categories
: I’ve gotta get a hold on my face ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: I don’t want your mollification. I want your real remorse. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Your guyline is showing ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: I stand amazed that humans can distinguish /m/ from /n/.
: Just re-listened to: Supernatural (1998) by DC Talk, an album whose release was the first one I can …
: May may be merry Yet September’s the real cherry ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: •• ¡ spoiler alert ! •• The most remarkable thing about The Night Watchman, which is a good friend’s …
: A mid-hoc surmise I surmise will be of some encouragement to current and future fellow parents of …
: Just re-listened to: Love Is The King (2020) by Jeff Tweedy. The homey, sentimental sound of a …
: I do wonder whether my having become a lighter sleeper has something to do with me working in our …
: My ideal workstation is in something like a climate-controlled, outdoor telephone booth:
: You bring the fog In the fall a soft fog And I follow a call Saying, “Come” ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Bet your scruples have some loopholes ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Just re-listened to: Carried Along (2000) by Andrew Peterson. Carefully arranged, folk-esque …
: Ain’t no room for hobbyhorses In the stables of the Lord ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Mother Nature’s little sister Taught me everything I know ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Just re-listened to: Return to Cookie Mountain (2006) by TV on the Radio. Thick, noisy, wordy, loopy …
: Just park right here with the hazards on I think I’m sure the bastard’s gone ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: You find yourself lost ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Here’s an audio recording of my essay about the reasons and mechanics of Jesus’ self-subjection to …
: Just re-listened to: Jesus Freak (1995) by DC Talk. Is it nostalgia that enables me to delight in …
: It’s fine, Babe It’s fine. I do it all the time, Babe. Except I never know what to tell you …
: I dream of a world in which smartphones and laptops display the title of whatever you’re looking at …
: Geez, Steve We’re gonna need you to leave We’re just trying get some work done Please, Steve Don’t …
: What’s with the Cross? In the three thousand words or so below, you’ll find my long-gestating attempt to grasp why Jesus …
: Hey! You married him. He’s always and in all ways gonna stay him. Means he won’t leave ya, But he’s …
: Don’t worry You’ll be the next hard act to follow ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: You’re saying I should give in to the vernacular? — Scott
: percentage of adult household members holding a full-time job ∝ (frequency of dinner guests hosted …
: Just re-listened to: Carrie and Lowell (2015) by Sufjan Stevens. When Christgau wrote of this album, …
: I miss the white pages ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Just listened to: The Sky Will Still Be There Tomorrow (2024) by Charles Lloyd. Easygoing, …
: Uncommitted time I anticipate with pleasure, but planned time I often anticipate with a low level of …
: Switching costs and triskaidekaphobia be damned: We ought to ditch the Gregorian calendar and …
: Just listened to: Fireflies and Songs (2009) by Sara Groves. Piano-based adult alternative whose …
: Freeloading days are here again ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Just listened to: Silence & Music (2017) performed by Gabrieli’s “Rolls-Royce” of a choir, …
: Just listened to: Open Your Heart (2012) by The Men. Noisy, abrasive rave rock. Sometimes like Sonic …
: Finished reading: Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith (1999) by Anne Lamott. A funny, …
: A little overkill never hurt anyone Besides, Babe, I’ve only just begun ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: You mighty thing. I’m sorry. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: It’s hot night in Paris. I’m dining out with Charis, Trying to find Polaris But I can’t. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Hypothesis: A big reason we love books, movies, and recorded music is that they offer to our lower …
: “For then will I transform peoples with a pure language for them all to call in the name of the …
: Just listened to: Traditional Techniques (2020) by Stephen Malkmus. My first Malkmus solo album …
: Productivity slash peace of mind hack #372: Use a custom stylesheet to hide all but the first item …
: Guys, guys, guys, we’ve got the cross hung upside-down! It’s not a thorn of crowns That’s the …
: That photo is the most terrifying political photograph I think I have ever seen.
: I think some people think of Carla and me as hippies because of our relative lack of ambition.
: Pops got his Sunday wrong. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Veni, vidi, vici Sure ain’t how it goes You gotta take your shoes off Feel the carpet ‘tween your …
: Your spit gets thick And you’re not sure why you came The players seems nice But it’s not your game …
: Just listened to: The State Of The Tenor: Live At The Village Vanguard, Vol. 2 (1985) by Joe …
: Worse comes to worst, I can go bush hopping: where I live in a bush and when that gets compromised, …
: Just listened to: Puts: The Hours (2024) by Kevin Puts, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, The Metropolitan …
: Dr. Seuss should’ve entitled it Oh, the Mistakes You’ll Make!
