sweet death

My cat's name is Cadbury, cause he's the colour of caramel and my mom used to work in the factory (and yes, we know how they get the caramel in there).
I know some of you cat-haters are making fun of my cat right now. "Look at amac's lazy cat. I bet he doesn't get his face licked when he comes home from work." Well hate on Hater. My cat is a death-making-machine. Yesterday my mom ordered me into the backyard to clean up two dead mice and a cluster of feathers from a dead bird. The bird's body was gone, probly got pooed into my cat's litter box or something.

And yes, I do get my face licked by a tongue that has been involved in an obscene number of gruesome deaths. I find it inspiring.

'gone surfing'

not really, but that's how I've been feeling the past while. I've been enjoying a sort of in Toronto vacation the past few weeks. Some part-time work, lots of reading, and hanging out with friends. Just yesterday I noticed that my good friend, mr 'light but persistant anxiety' has checked his bags for a vacation as well.

So yeah things are working out pretty well, so I'm trying to evaluate what goes on in my head when circumstances are not trying. I feel less stress, but sometimes I feel little pangs just cause. I don't feel a need to blog as much. I have plenty of ideas I could blog about, but most of them deal with theology or movement building or strengthening my fingers for rock climbing. So that probly means blogging is a release for me. I guess it is for all of us.

anyhow, those are some thoughts, and here's a proverb, "A prudent man keeps his thoughts to himself, but the heart of fools burst out folly." 12:23

A very unphilosophical blog

I love the Supertones. They broke up a while ago, but not after pumping out some great ska albums and preaching it old school style. I found these guys hit at things Christians really think about, instead of giving vague cliches that provide temporary relief to hearts that yearn to feed on truth.
One example is how they write about the problem of evil or suffering in the world. Here are quotes from two of their songs: The Wilderness and The Shepherd is Lamb. Read them if you like, I was going to summarize the message, but that's a dumb idea. Lyrics are meant to be sung, especially this type. (itunes it up, or download, i'm sure they'd approve)

The rain falls on the righteous and the wicked
Mine is not to reason why this is
In this I rest, in this I find my refuge
That my thoughts and ways are not His
I spend my life on looking up the answers
It's rare that I can't find a reason why
But reasons fail at children without mothers
His plan is more than I can know

Have you ever held in doubt
What this life is all about
Have you questioned all these things that seem important to us
Do you really wanna know
Or are you a little scared
You're afraid that God is not really exactly what you'd have Him be
What should I hold to and what should I do
How do I know if anything's true
I'm somewhere in-between Canaan and Egypt
A place called the wilderness

I'm not one who always trusts their feelings
I don't believe in what you'd call blind faith
But faith that you can do all that you promised
And you said it all works for good
Its safe to say I don't see the big picture
I can't see the forest for the trees
And if five hundred lives
Were mine to get to know
You all could be spent on just this

God do you really understand what it's like to be a man
Have You ever felt the weight of loving all the things you Hate
Have You struggled have you worried
How can You sympathize

I have spoken too soon put my hand over my mouth
I can't contend with You
Your ways are so much higher
And we pass through the fire that Christ endured before us
When You were in the wilderness

"(Preacher) The incarnation is God's grace is made evident and obvious. People matter, life is sacred. Men, women and children are worth the greatest sacrifice, the supreme efforts, the Ultimate Gift."

So what becomes of those
poor unwanted souls
who spend their lives breaking their backs
Or those who dig the gold
for the rich and powerful
who place their feet upon their necks

The Shepherd is the Lamb
Do you understand,
That God became a man
The Shepherd is the Lamb

Where can the junkies go when the high has laid them low?
Are they truly on their own?
Itseems like we've lost our way
Like sheep we've gone astray
Can anybody lead us home

"(Preacher) It is the amazing manifestation of his unshakable love for the unloved. The unlovely, the weak, the base, the unworthy. The rebels, the sinners. You and me."

Who is the champion?
The friend of the suffering?
Those who were never born?
The King with the crown of thorns

And I'll consecrate a verse
to the kingdom in reverse
where the least are most
and the last are first.

The Shepherd is the Lamb
Do you understand,
That God became a man
The Shepherd is the Lamb

an analysis

"Chloe, I need another favor. Get me Frege's 'Truth and Meaning,' and don't let that whiner from 'Rudy' see you do it."
(ok, to get this joke you need movie knowledge, and philosophy of language knowledge.)

So, let's go over some of what's been said about Jack Bauer's foray into fashion politics.

On the one side, there's a lot of people pointing to the function or purpose of the bag as determining its classicfication. If it holds tools like guns and stuff (or school stuff), it's a satchel. If daily amenities, then purse.
A problem with this view is we can think of all kinds of counter-examples where bags that are clearly murses are used to hold tools and would thus be classified as a satchel, or vice versa. There is, however, a possible way around this. Instead of pointing to the subjective purpose of the user for the bag, let's look at the intended purpose. For example, my murse is not intended to hold text-books or guns, it's intended for stuff i may need like throughout the day like... uhhh.. whatever. You get the point.
Now hold up, what about those side bags which appear too small and stylish for a stachel, but too big for a murse? Their reasonable utility is vague. What then fashion philosopher?

Well... I'll refer to a beautiful comment from a s-m-a-r-t Queen's student. "Often the bearer's style and poise can determine whether it is a murse or not." Just use the whole picture.

Now the one bag I cannot figure out is what Josh R. got in North Africa. It's smooth leather, big, but has this big metal emblem... The thing is beyond philosophical categorization.

Here's an Andrew Murray quote
"where there is an earnest desire for the glory of Jesus in the heart of the believer, the Holy Spirit will preserve the prescence of Jesus in our hearts. We must not weary ourselves with striving after God's prescence. We must quietly endeavour to abide in fellowship with Christ, to love Him and keep His commandments, and to do everything in the name of Jesus. Then we will be able to count upon the secret but powerful working of the Spirit within us."