her computer within a minute.
My particular problem was with Final Cut. The Genius worked with me over an hour. He ran diagnostics, installed some updates for me, and consulted with colleagues to help me.
Another woman walked in off the street. A Genius checked the appointments, had an opening, and helped her right away. He was unable to fix her iPod then, so he went to the back and got her a brand new replacement.
My computer is not under warranty, but that didn’t matter to them. They helped me just the same. The woman that got an iPod most likely still had Apple Care to get product replacement. It’s anybody’s guess for the other woman. The point is Apple has great customer service, and they stand behind their products. Like I said yesterday, they’re the one stop shop when it comes to fixing a problem with your computer. My love for Apple had been fading recently to the shine of Google’s rising sun. However, this trip reminded me why I turned to Apple in the first place, and why I’ll stick with them into the future.
I rarely have problems with my Mac, but I know when I do Apple has my back. All it takes is an easy trip to the Genius Bar. Every time I tell people to get a Mac when they’re looking I hear “I want to, but they’re more expensive” Correction : ” They’re more expensive the first day.” Fast forward 6 years down the road, however, and I’m sure you’ll see a different picture.
How many times has that “cheaper” PC crashed and had to be repaired. How many hours have you spent on the phone being shuffled around with tech support. When you have problems, where do you go for support? The PC manufacturer, Windows, the store that old it to you?
Macs are more stable and last longer. They have physical locations all over the country. Apple produces the software, hardware, ad sells it. It’s an easy one call for all of your problems. If there is a problem with your hardware they are more than willing to help fix the problem, and will even replace it if they can’t. Finally I can’t say enough good about the Genius Bar. In fact, I’m saving my review of my experience at the Genius Bar for its own post tomorrow.
Bottom line:
Don’t buy into the garbage line that Macs are more expensive than PCs. Every cent of the so called “Mac Tax” is worth it. Apple is committed to providing great customer service and support for their products which is well worth the few hundred dollars more and the hours of frustration you’ll avoid.
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