: Just listened to: Alive in the Wilderness (2020) by Endless Field. New-age, occasionally jazzish, …
: Wait, is that a rule? We’re not allowed to have telepathic antecedents? — Éa, in response to …
: Today I am taking Focus up a notch: For 100% of day—morning, afternoon, evening, and night—I am …
: Note to self: When you find yourself reflecting unhappily about your job being helping make truck …
: Just listened to: False Lankum (2023) by Lankum. Irish folksters whelming their traditional ballads …
: Just watched: The Last Stop In Yuma County (2023) written and directed by Francis Gallupi. Two and a …
: I hereby plead with governments, universities, and commercial real estate developers: If you’re …
: 🎧 🎵 Hopes and Fears (2004) by Keane: Who needs smart lyrics when you have pretty melodies rendered …
: He is a sure fool who gives up what he promised to keep to gain that which he will probably lose.
: Either You’re magic, or I’m moody. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: “You’re a little much sometimes, you know that?” (God, of me)
: 🎧 🎵 The Monkees (1966) by The Monkees: Sunshine, melodies, Micky Dolenz’ voice, energetic session …
: Finished reading: How to Stay Married: The Most Insane Love Story Ever Told (2023) by Harrison Scott …
: headlamp + summertime + living next to a large park → reading a book while meandering outdoors at …
: 🎧 🎵 The Band (1969) by The Band: If rock music had emerged in the 19th century instead of the 20th. …
: (a phone call while Carla, Éa, and Scott are away for the weekend soccer tournament): Carla: Hi, …
: a very effective hedgerow ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: Judy Chicago American, b. 1939 Three Faces of Man, 1985, from PowerPlay Sprayed acrylic and oil on …
: 🎧 🎵 slutte og byne (2020) by Valkyrien Allstars: Generously arranged Norwegian prog folk rock …
: Let me look at my tomorrow. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: My head is full of things I do not care bout Or should not care about, anyway But the cost of living …
: 🎧 🎵 The Score (1996) by Fugees: The beats, the rhymes, the flow, and her singing (sometimes in …
: An elaborated 1 John 2:15-16 with some eye toward Ecclesiastes 11:9: Have desires of the flesh, but …
: Note to self: Discretize everything. It will maximize concentration, keep you from hurrying, and …
: All my good jeans are inherited. — Éa
: The pitch clock has worked: Baseball has become enjoyable to watch! ⚾️
: 🎧 🎵 Ram (1971) by Paul and Linda McCartney. An oddball, trifling McCartney album I enjoy front to …
: 🎨 I’m dithering writing to myself about Paul McCartney while wife is making this:
: “Only rich people can live like Wendell Berry,” said my friend Josh last night, helping me …
: 🎧 🎵 I’m glad I kept my CD copy of Superchic[k]’s Karaoke Superstars. Cute, catchy, honest, lightly …
: In conversation with a friend last night, we developed a fourfold list of precepts that, if held …
: The ideal birthday communication is neither the tired greeting card not the awkward phone call. The …
: Circumvent Google’s default search results page—including its new, unwelcome AI results—and return …
: Saying “thank you for your patience” before the speaker knows his listener will give it is …
: I stand with carbohydrates. 🍞
: 🎧 🎵 I happened across a CD copy of local bluegrass stalwarts Tussey Mountain Moonshiners’ 2016 album …
: Hypothetical future album title: Self-Preservation for the Sake of Others
: Is style a virtue? If so, how?
: Scott: Hey, no pointing. It makes me nervous. Sullivan: I wasn’t pointing. I was air-rubbing your …
: Ever take a grief nap? I sure have.
: Carla: There’s a book I wanna read. Éa: Me, too. But I finished it.
: “As for you, you shall not seal a covenant with the inhabitants of this land—their altars you shall …
: Sullivan said yesterday that every conversation with me feels like an argument. That’s the sort of …
: the third of three poems submitted to the bad poetry competition in celebration of Matthew’s 42nd …
: the second of three poems submitted to the bad poetry competition in celebration of Matthew’s 42nd …
: the first of three poems submitted to the bad poetry competition in celebration of Matthew’s 42nd …
: Latitude, longitude, aye, aye, aye If your don’t change your attitude, it’s bye, bye, bye
: “You almost have to give your happiness up to accomplish your goals” (Mike Tyson).
