E-books ~

I have been reading e-books for a long time.

I remember in 1999 I had a Texas Instruments personal organizing device that had calendar and calculator and notepad and other things on it. It was one of those calculator sized devices that had a flip cover on it and was basically a personal organizer. And I would put e-books on it and read it as I rode the bus and train in the Washington DC area.

I graduated from that to my Handspring visor devices. They ran the PalmPilot operating system and allowed me to carry e-books on them. I used the graffiti text capture software so much that I can still to this day right on a notepad in graffiti style writing and read it even though it looks weird.

But I read e-books on my Handspring Visor devices. I bought them instead of the PalmPilot because Palm Pilots were way too expensive and Handspring Visor was bucking the system and offering devices that were more expandable at less cost. I remember getting a handful of plug-in devices for my Handspring visor. One of my favorites was the GPS plug-in. I would watch as we drove down the road and my GPS would calculate where we were even though I didn't have a map or anything. I would plug in coordinates and capture coordinates as we traveled. Which I still do today.

But I digress. E-books. Now I use Amazon Kindle e-books almost exclusively. I still purchase some PDF e-books and then read them on multiple devices. I take my e-books from Amazon and convert them to text so that I can do what I want with the text. I usually if I really want to read the book completely will run the text through text to speech software and listen to them. Or have started using a couple of e-book readers to read my text files and converted Amazon Kindle e-books. It all gets very complicated. And I love it!

But e-books have become my main way of consuming books. I have two Kindle paper white waterproof E-ink readers that I use. Why two? Because if one craps out I want to be able to keep reading on the other one. Even though I can read all my e-books on my phone using the Kindle app and on my iPad using the Kindle app there also. Or I can read them in text files on any device that I want to read on.

But I like the Kindle Paperwhite readers because they use e-ink, they're completely visible and easy to read in bright sunlight or in the dark with their backlight, and they're waterproof so I can take him in a pool or tub and not worry about them getting fried. Although I haven't tested that rigorously!

But I love e-books and I love the ability to be able to read electronically and carry a library with me wherever I go. It's bad enough that I can search the Internet and get any piece of information that I want almost instantly, but I prefer to carry lots of books with me so that if I want to read something or review something that I read a few years ago I can just pull it up anywhere.

I love modern technology!

Bible belief ~

One of the challenging parts about being a Christian is what I believe about the Bible. I believe that the Bible is God's word. That it was written by people guided by God. And that when we read the Bible we can learn more about God than we could ever learn any other way.

One of the hard things I experience is when people pick and choose from the Bible. Friends that are quick to quote scripture in certain subjects don't want to read other parts of the Bible or don't want to hear about other parts of the Bible that say what they're doing shouldn't be done. A lot of people say "that's in the Old Testament so it doesn't apply anymore" but then will quote from the Old Testament and say this is how you want to live your life this is what you should do. Same book in the Bible, just different chapters and verses that don't fit what they're doing with their lives.

Some people take to heart the law and the festivals and have a big time saying "we're becoming more like the Israelis". This is what the Jewish people did so we should do the same things!

But when I read the Bible and I read history I read that the Jewish people turn away from God over and over and over. And that Jesus freed us from those restrictive boundaries saying nobody could do all those things. Jesus said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one gets to the father except through me.""

I just find it interesting that the same people that will claim freedom will also claim restriction so that they can justify what they feel think or believe.

I prefer to develop my personal relationship with God and to lean on what Jesus taught was the greatest commandment. To love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And to love your neighbor as you love yourself.

Challenging!

Don_t get in my way ~

Our country the United States of America for many many years the motto identified with "don't tread on me". "Freedom, justice, and the American way" was an awesome statement that generated a lot of attention and income for marketing agencies.

But in the past several years I've noticed that the motto has changed. Now it seems to be more like "don't get in my way".

I see it in the abundance of mind-numbing activities and treatments. I see it in the constant search for distraction and activity to go and boast about. I see it even in the liberal movements that are getting so much attention lately like transgenderism and socialism and the like.

"Don't get in my way" says that any rule guidelines for decorum are to be ignored as we step past the safety tape saying "do not cross". You see people dying as they step out on a ledge or hang from a rock or get too close to the lion that they jumped the fence to get in the cage with.

"Don't get in my way" smacks of disrespect and we see that in day-to-day interactions and we see it amplified on social media.

I hope that we can teach more people about truth and true justice for all not just subgroups. And I hope we can get the American way back on what our founders hoped it would become.

Loved Johnny Carson ~

I remember Johnny Carson when I was growing up.

My parents would have me go to bed by 9 PM. I would fall asleep listening to the stories told and Hill Street blues and other mystery programs. Taxi was one of them.

But on nights when I couldn't fall asleep or I woke up for some reason I would listen to my parents watch and listen to the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

I loved it! I loved his delivery, I loved the way he would introduce guests, I loved it when I could stay up as I got older and watched him interview guests. It was amazing!

Now in our modern society I can pull up Johnny Carson shows on YouTube anytime I want. I tend not to until they show up in my suggestions. And when they show up enjoy watching and listening to him do his thing.

It's fun watching Johnny Carson introduce and then interview comedians that I have enjoyed over the years. All the big names, all will little names that became big names, it's amazing!

But Johnny Carson remains the center of the comedic universe that I grew up with. Ed McMahon sitting off to the side chuckling and encouraging. But Johnny was the main event.

It's fun watching Johnny Carson now! Sad that he's gone and nobody even comes close to the way he was, but fun.