One of the cool things about modern technology is that the kids growing up today will grow up with video as part of their telecommunications capabilities. Video calls will be normal to them.
I remember mom talking about who seeing a videophone it a world's fair in the early 60s and how amazing it was. But now that she has the video calling capability she doesn't use it. She carries it around in her hand and uses it on her iPad but she doesn't use it because that's not what she's grown up with. So at 79 years old it seems different and challenging for her.
I keep trying these more and more but people are so stuck in the call via the phone ways that they don't go to video is there first thing.
At work it's shifting slowly but it depends on the age of who I'm dealing with and what were talking about. Video is not the preferred method but it is used more and more.
I'm excited about this and want to use it more more. Especially as my family becomes more dispersed. I look forward to the time when I can stand the device up in the corner and be in the same room with my daughter and son-in-law virtually and it not be a big deal.
Sunday, January 31, 2021
Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Modern light switch thoughts ~
It's so interesting looking at the electronics in my house and remembering back to why I put them there.
I have one of those twisty timer light switches on the garage lights. I remember that my wife and most of my children would go out to the garage to check the freezer or refrigerator or something and they would leave the garage lights on all night. Over and over and over. And after getting upset about it repeatedly I finally just put in one of those 60 minute twist dial switches and the lights were off automatically after however much time they twisted the dial for.
I remember struggling with my oldest son to get him to turn lights off. He would walk into a room, turn on the lights, look for a minute, and then leave the room and leave the lights on. He did this in the utility room when we washed clothes. I repeatedly asked him to please turn the lights off in the utility room and the washer dryer area after he finished whatever he was doing. He did not. After much yelling much anger over him not doing what I asked I finally realized that he would not do those things and that I needed to take different actions. So I installed one of those motion sensor lights where when it senses motion it turns the switch on and then after about three minutes if it has not sense motion and it turns the light off. That has been one of my greatest accomplishments in managing electricity in our home. I did that over the washer and dryer area and the utility room area because nobody in the family except me would turn the lights off.
I remember when my youngest two boys were growing up they would leave the lights on all day no matter what. I finally got so frustrated with it that I put one of those timer switches in their rooms. And so they had to turn the lights back on if they were in the room more than an hour. I don't remember them ever complaining that they had to turn the lights back on.
It's one of those things where I used technology to reduce the friction between me and my children. I'm not proud of it, except when I watch the lights turn off after I left the room. And I'm glad that it was able to do something that allowed me to let go of that anger and frustration. I think that if technology lets us release anger and frustration it's got to be a good thing!
I love modern technology!
I have one of those twisty timer light switches on the garage lights. I remember that my wife and most of my children would go out to the garage to check the freezer or refrigerator or something and they would leave the garage lights on all night. Over and over and over. And after getting upset about it repeatedly I finally just put in one of those 60 minute twist dial switches and the lights were off automatically after however much time they twisted the dial for.
I remember struggling with my oldest son to get him to turn lights off. He would walk into a room, turn on the lights, look for a minute, and then leave the room and leave the lights on. He did this in the utility room when we washed clothes. I repeatedly asked him to please turn the lights off in the utility room and the washer dryer area after he finished whatever he was doing. He did not. After much yelling much anger over him not doing what I asked I finally realized that he would not do those things and that I needed to take different actions. So I installed one of those motion sensor lights where when it senses motion it turns the switch on and then after about three minutes if it has not sense motion and it turns the light off. That has been one of my greatest accomplishments in managing electricity in our home. I did that over the washer and dryer area and the utility room area because nobody in the family except me would turn the lights off.
I remember when my youngest two boys were growing up they would leave the lights on all day no matter what. I finally got so frustrated with it that I put one of those timer switches in their rooms. And so they had to turn the lights back on if they were in the room more than an hour. I don't remember them ever complaining that they had to turn the lights back on.
It's one of those things where I used technology to reduce the friction between me and my children. I'm not proud of it, except when I watch the lights turn off after I left the room. And I'm glad that it was able to do something that allowed me to let go of that anger and frustration. I think that if technology lets us release anger and frustration it's got to be a good thing!
I love modern technology!
Saturday, January 23, 2021
Midnight shifts ~
I remember after I went back to the operation I had to work a midnight shift. I was excited about it but also concerned. Staying up all night is always challenging for me, and I tend to use caffeine as part of my strategy to overcome being sleepy.
I had seen other supervisors use thermoses that were tall and had lots of coffee in them. So I made a thermos full of coffee. It was a really big thermos with one of those silver cups attached to it.