: Welp, that settles it: A single game of Civilization VI on its fastest speed (other than battle …
: Do what you’re doing. Don’t worry about the rest.
: The first chapter of Judges is all about how most of the tribes of Israel failed to drive out the …
: Jesus’ lordship is His salvation.
: a post-hoc contribution via WhatsApp to a house church discussion I missed: Since the prompt last …
: “Since all his visits were beneficial, his step or holler through a doorway got a bright welcome“ …
: “She was half a girl and half a flower[.]” — F. Scott Fitzgerald, of the first titular character in …
: Remember: Jon Levenson says that the controlling metaphor in the Hebrew Bible for the relationship …
: You said it was a long-term plan. So why start now? — Éa
: Self care is a necessary evil.
: If something matters to Carla, then it matters to me.
: A remarkable exchange between characters in Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning: Ethan Hunt: I …
: All are welcome! Come on in! Said the man in the mack with the Tommy gun. ✏️ 🎤 🎵
: On having “enough” time to write songs: One of the main ways we cheat ourselves out of creating is …
: On just creating, damnit: But all the time spent creating, if I’m in the right frame of mind, is …
: On writing without thinking about what you’re writing about: Creating something out of nothing is …
: Just listened to: The Goat Rodeo Sessions (2011) by Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer & Chris …
: Do not talk about your hard feelings after 9 PM. Maybe not even after 8 PM.
: For the joy! By which I mean to answer questions such as: Why do anything? Why work? Why make music? …
: A brief message I sent to our house church ahead of a meeting that I was going to miss about how one …
: If Spotify “DJ” interrupts my listening one more time, I will switch to Apple Music.
: Step one in any anti-racist agenda: Refuse to speak in terms of race. Skin color? Pigment? Melanin? …
: Air: the original social medium.
: Living unanxiously mindful of your own certain death is probably salutary. Living unanxiously …
: A clean conscience goes a long way.
: “Orange Crush” (1988) sounds like R.E.M. had been listening to a lot of U2.
: Methinks 1 Corinthians 11:17 tempers a mindless application of Hebrews 10:25. is.gd/1cor1117heb1025
: Love itself is the prime spiritual discipline. All others, including Bible study and prayer, are …
: Carla: Except for Sully. He’s from Venus. Sullivan: Are you saying beautiful and normally portrayed …
: Speaking harshly was one of Jesus’ love languages.
: I do confess my having daydreamed today about fronting a U2 and Britpop cover band with college …
: For Christmas, can I have socks? Like, thirty socks. And wrap them all in cash. — Sullivan
: I somehow sneezed up my shorts! — Sullivan
: Oh, that’s just dirt from earlier. — Éa, coughing
: Scott: What needs to happen for a bill to become law? Éa: Oh, I know! The bill needs to sing a song! …
: The nice thing about an airship is that you don’t need a garage. — Sullivan
: I double down when I’m wrong? Wait. When am I ever wrong? — Éa
: You know, whoever came up with the term ‘dad jokes’ has clearly never met my mother. — Sullivan
: Éa: You’re very good at putting buns in. But you’re not very good at sleeping in them. Carla: Build …
: I have been undisciplined about having fun the past couple days. — Scott, rubbing his eyes
: Any time I see people with AirPods in their ears, I can’t help but think they’re trying to save …
: Man, that piccolo really makes your biceps pop! — Sullivan
: You’re very American right now. I mean in a good way. Not in an overweight way. — Éa, replying to …
: I committed mass formicide in June. But only because they’d’ve conquered my house if I hadn’t.
: Oh, that? That’s just smooth jazz. Nothing to worry about. — Sullivan, replying to an inquiry over …
: Scott: You can’t touch my face. I’m in quarantine. Carla: Well, I can punch your face!
: [upon realizing that her formerly farsighted right eye is no longer farsighted] Am I going to get a …
: Ooh, I know the website! It starts with ‘hit tips,’ ends with ‘dot com,’ and…something in the …
: “Given the issue is so fundamentally important to our view of who we are, a claim that our free will …
: I don’t usually like what Katherine Watt writes. But this illustration is dynamite good.
