Vacation, optimally, should be vacation and so--due to this fact and also the fact that it was rainy and also the fact that I was far away from Corvallis and the Dixon Recreational center—I haven’t been working out much.

Randy and I went out running (actually just a slow jog by the time we got back) and words cannot describe how torturous it was. Excruciating.

I find it interesting when people say something like, “Don’t get me started,” and then immediately start. Or, “Let’s not go there,” then immediately they do. Or when they say “Words cannot describe...” and then they immediately use words to attempt to do exactly that.

I got a cell phone for Christmas!

The By-log, holiday edition

Randy’s gift to you (Byran’s gift to you):

Overrated: Songwriting (Disagree, more people need to write, if anything it’s underrated)
Underrated: A well-written song (Oh yeah, for sure, there’s a lot of bad, bad songs out there. But write even if they’re bad, just realize when they are. That’s very tough, let me say, from personal experience.)

Overrated: The Olive Garden (Nope, wrong bro. Great food, cool atmosphere. You just wait ‘til you’re wondering where to go on a date.)
Underrated: A two-year old’s knowledge (Yep, they know more than we think.)

Overrated: Staplers (Disagree! Very important for organizational purposes.) Underrated: Onions (also disagree! Blechhh, and they give you bad breath. Except in Rings, if they’re coated with bread, then they’re pretty good.)

Overrated: Chocolate (Huh? You’re talking crazy talk.)
Underrated: Spontaneity (I don’t know if it’s underrated. I certainly appreciate it.”

Overrated: Derek Jeter (I can see that, although he’s a winner.)
Underrated: Larry Bird (I can also see that, though he’s very well respected.)

Overrated: Pop music (Talk about empty.)
Underrated: Windows (Yeah, what would we do without them?)

Overrated: Shooting form, in basketball (I don’t think I buy that. I’ve got bad shooting form, I don’t get arc into my outside shot, and that’s why I’m so inconsistent.)
Underrated: Contacts/glasses

Overrated: Leaf blowers (Well…they have a purpose, but I see his point. Moving annoying leaves from one point to another?)
Underrated: Ecclesiastes (Yes, cool book. Read it and enrich your wisdom.)

Overrated: Routine
Underrated: Randomness (YES! He hit this one on the fat part of the barrel.)

Sometimes I look at Old Testament prophecy and just think, “Ok, you say that’s speaking prophetically about Jesus’ death, and boy, if you stretched it far enough…maybe, but it’s sure less than obvious.”

But then you read John 2:17. Jesus was cleansing the temple, and the disciples saw this as a fulfillment of the prophecy in Psalm 69:9, which says “the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.” Seems pretty esoteric to me, but it goes to show that prophecies can indeed be, at first glance, stretches.

So what do you do as the government? Ban junk food and other stuff bad for the citizenry, thus improving the general health and well being of the populous or let them go and slowly kill themselves? It’s sort of a tough question, and one that probably is not as simple as I just stated it.

I thought of this because I read that certain states are going to ban junk food from being dispensed in public schools.

These monks I heard on the radio today sound a lot like a conservative Mennonite men’s choir would sound. Except when they do the parallel perfect fifth thing. I even heard part of “Of the Father’s Love Begotten” that was just like Tapestry’s/West Coast Mennonite Chamber Choir’s version.

I remember the first time I heard that we were having pancakes for supper. I was floored and enthralled. Imagine a food as good and as special and as breakfast-like as pancakes being made and eaten for supper!

I strongly dislike phone conversations when I can hardly hear the other person.

I’m cynical about Christianity at times. How is it that there are so many people who are seeking the face of God and yet can’t even coexist as Christians? It’s gotta be the fault of the people, and not the fault of the Creator, but yet if people are honestly seeking God, how can’t He reveal to them to at least love each other?

This from Randy once again:

Overrated: Snow (definitely agree; keep it in the mountains where it should be)

Underrated: Social Skills

I think my favorite animal might be a fox.