Everything was going well. I got to work and I was headed inside. And while I was putting my stuff away and getting ready to go out to the control room I dropped my thermos. My glass insulated thermos.
The shattering of glass that I heard told me everything that I needed to know. I would not be drinking any of my coffee tonight because my thermos and its glass inside had shattered and I would die if I drink some of that glass infused coffee.
I found other ways to stay awake and figured stuff. But it was one of those cases where I learned a lot in about a minute. And I learned to problem solve and overcome the issues of staying up all night. New pair now I tend to use individual tea packets with caffeine added to them. Or I eat an apple in the middle of the night, which helps me stay up.
But I don't have to work mids very often. At least not all the way through the night, which is awesome!
Just more learning.
I had seen other supervisors use thermoses that were tall and had lots of coffee in them. So I made a thermos full of coffee. It was a really big thermos with one of those silver cups attached to it.
Everything was going well. I got to work and I was headed inside. And while I was putting my stuff away and getting ready to go out to the control room I dropped my thermos. My glass insulated thermos.
The shattering of glass that I heard told me everything that I needed to know. I would not be drinking any of my coffee tonight because my thermos and its glass inside had shattered and I would die if I drink some of that glass infused coffee.
I found other ways to stay awake and figured stuff. But it was one of those cases where I learned a lot in about a minute. And I learned to problem solve and overcome the issues of staying up all night. New pair now I tend to use individual tea packets with caffeine added to them. Or I eat an apple in the middle of the night, which helps me stay up.
But I don't have to work mids very often. At least not all the way through the night, which is awesome!
Just more learning.
Tuesday, January 19, 2021
Luckiest man alive ~
One of the things that I hear people say over and over is that they feel like the luckiest person alive. They have something good happen to them in the midst of something bad like cancer or worse. They're happy and thrilled to have support of friends and family and fans. And they make the statement that they are feeling luckier than anybody else in the world.
I feel that way a lot. I have children that are doing well. I have family members that are doing well. While I've experienced some loss I am doing well. So many good things outweigh the bad things in my life that it's amazing!.
And so when I hear somebody say I feel like the luckiest person on the world I chuckle. Because they're not. I am!
I hope you feel that way too.
I feel that way a lot. I have children that are doing well. I have family members that are doing well. While I've experienced some loss I am doing well. So many good things outweigh the bad things in my life that it's amazing!.
And so when I hear somebody say I feel like the luckiest person on the world I chuckle. Because they're not. I am!
I hope you feel that way too.
Thursday, January 14, 2021
Great living room concert ~
I love listening to music! I tend to drift towards instrumental music now and usually something quiet and contemplative, though I still thoroughly enjoyed my smooth jazz music with a beat and little bit of a soul in it. I like singing but it's not always my favorite thing and as I get older and I'm barraged by more and more marketing my thinking is I don't want somebody else's words in my head.
This morning when I got up I listened to a living room concert by Miroslav Idec and Yvette Holdsworth. It was a living room concert put on as part of aguitar festival in 2020. Here's a link: https://youtu.be/FRuRNShKXIQ
This is one of the cool benefits of all this virus reaction that we had to go through. All the "in person" events that if you didn't get to go you never get to hear about it you never got to see it or anything like that have moved online and then offered to more people than they could ever reach in person. And music like this is so different and so beautiful but it's niche music that would make it into the popular stream of things. Not very many people go searching for folk guitar and violin music. But when you hear the way this guy plays the guitar with such energy and makes it talk and it's an acoustic guitar. And you hear the violin providing the pairing with the guitar and with both the bow and the plucking it's beautiful! It made for a good start to my day.
I hope you enjoy this music. It's a little bit of what I enjoy.
This morning when I got up I listened to a living room concert by Miroslav Idec and Yvette Holdsworth. It was a living room concert put on as part of aguitar festival in 2020. Here's a link: https://youtu.be/FRuRNShKXIQ
This is one of the cool benefits of all this virus reaction that we had to go through. All the "in person" events that if you didn't get to go you never get to hear about it you never got to see it or anything like that have moved online and then offered to more people than they could ever reach in person. And music like this is so different and so beautiful but it's niche music that would make it into the popular stream of things. Not very many people go searching for folk guitar and violin music. But when you hear the way this guy plays the guitar with such energy and makes it talk and it's an acoustic guitar. And you hear the violin providing the pairing with the guitar and with both the bow and the plucking it's beautiful! It made for a good start to my day.
I hope you enjoy this music. It's a little bit of what I enjoy.