: Carla: [Saint] Paul totally bonked. He was a-bonkin! Scott: Paul wasn’t bonking. Carla: C’mon. You …
: Some notes from Prayer (2006) by Philip Yancey On the interconnectedness of everyone and everything: I live in a web of dependence, at the center …
: “Trusting in God does not, except in illusory religion, mean that he will ensure that none of the …
: “‘Come near to God and he will come near to you,’ wrote James, in words that sound formulaic. James …
: Distractions [in prayer] are nearly always your real wants breaking in on your prayer for edifying …
: But consider what Rabbi Abraham Heschel said to the members of his synagogue who complained that the …
: Carla cried “tiring” to hear my say that yet another purely social gathering was without a point. …
: At the level of the individual, there is wisdom in my friend’s aversion to marriage, which she …
: “Prayer is a declaration of dependence upon God.” — Philip Yancey
: My new motto in life is: If it’s not worth doing for free, it’s not worth doing! — Carla, to Frank
: I have decided to drop all items from my to-do list except those things which must be done.
: My new definition of love: to devote oneself to the good, wellbeing, or flourishing of and the …
: “We are sending our young people into the marriage bed as virgins (good) but also as morons (bad).” …
: With the advent of Rivian electric pickup trucks, not to mention Tesla’s plans and Ford’s …
: I just asked Éa how she thinks she is at math. She said “Okay.” (Sullivan replied, about himself, …
: In order for me to maximally productive at work, I have to be cutthroat with all non-work items. I …
: Telling someone they “have been” something is more empowering a way of truth-telling than telling …
: Ugh! I have so many things to think about, but my thinker isn’t big enough! — Éa
: If Donald Trump ever somehow gets himself elected for a third term, I will join the active …
: I don’t enjoy fiction as much because I don’t spend hours at a time with it like I do movies! This …
: Shots don’t scare me. I could poke needles into my skin all day if it didn’t hurt. — Éa
: My new motto is: “Live every day like it’s your last.” And no, that does not mean find a hospital, …
: The problem with being an adolescent is that when you go to rub your beard, you end up pinching …
: “Littering fine”? They think littering’s fine? — Éa
: Éa: What’s a placenta? Sullivan: What!? You don’t know what a placenta is? Mom, we have failed.
: Carla: Why can’t I be a ten-year-old boy? I’ve always wanted to dress like a ten-year-old boy! …
: [overheard while Sullivan and Éa build a precarious fort]: Éa: Sully, did you just swear!? Sullivan: …
: And then I wrapped my ankle brace around my uterus. — Carla
: Carla: Scott, you’re not perfect. Scott: I know. But I’m trying!
: Today, watching a fan while I was supposed to listening in math class, I figured out how servo …
: My feelings aren’t the most articulate bunch of neuronal events. — Scott
: Éa [doing math]: Mom, is two minus six plus ten six? Carla: Umm…wait a minute… Éa: Also known as …
: Scott: Sometimes I wish I were the smaller one. Carla: Why, so you could beat me up?
: Carla, after a long evening trimming the hedges: Whew, that was a lot of work. Éa, when you grow up, …
: Don’t worry: The water on the floor is tears. — Éa
: Carla [complaining that her coffee tastes bad when she is sick]: You don’t know because you forget …
: Sullivan: Mom, come look at my parfait! Carla: Oh, cute! It’s like a happy face. Sullivan: Well, I …
: [after Éa enters the room having found a book that had been lost for a year and half] Carla: Oh, Éa, …
: Éa: So when I was on my way home from the park, and old man and an old woman were walking on the …
: What could be better than co-ambulation with your mother? — Scott, suggesting to Carla that she …
: You’re more helpful than a rabid dog! — Sullivan, thanking a friend who was helping clean up
: Éa: I really like Country Inn & Suits [sic]. Scott: Oh, what do you like about it? Éa: It has …
: Even though my feet ache, I’m still gonna rock and shake! — Éa, in the middle of a marathon of …
: I feel better dancing when I’m on a precarious rock wall. — Sullivan, explaining why he was dancing …
: One thing that pleases me—well, two: First, Mommy and Daddy snuggles. And second, rock dust on my …
: I’m ashamed to say this for my gender, but men sweat 40% more than women. — Sullivan, responding to …
: Wait, you want me to dance self-consciously? Isn’t that a contradiction of terms? — Scott
: Scott: Are any of my accents good? Éa: Well, I don’t like them, so I don’t know.