Hey you, I’m into Jesus. But I don’t generally like D.C. Talk. However, Michael Tate singing The Christmas Song (“Chestnuts roasting…”), wow. There is surely immense vocal talent there.

You can like or hate Relient K (I tend to believe they write excellent lyrics, they have a good lead singer. However, their style…nasty), but their a cappella rendition of “Auld Land Sine” is beautiful and excellently done and the recitation therein is one of the funniest things I’ve heard in some time.

Boy bands like to be known for their vocal talent and from what I’ve heard, when they allow their vocals to be showcased they do a really good job. Unfortunately their ratio of a cappella numbers to dance tunes is about 1:15. There should be a boy band that a) does no or minimal dancing and b) sings all a cappella. Maybe the closest thing there is to that is the Coats, eh Tom?

My mom and dad are so perfect for each other. From my limited experience and observation I still think that opposites tend to attract and can be very complimentary. To generalize, dad thinks, mom feels.

Underrated: Randy’s vast vocabulary

Overrated: Byran’s attempts at humor

That’s from Randy again. Not sure if I totally agree.

I like music. I like singing. Byran likes music and singing. But one thing I can’t do well is start songs on the spot without a pitchpipe. I think the reasons for it are complicated, but I don’t have a concept of where a song starts. It’s just not in my brain. If I hum around, or if I know the key and the starting note, that’s one thing. But I don’t trust myself to start a song spontaneously out of my head.

David, on the other hand…

So what do you say to a person that professes complete peace and joy and fulfillment in their life but has no use for Christ?

“…not as the world giveth, give I unto you…” The world indeed gives a form of peace. A false peace, perhaps. But peace is actually very subjective, it’s hard to come right out and question someone who says they are completely whole in every way.

This from Tom, not that I necessarily agree. Har har.

Underrated: High-pulp orange juice.

Overrated: Notre Dame.

I don’t have any experience with the first, would agree on the second.

From Randy:

Underrated: Water

Overrated: Denominations

Now, water is an iffy underrated I think, but I think some people probably do. Definitely agree with the overrated.

I felt like a real he-man today. I got real greasy, troubleshooted a grinder and an auger, tightened a belt, and did a routine fix on the boiler. Couldn’t’ve done it without a couple of calls to dad though. But actually, as far as mechanical aptitude goes, I grew today. It wouldn’t take much, because I’m generally inept. Today was a positive thing.

Whenever I’m overseeing the mill and something happens--the solution to which is not immediately obvious--I face a dilemma. 1. Call dad and likely get the problem fixed in short order, or 2. Try to fix it myself which will take quite a lot longer (and I’ll probably end up not being able to get it fixed anyway) and (you never know) could end in disaster.

I’ve tended toward the first, but I’ve decided to take a swing at the second. 1 encourages mindlessness, while 2 encourages critical thinking and problem-solving. There comes a point when you’ve got to bite the bullet and make a phone call because of a lack of knowledge of the system itself or the related tooling. I did that today, called him a couple of times, but not before I thought about the problem and made some progress toward solving it.

It’s really not all that different than school. You must have an understanding of the system, though, that’s the key. If you don’t know how the equipment works, you have virtually no chance of solving the problem. Once you know what you’re looking at, it’s just a matter of thinking it through, experimenting, and seeing if you can make something work.

The problem is that I have no true need to go through that problem-solving process at the mill because the answer is just a phone call away. At school, on a test, you have no choice. But it's just a matter of doing it, it's really all the same, whether at school with a paper problem or at the mill with a mechanical one. I'm learning.

I really enjoy talking to myself. I really, really do. I’m somewhat unashamed of it too. A little, if I don’t realize someone’s there. But mostly, I love—really love—talking to myself. Is that a sign of genius or insanity?

From bro Randy, though I generally concur:

Overrated: Florida

Underrated: Pac-man