Saturday, January 9, 2021
Friend of our family ~
It's so interesting with all the negative reporting and negative ads that we are barraged with repeatedly in the war to win our dollars to see something truly positive and exciting in the youth coming up.
I know a guy that is a friend of our family. He is someone that we were happy to have over to spend the night with our boys playing video games, eating food, and just hanging out. I watched him do grade in high school and then go on to do good things in college. I've cheered from a distance for his accomplishments over the years. And recently he was ordained as a Deacon in his church where he will now take a greater role in shepherding the flock of people that go to his church.
These sort of things are not celebrated openly because of the derision that the church and being a goody two shoes gets. But I celebrated because it shows that the things I've tried to raise a family to believe and do are also being taught by other families. I'm glad that we are not alone. And I'm glad that this young man is growing into a great leader who will do great things quietly and responsibly. And will continue to hold the line and even move it forward against the darkness that so wants to overcome the light.
Good stuff!
I know a guy that is a friend of our family. He is someone that we were happy to have over to spend the night with our boys playing video games, eating food, and just hanging out. I watched him do grade in high school and then go on to do good things in college. I've cheered from a distance for his accomplishments over the years. And recently he was ordained as a Deacon in his church where he will now take a greater role in shepherding the flock of people that go to his church.
These sort of things are not celebrated openly because of the derision that the church and being a goody two shoes gets. But I celebrated because it shows that the things I've tried to raise a family to believe and do are also being taught by other families. I'm glad that we are not alone. And I'm glad that this young man is growing into a great leader who will do great things quietly and responsibly. And will continue to hold the line and even move it forward against the darkness that so wants to overcome the light.
Good stuff!
Monday, January 4, 2021
Church thoughts ~
My wife invited our neighbor who is been going through a lot to church. He is a guy who suffers from depression and had medications but decided to go off of those medications and use marijuana instead. This culminated in an intervention with his wife, his son, several of his sons very large and muscular friends, a police officer, and an ambulance and fire truck on standby at the entrance to our neighborhood. His wife left him and moved back to her mother's house. And the kids don't come by anymore.
My wife told me that he admitted that there was a problem and that he had let his truck become too much of a problem. He was always washing it and taking care of it and polishing and doing all sorts of things to it. Same thing with his boat. And apparently the drugs and the focus on the wrong things caused him to get into trouble.
He declined her invitation saying that he didn't really want to go.
When she told me about this I had a thought. One of the things that churches have been doing is changing their model and approach. We now have churches that talk about their online campus and do live streams of their services whenever their services are. We have churches who are building libraries of messages in both audio and video format. We have all sorts of online learning that people have at their fingertips.
So why do we have to invite people to church anymore? Why don't we take the church to them? As a small groups coach and small group leader I found it very interesting to bring the church to the people where they're at. Our online group has about 20 people in it that we keep in touch with and do things with. And it's turned out very nice.
But I keep thinking about how we need to take the church to the people. Eventually they'll come in and want to know more and get to know more people and hopefully get involved. But I really think that since the church is ice and the building is just a place where we can gather that as we have more cocooning and staying at home to focus on family and that sort of thing we should probably adapt and instead of inviting them to church invite them to watch something. And go in and stream it with them. And then answer questions and say we'd love for you to watch more and even come and get involved if and when you're ready. Because God has a plan for your life.
I need to bounce this off of some people and see what they think.
My wife told me that he admitted that there was a problem and that he had let his truck become too much of a problem. He was always washing it and taking care of it and polishing and doing all sorts of things to it. Same thing with his boat. And apparently the drugs and the focus on the wrong things caused him to get into trouble.
He declined her invitation saying that he didn't really want to go.
When she told me about this I had a thought. One of the things that churches have been doing is changing their model and approach. We now have churches that talk about their online campus and do live streams of their services whenever their services are. We have churches who are building libraries of messages in both audio and video format. We have all sorts of online learning that people have at their fingertips.
So why do we have to invite people to church anymore? Why don't we take the church to them? As a small groups coach and small group leader I found it very interesting to bring the church to the people where they're at. Our online group has about 20 people in it that we keep in touch with and do things with. And it's turned out very nice.
But I keep thinking about how we need to take the church to the people. Eventually they'll come in and want to know more and get to know more people and hopefully get involved. But I really think that since the church is ice and the building is just a place where we can gather that as we have more cocooning and staying at home to focus on family and that sort of thing we should probably adapt and instead of inviting them to church invite them to watch something. And go in and stream it with them. And then answer questions and say we'd love for you to watch more and even come and get involved if and when you're ready. Because God has a plan for your life.
I need to bounce this off of some people and see what they think.
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