: My favorite thing is to make that piano reveberate [sic] like an explosive bāss violin. — Sullivan, …
: No, no, no, your ridicule is quite powerful. I appreciate it, actually. — Scott, to Carla
: Scott: Oh, Carla, you don’t get cranky. Carla: No, but I do get honest.
: Hey, Mom, I don’t know what would be worse: getting punched on the back of your head and falling on …
: Carla: What were you dreaming about, Sully? Sullivan: Different metals that are essential to life. …
: **Donna: ** Sullivan’s mom would volunteer [in the library] for a Tuesday, but would need to …
: Scott: So, Sullivan what laws of physics do you know? Sullivan: Newton’s laws of physics! Éa: …
: Sullivan: Was there a time when doctors recommended smoking? Carla: Maybe somebody recommended it at …
: Your bellybutton looks a bit like Moshulu’s butt. — Sullivan, comparing Scott’s navel to our …
: Scott [after Carla suffers a seemingly neverending sneeze attack]: What is your body trying to get …
: You know what Miss Leigh calls a picture? “Pitcher.” Picture. Pitcher. She’s a very complicated …
: Dad! In heaven, I bet that don’t have any rifles. — Sullivan, without prompting, while being towed …
: Carla: Sullivan, you have to take a shower. I don’t want to hear any more whining about it. Get in …
: I enjoy watching my family do things I suspect other families do not but which I consider healthy. …
: I am very proud to walk town with my children. Among several reasons that came to mind this evening, …
: I think it would be good to eventually get in the habit of reading my journal from a year ago, five …
: In the Clover Highlands during my prayer-walk today, I came away with this: The people in front of …
: self: Exactly one year ago today, I have down in my journal that you told me in a videochat that you …
: Yes, somewhere, somehow—and I pray it get deeper—I rejoice in sufferings, including recent doubts, …
: I took an impromptu break from work late morning today to cuddle with Carla and tell her about the …
: Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of …
: Has prayer for relief from suffering for oneself ever been answered? I ask because I find it curious …
: Doubt makes me want to puke.
: God, You must decide not to answer some prayer, and it must be for a good reason. I can’t believe …
: Childhood’s Gate Children’s Garden at the Penn State Arboretum is a wonderland. Thank you for …
: I have recently decided to protest the apparently common atheist assertion that praying people pray …
: For the second consecutive year, I’ve been referred to Chris Kiver by an outstanding member of the …
: You could see distress primarily as an obstacle to faith. But it might be more useful to see it as a …
: With “40 (How Long),” U2 beat IHOPKC to harp & bowl by fifteen years.
: Walking is one of my favorite activities. That means this afternoon made my happy: I not only got to …
: On our Saturday morning errands, feeling proudly countercultural, I suggested the kids walk ahead of …
: Well, what do you know? We just contributed to the happiness, or at least the punctuality, of fellow …
: Today, Richard Beck combined two of my favorite things: ecclesiology and Calvin & Hobbes.
: Death doesn’t mean the same thing to God as it does to us. That’ll help your theodicy.
: Dear friend, Would you kindly reiterate to your husband that his chocolate cake has been misnamed? …
: Romance has been this sort of…odd side project for us. — Scott, in a large campfire discussion at …
: An unfinished verse about the problem of divine hiddenness O, invisible God, whom I cannot see, …
: Why is faith a virtue? Faith is a virtue inasmuch as its object is trustworthy. In the classical …
: Napoléon has been taking up our evenings; that’s why I haven’t journaled in the past two days. One …
: Alcohol is deceitful like money: It has its uses, but the freedom it promises too often enslaves.
: Let not your to-do list take the place of the Holy Spirit.
: This afternoon and evening were unhappy. It could be that I stayed up till a bit past 11 last night …
: I hypothesize that the reason folks like me are OK with watching movie violence and less OK with …
: I was just praying through some of my “Favorites” I’ve marked via the new BibleGateway app, and it …
: A simple experiment in making friends (and thus a community): Let’s gather for a potluck dinner on …
: “I’m as warm as a peacock!” — Éa [context forgotten]
: After an evening with the Houserville Social Club that included a LifeFlight helicopter takeoff, new …
: “…nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You” (Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20:12). My, what …
: “And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply“ (Acts …
: “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence” is merely a more rhetorical way of saying, …
: I bought Carla some flowers today. Consider it an improvement on the one cut rose per year we’ve …
: I’ve written it before: I am going to live my ordinary life in an extraordinary way: Rejoicing …
: Singings lessons didn’t feel as good this week as they did last week. But I’m taking it in stride: …
: I am Calvin’s mom. And Calvin is my underpowered id.
: I like Shardas. And FarmFest.
: Tom Lundin, Dan Sharda, and I trotted over to the ballfield at Spring Creek Park to toss a disc this …
: Good news for folks like me who sometimes worry whether Jesus’ instructions to the rich young ruler …
: I brought energy to our SCUL game this evening. When I pick up my energy level at the beginning of …
: A cheer for the red team, whom we beat, 12–8, sung to the tune of “Rudolph, the Red-nosed Reindeer”: …
: I understand why trust is a virtue, particularly trust in the almighty creator. I don’t understand …
: Given how tired we are recently because of our over-engagement, I’m going to set an idealistic …
: He’s Indonesian, Japanese, American, now Dutch. Jimmy Hutasoit, we will miss you very much. May you …
: Mike Licona published a short piece on doubt today that I greatly sympathize with and thus found …
: Since Licona will be using plausibility “as the most important criterion” (p.113), his chapter …
: To a skeptic materialist, ’tis no bad news to hear that God will annihilate him for his disbelief, …
: While walking with God through a nearby neighborhood in the wake of a few spats this morning with …
: The Bible does acknowledge the problem of the selectivity of miracles in Luke 4:23-27.
: Religious faith is a virtue only in that it constitutes trust and trustworthiness, the former of …
: Don’t extort, don’t slander: Easy. Be content with your wages: A little harder. Redistribute your …
: My aversion to academic writing under deadlines is what doomed any thought of me becoming an …
: A few critical notes as I dive back in to Matthew McCormick’s book: Concision carries rhetorical …
: Wife and I share a concern that wherever this doubt and I end up, that I don’t end up lacking in the …
: friend: I just wanted to let you know that my thoughts have been with you after hearing about your …
: When I restart my reading of Atheism and the Case Against Christ, I plan to actively take critical …
: Scott: What would life be like without screens? Carla: Buggy. [pause] Scott [slightly annoyed]: …
: Carla: Are you ready for your [chickens] meeting tonight? Scott: Yeah, it’s just a brainstorm …
: Scott [discussing trends in interior design] : Our culture…we highly prize…clean. Carla: Yeah…it’s …
: The wind and snow were whipping around my house like a SNOW-NADO! — Sullivan in his weather journal …
: Mommy, I love music more than chocolate chips, more than cookies, and more than princesses and …
: Carla: He looks like the beggar at the Beautiful Gate. Éa: Who? Scott: One of the people Jesus …
: Carla [upon delivery of Éa’s dessert at Sips Bistro]: Bon appétit! Éa [correcting her]: Bon …
: I do not use trash cans as places to store stuff any more. — Scott, defending himself when …
: Carla: Oh my God, living with you is like living in a legal document! Scott: Oh my god, living with …
: Scott: Éa, would you mind if I put on some tunes? Éa: Yeah. Scott [to clarify]: Should I put on some …
: I want one of those ballet shirts with a butt and a labia. — Éa, in reference to buying a leotard
: Scott: Sullivan, I’ve been meaning to talk with you about your reading habits. Sullivan: …
: Éa: [making small talk] What’s your Stilson? Lindsay: Pelz. [the correct answer]
: Carla: [playfully flicks dishwater at Scott] Scott: What did I do to deserve that? Carla: You …
: Hey, it was definitely hard, but I really enjoyed spending time with you this evening. — Scott, to …
: Éa [from the other end of the house]: Mama! Watch this! Carla: Honey, I’m cooking! Éa: Mama watch …
: Carla: It’s 7:57. Scott: What!? Already? Carla: I know. Like, what the fUuuuuuUuuck? [moment of …
: Daddy, no you don’t go to work! Éa and I go to work! [pause] Oh. Well, I guess if Éa and I were the …
: The front cover of a birthday card Sullivan drew for Cassie’s birthday. Featuring a black-capped …
: Yeah, but I got two in a row. — Sullivan, after losing at tic-tac-toe to Grandpa
: Carla: Wow, it looks like it was cold last night. Sullivan: Well, I was as warm as a bear slumbering …
: If I were married to myself, I’d be divorced. — Carla
: Carla: I’ve gotta get in shape for the wedding. Scott: Whoa. Weird. Normal woman-talk just came out …
: Once it got to more abstract levels, I got interested. — Scott, causing laughter in Carla for …
: Éa: Daddy, Daddy, I forgot something. Scott: Oh, what? Éa: I forget.
: My daughter was over the other day when Scott pulled into your driveway with the kids. As Sullivan …
: Don’t forget to felt your scroll saw. — Carla, pretending to be Scott prompting her to keep up with …
: I tried Foursquare again last week. I’ve got to stop. I’m like a dog returning to its vomit. — …
: Finally! Centre County Recycling & Refuse Authority will start recycling yogurt containers on …
: Leviticus and Numbers tell me not that God is merciless, but rather that His bodily condescension at …
: Exodus 32-34 is very revealing of God, whose character up to this point in the Bible has been …
: Can we please re-christen our gridiron game the more accurate “tackleball”?
: Gee, Aaron and his sons’ ordination was awfully involved and bloody. Why?
: Read Exodus 16 and then tell me God, as a rule, wants to give us anything more, materially, than …
: Ha! The Lord of the Flies couldn’t make gnats! (Exodus 8:18)
: Jannes and Jambres’ counter-miracles, genuine or not, show that supernatural acts are not …
: Moses & Aaron: the Bible’s first wizards.
: OK, Exodus 4:24-26 is the strangest passage of Scripture I’ve read so far.
: New (?) public energy saving idea: Install smart street lights that are aware of moon phases and …
: Like Jacob, I want my last words to be blessings.
: The Pharisees forgot that the nation of Israel’s eponymous forebear was blessed not because of …
: Would that we love God and one another with the same kind of unflagging love that made Jacob work …
: I’m thankful that unlike Isaac, God our Father in heaven—who blesses us abundantly—can’t be tricked …
: I’m going to start tweeting some thoughts and notes as I read through the Bible in a year in hopes …
: doing anything = not doing anything else. (reaction: chagrin –> acquiescence –> …
: doing something because you desire to > doing something because you feel obligated > doing …
: Earlier nightfall brings two good things to the Stilson house: We can all watch the sunset, and the …
: Does anybody else think Houserville could benefit greatly from having its own third place?
: Google+ shows promise as a superior alternative to Facebook and Twitter. Main thing it needs now is …
: I was definitely just being followed by a moonshadow.
: Travel time is an opportunity for prayer and contemplation.
: It’s that time of year again: the trees of Spring Creek Park are alive with fireflies at night, …
: The best part of going electric for at-home dental care: Harmonizing with my toothbrush for two …
: While I’m at it (and sitting on my front porch on Puddintown), let’s bury the power lines and put up …
: Having traversed Ferguson Township on nothing but bike paths today, I confess that this College …
: The halcyon weather in San Diego is a misleading illusion that is all is right in the world.
: Ever wonder why Matthew claims Jesus “fulfills” so many OT Scriptures that weren’t predictions in …
: Taking the trash out to “Fanfare for the Common Man.”
: RE: bin Laden’s death: If God doesn’t take any pleasure in the death of the wicked, neither then …
: Is it odd to anyone else that Easter as a secular holiday even exists? What exactly are people …
: Sports bars excepted, no eatery ought to have televisions in it.
: I daresay all Christians must at least consider singleness for the sake of God’s kingdom (Matthew …
: One element of the culture during my year at the Honor Academy I could’ve done without: …
: Hear, hear!: “I judge all things only by the price they shall gain in eternity” (John Wesley via …
: Annihilation, not eternal conscious torment (AKA hell), is the alternative to eternal life that …
: Some days I wish I’d abandoned all pretense of a desire for “practicality” in a career and just …
: Among personality tests (e.g., Myers-Briggs, DiSC), I find the Enneagram the most useful. Take a …
: “Do it, queue it, (shoo it,) or screw it” makes for a good schema of impulse management.
: Hey, no meta-chuckles. — Scott to Carla
: Daddy, I want to decorate the whole, whole, whole EARTH. 🎉 — Sullivan, after walking through …
: “He who hurries his footsteps errs.” — Solomon (Proverbs 19:2b), in a maxim I need and love to hear …
: If the labels on her Christmas gifts were any indication, my daughter is gonna have serious trouble …
: All meat-eating humans should shoot or slaughter a mammal themselves at least once in their lives. Having a deer stare me in the eyes as I took aim at him on opening day of rifle season here in …
: One of these photos is of Éa at four days old. The other is of Sullivan at three weeks old. Which …
: Scott: Where can we find top shelf bourbon? Carla: Maybe you could ask for it on FreeCycle? “If …
: I do confess that tears well up in my eyes as Alan Rickman introduces each of the instruments on …
: Light pollution is a theological issue. 🚀 🌎
: What do you do with your excess weatherstrip?
: Currently in my head: The piano riff from “Hey Bulldog.” One of the best songs about nothing ever …
: “No regrets” is about as useful a behavioral code as I can think of. Some platitudes aren’t all that banal that if you actually apply them. Thinking “no regrets” before …
: It is kind of scrapey on your tongue. It is hard. It is hard to lick. It is round. In a ball. What …
: The scary part wiggled your head a little. — Sullivan, after having watched portions of How to …
: [several days after Jami’s visit:] Scott: Does Mama drive like a pinball? Sullivan: Yeah, Mama drive …
: Very glad human gestational length is getting media attention. No, seriously: Our understanding has …
: Do Christians idolize marriage & family? I write this to as a Christian to Christians in hopes of introducing a meme that’ll benefit the next …
: Differences of opinion are cause for discussion, not reason to separate or eschew talking. Too often in the face of apparently opposing viewpoints we take the easy way and simply separate …
: Traditionally, a church’s defining activity is its weekly worship service. To me, it ought to be …
: Carla: Sully, what do you want to be when you grow up? Sullivan: A man.
: In my head and in my wife’s head all day (in neverending half-step-up modulations): “Rebel Rouser” …
: I watched this, the 39th greatest film of all time according to Entertainment Weekly, while at the …
: Carla: How do you always know what I’m going to say? Am I predictable? Scott: No, you’re my wife. …
: Watching my son turn the corner into the living room on his running bike while I’m listening to the …
: I’ll take Gershwin tunes in my head all day any day.
: Scott: Wow, so we’ve started our seventh year married. Carla: Uh oh. We’re gonna get the seven-year …
: I’m orderin’ whatever the heck I want next time I go to a bar, and it’s probably going to be water …
: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
: The sun woke up over Mount Nittany. — Sullivan on a morning walk to the park
: Lucky kid as reported by Carla: We just got back from our summer ultimate league finals and picnic. While …
: as recorded by Carla: Scott put on one of our favorite classical pieces, The Lark Ascending, this …
: [I] want to watch the clouds fly to their beds! — Sullivan, in smiling protest to heading inside …
: While discussing the sentence “Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo Dave: I didn’t realize buffalo was a verb. Carla: Yeah, it means to bully. Dave: Yes, I gathered …
: “Why Money Makes You Unhappy” from Wired Science. The deceitfulness of richness (Mark 4:19), anyone?
: Nothing facilitates happiness like a full night’s sleep.
: If your car is making a loud, unusual noise, don’t ignore it (unless you like riding in tow trucks).
: Stuck in my head: Today, “Roses” by Outkast. Two days ago, riff from “Airbag” by Radiohead. Day in …
: I have to say, the fireflies at Spring Creek Park give 4th Fest some stiff competition.
: “He who hurries his footsteps errs” (Proverbs 19:2).
: I’ve read way too many really good children’s books to Sullivan recently to be able to make an …
: “A purpose of human life…is to love whoever is around to be loved” (Kurt Vonnegut, The Sirens of …
: Listening to Bach’s first cello suite while reading The Lorax to my son is a strangely fitting …
: Just taught my son to play bocce. And I think he really gets it!
: With the birth of my daughter on Sunday—an event that deserves a much more substantial celebratory …
: Homeownership is a major time commitment.
: Do we clamp the umbilical cord too soon? University of South Florida researchers say yes.
: “Devotions aren’t magic” (Jon Bloom).
: It’s helpful to conceive of prayer as like a two year-old asking his dad for things.
: Concentrate on what’s before you now to do, not on what you could be doing or what you want to be …
: With humility of mind, regard others as more important than yourself (Philippians 2:3).
: When staying in a city and expecting to encounter beggars, carry an apple. Or be prepared to buy a …
: Sorry! I got into my whistling. — Scott, as we swerve off and back onto the road
: Scott: No! You gave them expectations that I have to live up to! Carla: Scott, I just spoke …
: Now here is something remarkable: A refund in response to a contested parking ticket: