And you thought oil & gas regs were bad...

Seven companies have just announced plans to jointly apply for a license to build a commercial nuclear power plant, the first new reactor application to be filed since 1973. According to the article in the Wall Street Journal,

Get that? Seven million dollars a year for 5-6 years, and that's just the cost of the paperwork to get a license to start building the plant.

Thank goodness they're getting to test the streamlined process! I understand that the timeline in the non-streamlined version yields a better than 50-50 chance that the sun will go dark before the process is completed.

It must be nice to have $30-40M laying around with which to test government processes.

[The article goes on to say that "...neither the consortium nor its members 'are making a commitment to build a new nuclear unit at this time.'" In addition, no location or timeframe for construction was included in the announcement.]

Cracking DaCode--Should We or Shouldn't We?

Our church is hosting an interesting event this Sunday evening, when our former pastor Dr. Jim Denison will speak on Dan Brown's best-selling novel, "The DaVinci Code." Denison is now pastor at Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas. He is a brilliant teacher, his research is rock-solid and thorough, and I can't think of anyone better qualified to debunk the many errors and heresies in this book.

But...

I'm still struggling a bit with the appropriateness of devoting a worship service to such a topic.

At the most shallow level, there's the concern that we're inadvertently adding to the readership of this novel. When I added the announcement of the event to our website, I wanted to link to something that would provide a little background information to those who didn't know anything about the book. For any other purpose, I would probably have linked to Amazon.com, because it generally provides both "professional" reviews as well as reader feedback. But I was afraid that would look like a suggestion to buy the book, and we certainly don't want our members to do that. I finally landed upon an excellent set of articles from LeadershipU, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ focused on issues with an academic slant. A few minutes on this site will give the uninitiated a quick education on the theological and doctrinal flaws found in the book.

On a deeper level, I wonder if this is the best use of that time. (Before I go any further, allow me to make this personal disclosure: we are not frequent attenders of the Sunday evening service, for a variety of reasons. You can assess my credibility to comment upon its content accordingly.) I understand that Dr. Denison has previously presented this "seminar" to packed houses, so the interest level is apparently there. And Sunday evenings in Baptist churches have traditionally been used for messages that are perhaps more educational than evangelical (at least, that's my observation). Many pastors use Sunday evening services for their Bible study sermon series, for example, picking a book and going through it verse-by-verse, often over a period of months.

In keeping with that tradition, I suppose that if Dr. Denison's approach involves a dissection of the book's flaws with a corresponding look at the truth as found in Scripture, this will be a legitimate Bible-teaching opportunity. And, based on his track record, he will likely do precisely that.

I guess what I'm really having an issue with is giving this book an air of legitimacy -- through the devotion of time and resources -- even for the purpose of debunking it. Perhaps the book is having a more significant impact on believers and non-believers than I perceive, but I really wonder if this is one time we would be just as well off by ignoring it and letting it die the obscure death that all such works eventually succumb to. I sense that its 15 minutes of fame is just about up; why add a few more seconds to the clock?

Email: Music to My Ears

Of all the Microsoft software I own, I tolerate Entourage the best. [Actually, that's a tacky way of putting it. All of MS' Office Suite components are first-rate, for my purposes anyway. But, as a Mac owner, I've sworn a blood oath to never willingly give an unqualified compliment to you-know-who.]

I've tweaked Entourage until it practically dances for me. Using Rules, it automatically identifies incoming email according to subject line and/or sender, and files it accordingly into the directory I've specified for that category.

It's not perfect, of course. I'm still waiting on a Rule that will, for example, identify with certainty sender names that sound Nigerian or Ugandan, so that I can send that scam spam directly to the Deleted Items box. (Although, I'm pretty safe deleting any email with the all-caps subject of "URGENT ASSISTANCE.") And I can't figure out a script to accurately identify a subject line as simply random, unrelated words, another sure indicator of either spam or a note from my dyslexic cousin in Iahod.

The latest cool thing I've done is associate different alert sounds with different categories of email. So, incoming mail from clients has one sound, potential spam another, comment notices from this blog yet another, and so on. No longer do I have to interrupt my reading to check to see if a new message is from a client, thus requiring immediate attention.

At least, that's the theory.

In reality, I've quickly forgotten which sound goes with which category. Plus, each cycle of email checking now sounds like a Spike Jones recording, especially the first one following the morning boot-up. This proves the adage that the technology is only as good as the user.

Still, there are worse things than being serenaded by Spike throughout the day. I think I'll keep it.

The Christian Church in China

I attended a remarkable event last night, joining hundreds of people from all denominations in our church's worship center to hear a first-hand report on the status of Christianity in mainland China.

The speaker was Peter Xu, an evangelist and activist who spent twelve years in a Chinese prison because of his faith in Jesus. Pastor Xu helped start the house church movement in China in the 60s, a movement that's becoming a tidal wave.

1949 marked the beginning of Marxism and Communism in China, as Chairman Mao came to power, and with it the denunciation of all religion, and especially Christianity. In that year, it was estimated that there were only 800,000 Christians remaining China. Today, the estimate is 80 million, a 100-fold increase. That sort of growth has placed the Church squarely in the government's crosshairs, and persecution of Christians is once again commonplace.

Pastor Xu's interpreter for the evening was Bob Fu. He is the founder and president of China Aid, a non-profit organization dedicated to the investigation of human rights abuse in China, and to advocacy of its victims. Bob has the distinction of being one of the few who have succeeded in winning a case against the government in front of the Chinese equivalent of the Supreme Court.

Pastor Xu was everything you might expect from a man who is sold out in every way to the Gospel of Jesus Christ -- humble, joyful, energized and unapologetic in his desire to achieve a very unusual goal: to take the Gospel from China to Jerusalem.

He began by thanking those present for our heritage. He gave credit to American missionaries for planting the seeds of the Gospel in China. "We are all your spiritual descendents," he stated. He then took us on a quick historical tour of Christianity in China, bringing us to the present day, where Chinese Christians, despite being persecuted by their own government, are focused on nothing less than the achievement of the Great Commission. They believe that the Lord has given the mission to the Chinese church to spread the Gospel outside the borders of China. Despite the government's efforts to stamp it out, the Chinese church is now approaching the point of being self-supporting, self-propagating and self-administering. Many university students are joining the house churches and the goal is to have Christian cells on every campus within five years.

Pastor Xu said that the vision of the Chinese church is to accomplish the Great Commission and to unite with the Western church in spreading the Gospel all over the world, and then back to Jerusalem.

He spoke about the ancient Silk Road, the collective term for the routes used more than 2,000 years ago to open up trade between China and the western world. Pastor Xu says that the Chinese Church intends to use the "Silk Road" to take the Gospel outside the Chinese borders and, ultimately, back to Jerusalem.

The Silk Road has three "fronts," and the Church is already making progress in each of them. Three years ago, China sent missionaries to Russia and Mongolia, at the northern front. The southern front goes to Thailand and Malaysia and the central front goes to Afghanistan and over to Iran and Iraq. Chinese Christians are now establishing "training stations" on these fronts, for support of the evangelistic efforts. Eventually, a prayer team will walk from China to Jerusalem.

He then brought this vision and these plans home to us. Chinese Christians need training, comfort and fellowship from the Western church. He then challenged Midland, Texas, to establish a station for the Jerusalem prayer walk. Texas can be a spiritual revival base and a "missionary sending center." He also asked us to pray for suffering brothers and sisters. (Peter's sister, Deborah, was recently released from prison, although she remains under house arrest.)

At the conclusion of Pastor Xu's remarks, he sang two Chinese hymns that expressed the desire of Chinese Christians to be "servants of the Word, servants of the Lord." The melodies were haunting and the words were simple but powerful, the worshipful cries of a people who have a faith and a hope that sustains them even when there is nothing else to grasp.

We then watched a ten-minute video of interviews with three sisters who were arrested and tortured in an attempt to make them discredit their pastor (Gong Shengliang), so he could be arrested on trumped-up rape charges. The sisters described their ordeals in graphic detail; one of them could not hold back the tears as she confessed that she could not hold up under the physical abuse and thus signed a prepared statement against her pastor.

Peter Xu and Bob Fu left today for Geneva, Switzerland, where they will show this video during the 60th session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, in an attempt to secure the release of the pastor, specifically, and to highlight the increasing persecution of Chinese Christians in general. The sisters are aware of the personal danger and risk they run in releasing this video, but say they are prepared for any consequences in order to make the truth known.

And this, indeed, is an accurate summary of the status of the Church in China: it will risk any consequences to make the Truth known. What will the Western Church's response be, in the face of such faith and endurance?

Marketing Christian Athletes

I've just recently stumbled across Texas Tech prof Rob Stewart's blog, and find that I'm jumping over to it with increasing frequency. His essay today entitled "Basketball, Business, and Be-Attitude," raises some interesting questions about what might happen when a high-profile professional athlete turns out to be unabashedly and publicly evangelistic.

We may have the chance to find out, sooner than later, as the "next LeBron James" may just fit the bill. Read Rob's post for details.

A Simple Shopping Trip

Well, let's see what's in today's Wall Street Journal. Oh, here's an interesting article...something about using technology to customize the grocery shopping experience.

Hmmm...boy, that seems to have all sorts of implications. <yawn> Who knows how that technology might evolve? <bigger yawn>

[cue dream sequence; cue music; cue visual transition. dream state loaded...and action]

As I enter the local MegaHyperMart, I grab the closest shopping cart and hang the "BuyPal" monitor from my left ear. Upon contact with my skin, a neural link is made and I'm in communication with the BuyPal operating system, aka GEMIniCrickET. A soothing androgynous voice greets me.

"Hello, Jack. I'm Lane, and I'll be your BuyPal today."

"Hey, Lane; 'sup, dude?" I've found it's best to take the casual approach with these neural personalities; it's just too weird, otherwise. Like, the fact that s/he already knows my name.

We begin in the produce section, where I reach for some navel oranges in one of those red mesh bags. A metal grate slides up silently from a hidden compartment and blocks my grasp.

"Sorry, Jack; I've checked your Affiliate Records in my database and find that you are a member of the Sierra Club. You do realize, don't you, that the mesh bag surrounding those oranges was knit by non-union Bulgarian widows brought via underground railroad to Ecuador for the sole purpose of exploiting the rain forest. I'm afraid we'll have to pass on these oranges."

Rats. I love navel oranges. It gets worse, as every other fruit I try to add to my cart has some attribute deemed unacceptable by my BuyPal.

"Listen, what can I have?"

"Well, Jack, I recommend these persimmons, picked by TxDOT crews from free range trees growing in the right-of-way on the highway between Gainesville and Muenster."

"But, I don't like; persimmons...and these are really gross, anyway."

"Sorry, Jack, but we must take our commitments seriously, mustn't we?"

Mumbling to myself, I proceed to the bakery, where I intend to salve my wounds with a heapin' helpin' of carbs. Just as I'm about to enter, lights begin to flash and a steel gate appears to block my way.

"Oh, Jack...you know you're doing Atkins."

"Come on; cut me some slack, will you?" There's a skinny guy beside me with a shopping cart that's also being blocked due to my carb-craving; he glares at me until I back away enough to allow the gate to disappear. I know better than to try to follow him in.

OK, I didn't want any bread anyway. I head toward the frozen food section; I'm running short on Blue Bell. I turn the corner of the "frozen novelty" aisle and reach for the handle of the glass door behind which the Blue Bell cartons are displayed. I immediately feel the most amazingly painful sensation as a stiff jolt of voltage jumps from the handle to my hand. The room darkens a bit as I contemplate the possibility of fainting right then and there.

"Jack, I recorded your current weight and body mass index as you passed through the entrance sensors, and, frankly, you don't need any Blue Bell for a while."

As my vision clears, I hear a series of metallic clanks going down the aisle, which I recognize as display cases being locked. However, one stays unlocked and is mysteriously illuminated by a golden spotlight. I take that as a cue that I can partake of its contents. Staggering to it, I find that it holds a wide variety of non-fat, calorie- and sugar-free ToFutti, and I pass.

Moving on, I register a muffled shriek of to my left. It seems that a young woman attempting to buy a carton of Virginia Slims has just been informed by her BuyPal that she is pregnant. No smokes today, young lady. And, in a strangely symmetrical tableau, across the aisle from her, a protective grate has just descended over the entire section of "family planning products." Another Roman Catholic is stymied by the PapalEdict patch recently programmed into GEMIniCrickET.

Well, I think to myself, if there's nothing I can eat then I'd better at least buy some vitamins. I try to grab a bottle of Centrum multis and — wouldn't you know it — another freakin' alarm goes off.

"What now?!"

"Jack, I know your driver's license says you're 49, but I've accessed your Life Records in my database and see that your birth certificate puts you at 51. Shame on you for fooling the DPS; I've notified them accordingly. But, in any event, it's Centrum Silver for you, my friend."

This is all giving me a headache. I try to grab a bottle of aspirin and...you guessed it.

"Jack, I note that you are a graduate of Texas A&M. Please allow me to direct you to the bottles without the child-proof cap."

I sigh, and shake my head, feeling utterly defeated. I decide to call it a day, and head for the exit with my old-age vitamins and easy-to-open aspirin.

On my way, I notice some guy trying to hit on a young woman in the medication aisle. She's beginning to respond favorably to him, when suddenly a mechanical arm appears right in front of the guy, holding the biggest container of Preparation H I've ever seen. Another arm appears simultaneously from the other side of the aisle, holding a huge tube of anti-fungal cream. The woman's eyes widen and she whirls her cart around, beating a quick retreat. The guy is left standing there with a horrified look on his face. The mechanical arms slowly retract, still clutching their embarrassing ointments.

"What in Sam Hill was that all about?" I queried Lane.

"Just a minute; let me check. OK; I'm back. Take a look for yourself..." With that, GEMIniCrickET patched a visual into my neuralnet and I saw the rejected man put his hand into his pants pocket and slip his wedding ring back onto his finger. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

As I exited, the system having already tallied my purchase and debited my bank account, I noticed a man being led away by police in handcuffs. "OK, what was that all about?"

"Him? He's a registered pedophile. His BuyPal caught him putting candy and balloons into his shopping cart, and alerted the authorities."

"So, you...all of you...prevented a crime before it happened? Man, that reminds me of a movie I once saw..."

"Jack, you have a nice day. It was a pleasure helping you shop. Please place the monitor and cart back into their proper storage positions. Come again, soon."

[cut dream sequence; cut music; cue visual transition. live state loaded...and action]

<snort>Ummm...wow, what a bizarre dream! I've got to stop mixing canned tamales with mango slices. It was so real; for a while there, I thought I was actually...wait a minute...where am I? Why am I on the floor, looking at ice cream? What the... aaaaaiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!

JW Turns Two

The Gazette's older neighbor blog, Jessica's Well, celebrates its second anniversary today. This is no minor accomplishment in the relatively young blogosphere.

Reading JW provided me with more than a small motivation to start the Gazette. I wouldn't hold that against them, however. Drop by and leave your congrats!

Music to My Greedy Little Ears

BP PLC, the company with which I have an ongoing love/hate relationship, announced today its intention to continue its share buyback program for the next three years, provided the oil price stays above $20/barrel. In fact, it says that it is entering into a period where it will focus on delivering production growth and increasing the value of its stock. This marks a change from the previous several years where the focus was on making acquisitions of both companies and properties.

The market reacted to BP's announcement with a 2% jump in its stock price. From a purely personal perspective, that puts another ten grand into our 401Ks, and while that represents only imaginary wealth at this point, it's still better than many of the possible alternatives.

When BP acquired my long-time employer, ARCO, the managements of both companies assured us that BP was a $60/share company. However, it promptly became a low-40s company, and even a mid-30s company. In the three years since the takeover, we haven't sniffed $60.

Lately, the stock has settled in around $50, and the program announced today may just be the boost needed to put it back into that $60 promised land. Will I keep my vow to sell out if it gets there? Beats me. It will probably depend on whether there's anything better to shift the money into; frankly, BP seems to be pretty well positioned for long-term success.* If the Fed still has interest rates in the under-2% range, I may just keep riding that limey horse a bit longer.

Random Is As Random Does

Monday mornings are usually reserved for errands which couldn't be accomplished over the weekend, meaning that I measure my achievements in barely perceptible increments...the same as the logic in this post.

• Why is it that the good folk who ensure that the 12-packs of my favorite soft drink are readily available at HEB (my local grocery store of choice) also have the annoying and mystifying habit of stacking said packs so that the convienent punch-in "handle" is facing away from the customer? They do it consistently, so there must be forethought involved. Is this their subtle way of Sticking It To The Man (yes, I watched "School of Rock" on DVD this weekend)?


• I see where the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus is calling Apple on its ridiculous claim that the PowerMac G5 is "the world's fastest, most powerful personal computer." Even the most Mac-centric of publications have never been able to quantitatively confirm this claim, except in isolated unreal-world tests specifically designed to measure areas where the Mac+software combination has a built-in tilt toward the G5's architecture. I'm an unabashed Mac user, but I was never comfortable with this claim. For Apple's part, they say that they've finished that particular ad campaign, but "will be mindful of NAD's views in its future advertising." (At the same time, I hereby present Dell with the Big Whiny Company of the Month award for filing the complaint with the NAD.)


• Speaking of Dell, I'm much reassured about my security after learning that the company is requiring you to answer the following question before they'll ship you a computer: "Will you be using this PC to design weapons of mass destruction?" If you answer incorrectly, Dell won't sell you a computer. And, for the sake of our national security, I'm not authorized at this time to disclose the criterion by which an answer will be identified as incorrect. (But here's a hint: it rhymes with "Hess.")


• I think God was in a particularly good mood when He created geckos.

Passion Play Wrap-Up

The last two performances of our church's Easter drama were today (the last one is actually taking place as I type this). I went to the matinee this afternoon, ready to finally see the whole thing from start-to-finish. I was only partially successful.

For a variety of reasons, the decision was made to video today's performance, and I was asked to operate a camera. Since MLB had to be there as switcher, and since I was planning to attend the performance anyway, I agreed. However, that also meant that I didn't get to fully experience the performance, as I was on headset and focused on the shots called by the director.

However, I did catch most of it and it turned out well. It was 2 1/2 hours long, which is really too long for optimal audience comfort (not to mention camera operators!), but it presented a Scripturally-accurate portrayal of the life and ministry of Jesus, interleaved with a contemporary sub-plot that provided some modern context for the relevance of the Gospel.

There were very few technical glitches, and none were signficant. OK...the mast on Peter's fishing boat starting to keel over toward the end of the scene and had to be propped up by Jesus, but Who better to provide healing, even for an inanimate object! (That scene may make the outtake section of the DVD.) None of the actors missed cues or lines, at least none that I caught, and the music was excellent (I'm never sure how - or if - the orchestra will gel). The resurrection scene elicited an ovation from the packed-in audience, and it was, indeed, powerfully done...this was the first time I'd seen it. (I'm of the opinion that the one thing that most "Passion" movie-goers wanted more of was Jesus' resurrection, and this presentation certainly met that desire.)

One thing I do know...none of the cast or crew will regret taking a year off before returning to production in 2006. That is, of course, if the Lord doesn't return before then!

One Year Ago in the Gazette

"Liberation Theology" was the topic of the day, among other (mostly war-related) things. I was trying to make sense of it and whether it applied to the new war in Iraq, and, as usual, failing in most of the important ways. But this is how I tried to sum things up:

Original Post

Tips for Optimizing Link Exchanges

Hot on the heels of my runaway hit post, "Tips for Optimizing Customer Acquisition," I offer the following as an instructive example of one approach to getting folks to link to your website:

I especially like the part where you can insert your own website description. This is a very considerate approach and I recommend it highly for any occasion where you wish to compliment someone without enduring the invariably messy complications of understanding whatever it is you are complimenting them for.

You'll also note that the Lugansk Art Gallery Webmaster is allowing me to provide him with the URL of my highly-esteemed website, again to ensure that whatever URL he has failed to visit is the correct one. This attention to detail is rare and refreshing in today's take-a-shortcut-whenever-you-can business environment.

So, soon...very soon, I'm sure...I'll have the feather in my cap of a link on the highly-esteemed Lugansk Art Gallery, so I've got that going for me. And, by the way, don't try to horn in on my action by visiting the Lugansk Art Gallery site and attempting to ingratiate yourself to the Webmaster. I never could get the site to load.

Mattress Update: Out of the Clouds

For those who are social-engagement-challenged to the point where they've actually been wondering about the outcome of our high-altitude mattress ordeal, I'm pleased to report that we received delivery today of a new low-profile foundation that cut five inches from the height of our bed. That returns it to the approximate level of our old one. I hope I remember that the floor is now closer than before when I get out of bed in the morning.

In a related event, this new mattress could the beginning of a financial slippery slope. We bought new pillows this evening, from an earnest salesman who assured us that "the pillow is 50% of the sleep experience" and thus worthy of substantial investment. I bit, big-time: gen-u-wine European goose down, fitted into a special casing designed for "side sleepers" (as opposed to "back sleepers" and "stomach sleepers," each of which have their own unique pillow construction requirements).

We've also discovered that our quilted bedspread, which we sent to the cleaners before the mattress was delivered, doesn't fit the ultra-hyper-mega thickness of the new mattress, so MLB has a new one on her shopping list for our upcoming trip to the Texas Hill Country. Then, the lower profile of the foundation means that our mattress skirt is too long, although I'm lobbying for an in-system adjustment strategy, rather than going right to the replacement option. And, of course, none of our fitted sheets fit.

Are we the only people whose sleeping equipment is this complicated? I can't decide whether to be proud or ashamed. Fortunately, at this late hour, I'm mostly sleepy, so I'm not going to worry about it.

Brevity Required, Levity Desired

Am I the last person on earth to know about The Four Word Film Review" website?

It's not all that edifying to those seeking real information about specific movies, but it has some wonderful gems for those who appreciate wordplay. This entry, for example, directed toward the ice hockey movie, Miracle: "Fellowship Of The Rink."

Rosalinda Celentano: Move Along Folks; There's Nothing Here to See

Thanks, apparently, to a couple of earlier posts, the Gazette continues to receive a fairly large volume of traffic from people searching for "Rosalinda Celentano."

While I appreciate the extra visitors, as statistical fodder for my insatiable ego, I'm also keenly aware that this blog is probably disappointing to them, as it contains little if anything of the sort of information they are probably seeking. (I also appreciate the irony of the fact that my posting about this will probably result in another bump in such traffic.)

Another irony is that I have actually entered into a budding blogospheric friendship with someone who has known Rosalinda for many years; that person has shared quite a bit of information about the actress*, but it's all been with the understanding that it's not for public consumption. Rosalinda's friend is very concerned for her privacy, and I respect that. So, you'll find nothing here that represents "insider information."

What I can share is the creation of a new website by a fan who hails from New Jersey, devoted to the actress. You can visit it here: www.rosalindacelentano.net. It's obviously a labor of love for the site owner, and it also contains the most detailed biography of the actress that I've found to-date. If you continue to be intrigued by the most evasive cast member from "The Passion," I suggest a visit to the new website.

*Note: I have no reason to doubt the veracity of what's been shared with me, even though I have no way to independently confirm it. Plus, since I'm not sharing any of it with you anyway, its credibility is irrelevant.

The Oil Industry: Exaggerations of Demise

Today's Wall Street Journal has an interesting interview with Amory Lovins, an energy analyst and think-tanker whose upcoming book, "Winning the Oil End Game: Profitable Energy Security by Mobilizing American Innovation," is co-funded by the Pentagon. In that book, Mr. Lovins will make the argument that oil companies can move away from their main product (crude oil) and still make a profit.

Mr. Lovins has some intriguing insights into the future of the "awl bidness," which he says is a great industry but a bad business. Some of his observations...

• China is now the second-largest buyer of oil in the world, and is attempting to address the situation by imposing car efficiency standards which are stricter than the US. He thinks they'll have only marginal success with this approach.
  
  Unfortunately, the implications for the failure of this strategy are global, and generally of the "not good" variety.


• Mr. Lovins points out that crude oil is a fungible commodity and it really makes no difference to the US whether we're producing our own oil or importing it...we'll still be at the mercy of price volatility. (My observation: It may make no difference to macro-economists and politicians, but it makes a huge difference to the people who live and work in the Permian Basin.)


• The preceding fact does provide incentive for the US to reduce its reliance on crude oil, "even if the security, economic and environmental costs of oil dependence were zero."


• Asked about the overall state of the oil business, he observes: "The upstream and downstream [margins] have increasingly been squeezed out. You're a price-taker in a volatile market. It's a very capital-intensive business. Combine those three and it's a recipe for unhappiness. Then add to that, oil companies tend not to be popular and tend to be the target of unwelcome political attention." But, other than that, it's a great way to make a living! He goes on to point out that "the smartest oil companies have been trying gracefully and gradually to get out of the oil business since the '70s." In his view, hydrogen is the killer component of the hydocarbon equation; that's where the future lies.


• Here's where he really goes out on a limb, with a prediction of how effective substitute energy sources will be: "I think over the coming decades oil will probably become uncompetitive even at low prices before it becomes unavailable even at high prices. And although the conventional projections of demand growth may happen, there is a substantial and rising likelihood that the reverse will happen – that demand will go down because the substitutes work better and cost less." The real x factor is what "coming decades" means.


• As it turns out, Mr. Lovins is the creator of the "Hypercar" concept, a carbon-fiber vehicle powered by hydrogen fuel-cells. According to him, widespread production of such a vehicle (configured such that it displaced light trucks and SUVs, which is where most of the projected growth in energy consumption will come from) would eventually save the US the equivalent of eight million barrels of "product" per day, or, as he puts it, the "equivalent to discovering a Saudi Arabia under Detroit." (Come to think of it, putting Saudi Arabia under Detroit today sounds like an excellent idea, albeit for reasons that have nothing to do with energy consumption.)


• In a couple of closing observations, he opines that Shell's recent reserves booking woes were most likely due to the SEC's changing interpretations on how to define recoverable reserves (along with Shell's apparent bureaucratic inability to adapt to those changes), and he believes that nuclear energy is a non-starter: "It has no future in a market economy because it fails by factors ranging from roughly two to roughly 30 to compete on the margin with efficient use of electricity, with gas-fired co-production of heat and electricity and with wind power.

I'm looking forward to his new book. I think Mr. Lovins is ultimately optimistic about the future of the oil business, but based on what I read here, it's a future that will look very different from the present. But, then, isn't that what we all hope for?

Blog Merger

This will no doubt hit the Dow Jones newswire en la mañana, but you can get ahead of those yahoos on Wall Street by making note of the fact that Jay Solo's Verbosity has entered into a merger agreement with The Accidental Jedi and the result is -- what else? -- Accidental Verbosity ("Jay's Jedi" would have been cool, too, btw). No word on whether this was a Section 1031 Like Kind Exchange, or simply a business combination designed to shift assets to an overseas account.

This is now a husband-and-wife blog, so there's no telling what kind of mayhem may ensue.

Adjust your blogroll accordingly.

"I didn't mean to be good!"

My sister-in-law tells us that she's just received a letter from the local school district inviting her and her son to an awards banquet to honor students who have achieved academic excellence during the school year.

She also reports that she overheard my nephew telling his sister that he had won an "accidental excellence" award.

Well, what can I say? This is the same kid who once carried cookies in his bike helmet for an intra-ride snack.

Passion Marathon

After yesterday's whiny post about the long rehearsal for our church's Passion Play, God apparently decided I needed a lesson in patience.

Last night's rehearsal went SIX hours; we got the last shot at approximately 12:30 a.m. this morning. "Dead tired" is a good start for describing the way I felt at the end of the session, although the relief of having my part finished does help to cut through some of the fog of fatigue.

I won't attempt to describe the plethora of problems that extended the rehearsal. Suffice it to say that Murphy's Law is operable, even within church walls. (OK... one example: an actor with a speaking part shows up for the scene without a body mike. How does that happen?)

We did this shoot differently than the previous night. Rather than trying to film the scenes in sequence, we skipped around in order to release actors and musicians as early as possible. Most of the children were released around 10:00, the orchestra around 10:30, and by the time we finished, there were only two actors, three keyboardists, the director...and about 20 crew members.

One of the miracles of Easter will be the way that this presentation will come together on opening night without the cast and crew having ever been through the whole thing, start to finish, without a break. It won't be perfect -- never has been, never will be -- but it will be good enough, and it will be powerful.

New Respect For Filmmakers

Following last night's non-stop five-hour Passion Play rehearsal, I have new-found respect for those who work behind the scenes on movie sets.

This rehearsal was essentially for the purposes of filming the production. (We will be doing very little filming during the actual performances...only what might be needed to fill in the gaps that are left from these pre-performance sessions.) Thus, just like on a "real" movie set, the actors were asked to repeat scenes over and over, until the director felt they had been captured on video appropriately well enough to survive the editing process.

I think I'm in pretty good physical condition, but the discomfort of standing behind a camera for five hours is something you have to experience to understand.

Keep in mind that this is a cast of actors, musicians and crew in excess of 200 (including at least a dozen children), and all of them are volunteers, and most of them showed up following a full day of work at their regular jobs. Yet complaints were minimal and mostly of the gallows-humor sort; wild clapping accompanied each successful take; and we're all geared up to do it again tonight!

After all, we only got through the first half of the presentation...

[This had better be some kinda special DVD!]

How, then, shall we blog?

A friend has taken me to task for using the made-up word "suckier" in an earlier post. We have a mutual love and respect for each other, born out of a shared faith, and so she feels comfortable telling me when she thinks I've crossed a line, and I feel equally comfortable in telling her that the line is in the wrong place, and we go on our merry ways.

After all, I can't help it if a word that has no inherently offensive meaning to me has just the opposite effect on someone else. That's not my problem. Somebody will always find something to be offended by. You just can't please everyone, so there's no point in trying.

Only...that's not what the Bible says.

The passage quoted above is but one of a number that seem to be relevant to this issue. For the purposes of this post, the part about "strong" and "weak" is not important, nor applicable. There are times when our words and behaviors will have unintended or undesirable influences on those who are weaker in faith or walk, and we need to be sensitive to such occurrences. But, really, those are generally easy to spot and easy to correct.

In this case, no real harm is being done, other than a slight bruising of a friend's sensibilities. However, my interpretation of scripture is that this is plenty reason to stop doing the offensive thing, even if I don't agree that it's offensive.

"But...but...what about my rights?"

It boils down to this, for me: if I truly have love and respect for my sister (or brother) in Christ, then I will put her needs and wishes ahead of mine in any matters that don't require me to compromise my position on essential truth. In this case, there are many perfectly acceptable adjectives to replace the offending one I chose, and henceforth, I will use them.

Does this make me weak? Maybe...maybe not. That's for you to decide, but it's not something that I'll worry about. Because it will make my relationship with a friend stronger, and that's more important.

Tips for Optimizing Customer Acquisition

Dear Holly,

Eric

Odessa Blog: Contradiction in Terms?

George over at Sleepless In Midland is maintaining a running commentary on the filming of "Friday Night Lights." That work is taking place primarily in Odessa, with some scenes being shot in Midland. He observes that his blog seems to be one of the only online sources of information regarding the movie, since it doesn't appear to yet have an "official" website. (Indeed, "fridaynightlightsmovie.com," registered in September, 2003, points to Universal Pictures' website, a wonderfully unusable and uninformative "resource.")

George's blog is providing information not available elsewhere to a specific group of people, and that's a role that blogs are perfect for filling.

But this begs another question, and that is this: why aren't there any bloggers in the good city of Odessa, Texas? Surely someone in a city of 100,000 souls is blogging, but if they are, they're doing an awfully good job of keeping it a secret, as hitting all the usual search resources turns up nothing in the way of an Odessa-based web log.

Why would Midland...less than 20 miles away...have an active blogging community, and its neighbor have nothing? It's a question that lends itself to a variety of flippant answers, many of which will be derived from longstanding stereotypes which I won't dignify by repeating. And, perhaps there are some active blogs in Odessa, and they just haven't yet hit the radar screen.

If you're an Odessa blogger, or if you know of one, leave a comment here or on one of the several other Midland blogs, so we can expand the west Texas blogging community.

Yo...Milk Up?

I defy you to watch this without grinning.

What is it about milk that lends itself to creativity in advertising?

[Tip of the milking stool to Spare Change.]

Got Icons?

Not the religious kind...the tech kind (you do know the difference, don't you?). Someone put a lot of effort into this page, which displays the icons used by various operating systems through the years.

Want to know what the BeOS icon for the desktop looked like? They've got it. The Windows 1.01 icon for a text editor? Yep.

As Gadgetopia points out, this is a great place to "borrow" icons for various graphical uses.

What's up with Site Meter?

Is it just me, or has Site Meter's service been much suckier than usual? Not only has it been very slow (or unavailable) but my average visit/page view counts have been zeroed out twice in the past week.

I guess "free" just doesn't buy what it used to.

Ballot Lessons from Taiwan

Setting aside the question about the wisdom of asking the voting public to decide such significant foreign policy issues as deployment of anti-ballistic missiles, Taiwan's [failed] referendum offers a good example of how to word a ballot:

Granted, this is someone's translation from the original (Cantonese?) ballot, but it certainly reads well, compared to some of the monstrosities I've seen on US ballots (especially those dealing with amendments to the Texas state constitution).

Taiwan's politicians have a lot to learn about the noble art of legislative obfuscation.

Adios, Perrita Bonita...

Paul over at The Parson's Pantry has just gone through one of the worst experiences a pet owner can endure: making the decision to have a cherished animal put down to spare it further suffering.

Paul, I feel for you, having been there myself. The only thing worse is having a pet die in your arms following a senseless accident. I've been there, as well. It was more than twenty years ago, but the experience was such that if I was an actor and needed to cry on camera, that would be the source of the emotion.

If you're not a pet owner, that probably sounds silly. If you are a pet owner, you know precisely what I'm talking about.

Link Love

I see by the hands on my calendar that it's way past time to dish out a little link love to some exemplary examples of bloggolalia. To wit...

• The endlessly effervescent Dawn gives us an insider's peek into the amazing process that provides us with our daily dose of the Dawn Patrol. Personally, I think that any workplace that provides non-stop Lesley Gore on the office hi-fi is trés groovy.


• Deb is a wonderfully perceptive writer who also happens to be the only Seventh Day Adventist on my blogroll (AFAIK). I had been wondering about her reaction to reports that the alleged Fresno, CA mass murderer is an Adventist; Deb addresses that and gives us much more.


• Spare Change is a relatively new group blog built upon the contributions of a number of experienced and articulate Christian bloggers who aren't above having a little fun with topics that are, um, para-Scriptural. Thus I commend to you this post that will educate you on the variations of the number of the beast. I especially liked the Number of the Blonde Beast.


• Bryan over at Arguing With Signposts is blogging from The Big Apple, in his first visit thereto. He records his first "Seinfeld Moment" for our edification. I remember the episode well, at the car rental counter.


• Discoshaman (I know his real name, but if I told you, I'd have to, well, you know...) oversees Le Sabot Post-Moderne and generally writes about such high-brow topics as classical English literature and mid-20th-century Russian politics, but being the Renaissance kind of guy he is, he can also get down with German language heavy-metal and rap. BTW, I happen to agree with him on the hip hop thing, and would add French to the list of languages that seem to add something to your common street-variety rap. (But, then, I also thought Nena was a real fox.)


• One of the contributors to the group blog Kingdom Come asks the question that's on all of our minds lately: "Who Would Jesus Date?" OK, the title's a bit of a stretch, but he (she?) does pose some thoughtful questions for single men and women to consider: Do those of us who are Christian singles have a vision for whole, healthy, Godly relationships? Or do we simply have a checklist of things we can't do?


• We'll close this link lovefest with a nod in the direction of the brilliant-if-often-incomprehensible Simon Willison (who is much too smart for his own good). He takes a break from his usual posting about SOAP, Python, PHP and other hyper-geek stuff to remind us that strong bad has now answered his 100th email. Party on!

OK...everyone can take a breath now...

I see that Randy Quisenberry has been announced as the new head football coach at Midland Lee, coming back down I-20 from Abilene Cooper.

Boy, that's a relief. We can now go back to covering such minor issues as the War Against Terrorism and the Presidential Election.

I'm waiting for the day our local paper runs a series of profiles on teachers being considered to fill a vacancy in the math department at one of our high schools.

Gazing into the Pit

I've been meaning to post something about Burr Williams' last column, in which he describes the simple attractions of the caliche pit. Wallace over at Streams pointed out a few minutes ago that I'm now into my second day of a non-blogging streak, and I take that as a sign that I'd better get off my duff and, well, just do it.

For the uninitiated, caliche in west Texas is a deposit of calcium carbonate in the soil. Caliche is pretty much ubiquitous out here; when you're digging a hole, it's not a matter of "if" but rather "when" you'll hit a layer of caliche. If you're fortunate, it will be only a few inches thick, and easy to break through. If you're not, it will be yards thick and will challenge the hardiest of backhoes. It's used throughout the area for the base of roadbeds...and for the roadbeds themselves on many ranches, and more than a few towns.

As with much of Burr's subject matter, this one resonates with me. As a mere ute, I whiled away many an hour in the caliche pits that dotted the landscape around Fort Stockton. Those pits were tailor made for kids (generally boys) with imaginations, and whose alternative terrains were flat and boring. Caliche pits made great mountain biking venues (although we'd never heard the term "mountain bike" nor seen any such animal); the occasional boulders made great hideouts; and even when they doubled as ad hoc dumps, who knew what treasures had been left under the cushions of those old couches?

Caliche pits even continued their attraction as I grew older, albeit for reasons somehow omitted in Burr's excellent column. Hypothetically speaking, one could take a '57 Ford with benchseats, a bolted-on 8-track tape deck playing some dreck by Rod McKuen or, perhaps, the soundtrack from "Romeo & Juliet," add a sweet young thang, and find that a caliche pit was the perfect parking space for that love machine.

Of course, even "perfection" could have its downsides. One of those could come if, again hypothetically speaking, the graded road down into the pit had a hump to it that, if not approached with just the right attitude and speed, could result in the high-centering of a hypothetical '57 Ford. In such cases, you might think that Rod McKuen's pre-New Age ramblings would be of little use, and you'd be right. Hypothetically-speaking, of course.

Hey, Burr...thanks for the hypothetical memories!

Streaking

I've just realized that I'm a streak blogger. I either post nothing, or I suffer from blogarrhea.

How have I come to this sad state? Is there any hope for me?

Hmmm...that gives me an idea for a post...

Public Correction of Mistake Long Overdue

Um...not mine, the city's. If you traveled down the Andrews Highway today, you noticed that a crew is busy jackhammering up the cursed concrete "drainage ditches" so considerately constructed for our enjoyment when the roadbed was rebuilt a year or so ago. Presumably, the end result will be the smoothing of those inverted speed bumps, much to the probable chagrin of automotive front-end alignment specialists throughout the area.

This is bound to be one expensive faux pas for the citizenry, as they get us coming and going. The design and installation of the drainage ditches most certainly added to the cost of the original construction. Instead of being able to lay down a solid bed of asphalt, they had to section off the half dozen intersections and meticulously pour concrete in just such a way as to maximize the torsional impact on each passing vehicle.

Now, they're re-destroying these intersections in order to correct something that shouldn't have been done in the first place. I mean, how much thought should this have taken? Over the past decade, we've averaged less than 12 inches of rain each year. That rainfall probably comes down in sufficient quantities to cause street flooding no more than, say, six days each year. I think most of us would be more than willing to endure the possibility of some minor street flooding one day every other month, as opposed to the certainty of 365 days per year of bouncing our heads against the ceiling (roof?) of our cars as we drive down one of the most heavily traveled streets in Midland.

It's not often that we get to see a public acknowledgment of a mistake on the part of our government. I doubt that we'll see one now, either, at least not via a press conference or news article. Nevertheless, the presence of that road crew speaks volumes, and it's a separate but equal answer.

Condolences to a fellow blogger

Via Bryan over at Arguing With Signposts, I've just learned that the parents of Scott Elliott, who runs the Election Projection blog, were among those Southern Baptist missionaries who were killed in the recent ambush in Iraq.

I don't know Scott, and wasn't previously familiar with his blog, but knowing that he's a fellow blogger somehow intensifies this tragedy. Many people have stopped by to leave their condolences; feel free to add yours if you are so led.

"Local Google" Underwhelming

I see that Google has rolled out the beta version of its "localized" search service. "Local Search" allows you to narrow your search by geography; you can enter a zip code, city and/or state or even an address, then enter a search term. The results will presumably be only those which are relevant to that specified locale.

I'm not impressed. Entering "Midland, Texas" into the location box, and "website design" or "website designers" into the search term box yields results that exclude my website, as well as most other designers I know in this area. Not good. (Entering these same terms into the regular Google search puts my site into the #3 spot.)

Same results for "Midland, Texas blog." (Listen up, Jessica's Well, Streams and Sleepless in Midland!). The results in the Local Search are useless -- there's nothing recognizable as a Midland-based blog -- whereas on Universal Google, we're all on the first page. What's up with that?

According to Local Google's help page, the localized results come from a combination of its regular search database and yellow/white pages from "various sources." I humbly suggest that they need to tweak their weighting back in favor of their much more reliable and intelligent database.

This service has a lot of potential, if done right. In this case, take the qualifier "beta" very seriously.

Update (2004-03-18): Today's edition of the Wall Street Journal provides a head-to-head comparison of Local Google and several competitors offering similar localized services. Google's beta service excelled in none of the test searches.

Local "Passion" vs Global "Passion"

In a comment left on yesterday's post, in which I referred to the rather hectic rehearsal schedule for our church's "passion play," Mr. Freen asked the following questions:

Those are good questions, and, in fact, I anticipated them a few weeks ago in this post entitled "Will 'The Passion' Dampen Passion For Passion Plays?".

I concluded that short post thusly:

Now that I'm seeing the actual production, albeit in a pretty disjointed and rough fashion, I'm even more convinced that we're talking apples and oranges. So, I offer the following list: "Ways in which our 'Passion Play' differs from 'The Passion of the Christ'"

1. Our production endeavors to present the entire Gospel, and doesn't focus on the crucifixion. In that regard, this is not truly a "passion play," but we use that term for lack of a better description. (In the beginning, years ago, we called it an "Easter Pageant," but that has misleading connotations.)
   
   Don't get me wrong; the crucifixion is a key part of the presentation, and it's presented in a fairly straightforward and even graphic manner. But the life and ministry of Jesus is given top billing, and His resurrection is the true climax.


2. Our production is evangelistic in focus. Our main goal is to bring people to an understanding of how they can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ; providing a worship experience for believers is important but secondary. I'm still convinced that "The Passion of the Christ" is primarily edifying to the believer.


3. We don't introduce any extra-Biblical characters, at least not in scenes with Scriptural context (more about that in a second). We push the edge a bit by giving names to a few Biblical characters who go unnamed in the actual Gospel accounts, and allow them to give voice to the impact Jesus made on their lives (these include a shepherd who was present at the announcement of Jesus' birth, the leper cured by Jesus who returned to thank Him, and a woman who was cured from an 18-year-long sickness. I'll let you find those Scriptural references on your own; they're there...trust me!).
   
   This "artistic license" gets back to our underlying goal: bringing people to Jesus. How do you best do that? By telling about your firsthand experience with the Lord. There's no more powerful witness than saying, "here's how Jesus has changed my life." So, we let these characters provide that witness.


4. Our production prominently features a pumpjack. See, the storyline alternates between a contemporary setting, focused on an oilfield worker who's learning about the true meaning of Easter, and an historical setting in which Jesus lives, teaches, ministers, dies and defeats death. So, while we do have non-Biblical characters, they're not used in a Scriptural setting.


5. Satan doesn't make an appearance in our presentation. A few years ago, Satan was a character in the script. He was played in an over-the-top fashion, complete with long black cape, and he scared some of the younger kids. So, he hasn't been invited to return.


6. You can get a [non-pirated] DVD of our presentation shortly after Easter! Yep...we're now taking pre-orders, and the DVD will include extras like program commentary, behind-the-scenes montage, outtakes (?!), trailer and casting calls. Don't ask me why. We apparently have the technical wherewithal to do it, and so we are.

There are many other differences between most locally-produced Easter presentations and the film. They are intended for different purposes and different audiences. Seeing one should not affect whether you see the other. In both cases, however, the hope is that you'll see God more clearly, love Him more dearly and follow Him more nearly.

Why I May Be Irish

St. Patrick's Day holds a special place in my heart, but not for any of the usual reasons. This is just a bit of family trivia. My brother was born on March 17, so that's one thing. And I was born in the booming metropolis of Shamrock, Texas, and that's another thing.

As a result, this German-American Protestant non-green-beer-drinking Texan stakes a claim to St. Paddy's Day, and I'll wield a shillelagh on any who'd dispute it.

P.S. I almost forgot..."The Quiet Man" is one of my favorite movies. That pretty much seals it, I think.

Too Tired to Blog

Three hour Passion Play rehearsal tonight...and tomorrow night...and the next night...and Saturday afternoon...and...well, you get the picture.

Another *yawn* National Award

I learned today that the website I designed and continue to maintain for the Permian Basin Area Foundation has won another award from the Council on Foundations (COF), "a membership organization of more than 2,000 grantmaking foundations and giving programs worldwide."

The website was given a Wilmer Shields Rich Award for Excellence in Communications, in the category for Community and Public Foundations with assets of $5-20 million. The website also won this award in 2002.

While it's always nice to have your work recognized, I don't take these things too seriously. For all I know, there were only three websites submitted for consideration. Plus, based on the design limitations of the COF's own website, I'm not sure how qualified the judges are.

It is also interesting that this is one of my pro bono sites. We haven't spent a lot of time on bells and whistles for the site because I can't really spare the time (and the client hasn't been particularly interested in them, anyway). Some of the comments from the judges indicate that the simplicity is a plus, although the site was marked down for a relative lack of photos, which makes it seem a little cold, in one judge's words.

And that's the main benefit for me: I get to see the judging panel's scorecard and comments, and it's pretty rare to get direct and objective feedback on your work. I didn't agree completely with all the comments, but others provided good food for thought. There are a few simple improvements we could make that wouldn't be terribly time-consuming. Who knows...maybe we'll land the gold in 2006!

John Kerry: Official Representative of...MA

John Kerry is now officially (mathematically, at least) the Democratic candidate for the presidency of the United States. With that appellation now comes his standing to represent the people of our nation on...precisely nothing.

It's thus with great disgust I learn that Kerry claims to be consulting with unnamed foreign leaders regarding US policy in Iraq. Memo to John Kerry: you don't represent me. You don't represent our nation, except to the extent that our Commander-in-Chief, President George W. Bush, delegates such duties to you. And, frankly, hell will be long frozen over before that happens. So stop acting like you have any official standing or credibility in these matters.

As a United States Senator, you are supposed to represent the people who elected you, however much they may or may not regret that. And that, boyo, is the population of the good state of Massachusetts, which is approximately 49 states short of being the United States of America.

You may have the misguided belief that winning the Democratic nod over a motley pack of rivals bestows some sort of special privilege to speak on behalf of my country; you're wrong. But, then, when you seek to climb beyond that and imply that you are entering into diplomatic discussions with leaders of other nations, well, that looks suspiciously like what some other "celebrities" have done in the past to undermine our nation's elected leadership and interests. Of course, people are known by the company they keep, and you seem to be comfortable with those folks.

In closing, if your geography has failed you and you've simply forgotten the outlines of the state which you represent, I'll be happy to send you a map.

Spain: The Downside of Democracy

The Spanish electorate has spoken: "we will negotiate with terrorists, and, please note, we're not any good at it."

Does this amazing action put Spain squarely into the Axis of Weasels? Perhaps, but more significantly, it sends a clear message to Al Qaeda that the terrorist organization is, indeed, still capable not only of killing innocents in mass quantities, but also of overthrowing entire governments. The Spanish election ballot may prove to be a far better recruiting poster for Al Qaeda than any video of bin Laden hiding in the rocks.

Muchas gracias, España. Por nada.

A Weekend West of the Pecos

We returned this afternoon from a weekend in beautiful Fort Stockton, where we carried out dogsitting responsibilities (five dogs) and celebrated my brother's 49th birthday.

Pecos County has gotten some good rains this year, and the countryside is beginning to show the effects, as the wildflowers are starting to appear on the sides of the mesas on the west and north sides of town. It rained most of Friday, and we enjoyed a rare morning concert of thunder today (Sunday), although very little precip accompanied it. Saturday, however, was gorgeous...clear, cool and calm; perfect weather for a bike ride. Fortunately, we had gambled on the weather and loaded the long bike in anticipation of getting in at least one ride.

Since we wanted to ride for a couple of hours, we decided on an out-and-back jaunt on the I-10 service road. It has good pavement and light traffic, and it passes through some interesting terrain. We also like to think that we're providing the travelers on the interstate with a little entertainment as they drive a rather desolate stretch of highway between FS and El Paso. Judging by the number of 18 wheelers blowing their horns as they pass, we may be right in that assumption.

The photo below is near the intersection with the highway that goes to Alpine, home of Sul Ross State University. A lot of Fort Stocktonites have made a daily 120-mile commute to get their educations at Sul Ross. If you look closely, you'll see a line of trees on the horizon, just behind the sign. That's the homestead belonging to my brother and his wife. They own a nursery and landscape business and their land is a veritable oasis in the desert. It's also crawling with rattlesnakes in the summer, but that's a whole other story.

Going on a little further, following a steady climb and then a pretty steep but short climb, we get a view of another 50 miles of unimpeded scenery. It's a long way to El Paso from here, but you get to pass through, um, let's see...three towns before you get there. Yeah, neighbors are few and far between out here. This is also a good photo of MLB and our cruiser.

Just a couple of mile past this sign is the turnoff to Bridgestone's Texas Proving Grounds test facility, which includes an eight mile loop of pavement used for high speed testing of car, truck and motorcycle tires. It was built in the 60s by Firestone, and all the locals still call it the "Firestone Test Track." One of the coolest features is an underground observation room where you can watch as cars drive over a glass plate, designed so that photos and videos of tread performance can be made in actual driving conditions.

This track in the middle of nowhere has given rise to at one unsubstantiated-but-oft-repeated story about an illegal alien who crossed the Rio Grande from Mexico and came upon the track in the dead of night. The track often has test cars running 24 hours at a stretch, and this poor soul thought he was on a lonely stretch of interstate. He flagged down a ride with a test driver, who proceeded to take him on several laps at 120+ mph. Although he spoke no English, he somehow managed to communicate to the driver that he'd enjoyed all of that he could stand, and could he please get out and walk some more? The driver let him off at approximately the same point he picked him up, and the fellow trudged onward, never realizing that while he'd made good time, he'd gotten nowhere.

Anyway, we cycled past the test track and down to the next overpass before making a u-turn and heading home.

On the way back, I couldn't help reflecting on the difference water makes in this part of the country. While this year's rainfall total is ahead of normal (for the first time in years), only a practiced eye can see the signs. What's really obvious is the contrast between the uncultivated terrain and land that's under irrigation. Below is a photo showing that comparison. The land on the right belongs to Midland oilman and rancher Clayton Williams, Jr. He's got several sections of land planted in alfalfa, and taps into the huge aquifer that runs "downhill" to Fort Stockton from the west to irrigate it year-round. (Some would contend that this practice is a big part of the reason that Comanche Springs is no longer flowing.) There are also a few manmade ponds on this land stocked with catfish, and if you look closely you might see that some of them have Claytie's cattle brand frozen onto their sides!

Later that evening over dessert, we all gave our opinions as to whether Fort Stockton has seen its last freeze for the spring. My brother said he'd seen a buzzard, and they don't migrate back until after the last freeze, but no one had yet seen a scissortail, meaning that another freeze was possible. However, on our ride earlier in the day I'd spotted a young horned lizard, and you don't usually see them until after the last cold snap. At the same time, the mesquite is not yet leafing out, and that's generally the best indicator of all. We agreed that it probably wasn't a great idea to start planting a bunch of spring flowers just yet.

It was a good weekend, and we had lots of reminders why west Texas is a pretty dang good place to live!

Rainout

It's raining, it's wonderful, and I'm taking the weekend off. Catch you on Monday, Lord willing...have a great weekend.

"Denominational Politics": A Sad Phrase...

Bryan is getting sick and tired of the political games in the Southern Baptist Convention, to the point where he's pondering alternatives.

The things he's exercised about have been going on for years and years, much to our disgrace as a denomination. I don't know what the answer is (well, that's not true...I do know, but it involves acting Christ-like and putting others before self and focusing on getting a lost world saved, but I guess I'm just naive because there's obviously a more important agenda at work), but I hope it doesn't involve losing folks like Bryan, because that will only ensure the acceleration of the freefall toward irrelevancy.

Climb Every Mattress

Today was a red letter day* in our household. For the first time in almost 25 years, we will be slumbering, perchancing to dream, on a new mattress.

I doubt that anyone likes to shop for a new mattress. It's a very personal item, something that you'll likely live with for years, if not decades, and yet you really can't give it a good test drive, at least not without violating several municipal and state ordinances.

To complicate matters, "sleep technology" has apparently made quantum leaps since the early 80s. You now can choose from numbering systems, body-molding foam and air mattresses that cost more than my first car.

We eschewed the high-tech approach and settled for a nice "'modified pillowtop" model (another advance, but this one seems to have some merit). However, we still failed to anticipate one "advance," which is that mattresses are now thicker than Anna Nicole's thighs (the pre-TrimSpa Anna, that is). The result is that our bed is now only slightly shorter than Shaq. I'm not kidding; I'm afraid to turn on the ceiling fan now for fear that I'll forget and sit up in bed instead of crawling out over the side like a gecko. Seriously, I get vertigo looking down at my alarm clock on the nightstand.

We had another little surprise, but this one is entirely our fault. We had forgotten that our previous mattress set was a "California King," which is apparently four inches longer than a, um, "Rest of the Lower 48 King." We don't really need an 84" long mattress, but we now have a rather large gap at the foot of the bed (yeah, we could have shoved the mattress down to the foot, but having that same gap at the head would be like sleeping on the edge of the Grand Canyon, ifyouknowwhatimean. The echoes alone would keep me up.). We decided that we can learn to live with it. As expensive as this one is, I can't imagine having to buy a California version, what with all the pollution controls and stuff that comes with it. Fortunately, I'm getting shorter as I age, so I've got that going for me.

Despite all of that, I'm looking forward to our first night on the new mattress. I'll sleep just fine, because I'll be exhausted by the climb. <rimshot />

*Do you know the origin of the term "red letter day"? I always thought it had some kind of arcane metaphysical existential meaning, but it turns out that it just refers to an old calendar on which special days - holidays or holy days - were marked in red.

Book Review: "Pattern Recognition"

I finished reading William Gibson's novel, "Pattern Recognition" a few days ago, and, frankly, I was underwhelmed.

Gibson is, of course, the guy whose 1984 novel "Neuromancer" created the cyberpunk genre (and he gets the credit for coining the term "cyberspace" in that book, although the meaning has shifted over time to something different). I naturally assumed that "Pattern Recognition" would continue the trend of edgy and cutting-edge technology-driven characters and plots. Instead, Gibson delivers a fairly standard mystery scenario and the technology rarely gets more advanced than someone hacking into the heroine's iBook. Granted, steganography plays a role in the plot, but it's almost a throwaway reference.

This would have been OK if Gibson hadn't been trying to be cool. You get the feeling that he's trying to keep up, but can't quite pull it off. He has his characters use Google to find out secret stuff about other people; he might have at least used "google" as a lower-case verb, 'k? Also, one of the primary plotlines involves the interaction of participants in a message board, discussing the meaning and origin of various video clips discovered in the nooks and crannies of the www. Message board? Really, Bill...ever heard of a blog, or, even better, a wiki? (Of course, if you ask Google [upper case, this time] for a definition of "wiki," you get a big old cyberblank, so maybe his research was just faulty.)

Anyway, I can't really blame Mr. Gibson for my apparently misguided expectations. Perhaps he's trying to shed the cyberpunk rep and is going for another look altogether. And if you approach the book from the perspective of a simple low-tech mystery, it's OK. I still got the feeling he was just on autopilot, though, and breezed through this one without breaking a sweat. Unfortunately, that's the same way I read it.

[If you want a tech-heavy plot with good character development and stimulating prose, try Neal Stephenson's "Cryptonomicon." The king is dead; long live the king.]

Blogging: Channeling the "Inner Crank"

Today's my day to hand out links to my fellow bloggers, I guess. But you're all doing such a gosh darn good job of it!

So, we come to Jack Rich's short essay on why he blogs and why he reads blogs. As with everything he writes, it's good stuff, and has the added advantage of being consistent with my views.

I especially like the subliminal message in this sentence, which addresses the implications of bloggers not having to vet their work through an editor:

Knowing Jack, he put that typo in there on purpose, just to illustrate his point. Talk about respecting the intelligence of his readers!

(Jack, if you didn't do that on purpose, it can be our little secret, OK? It still works.)

RTWT.

Linguistic Lint

Deb Thompson over at Write Lightning poses some questions in today's post, the answers to which will likely be found only on The Other Side.

I can't help her with the bread-hanging-out-of-your-mouth question (which, really, is probably a dental issue more than anything else), but a quick perusal of Gray's Anatomy seems to indicate that there are, indeed, words to describe the back of the hand and the top of the foot ("carpus" and "tarsus," respectively). The problem is that those terms are not sufficiently familiar as to be useful in everyday conversation/blogging.

This seems like a perfect opportunity for Deb to cement her place in the jargon hall of fame by coining terms for these name-challenged items. And, speaking of that, is there a name for people who come up with names for previously unnamed things?

Weird Bikes: Long Live the Tinkerer!

I love tinkerers. You know, the folks who look at something that seems perfectly complete and functional, and decide that they know how to improve it. Tinkerers are driven by imagination and a desire to make their marks on the world. Or, perhaps, by simple curiosity: what will happen if I do this?

I suspect that no mass-produced device has been the subject of more tinkering than the bicycle. Its basic design hasn't changed in a century, and it remains a symbol of practical utility and inspiring liberation. Yet that doesn't stop tinkerers around the world from, well, tinkering with it...and the results can be both inspiring and humorous.

Take this, as Exhibit A:

This is the MIC WIC Delta recumbent tandem, manufactured by some tinkerers in England who were obviously under the influence of Dr. Doolittle (the book by Hugh Lofting, not the movie by Eddie Murphy). Some say that this bike was designed for 24 hour races. I can't imagine why, probably because of the aerodynamics (no wind hits the stoker -- the person in the back), but I won't dismiss the possibility that it's because the stoker could nap while riding.

It's easy to dismiss something like this as a gimmick, but these guys are serious. If you look closely, you can see that the bike is equipped with disc brakes, and it comes with a 36-speed gearing option. It also offers an independent pedaling system, which means that each rider can pedal or not without affecting the other. The manufacturer also intends to offer a titanium frame option later this year.

As an avid cyclist (with a special fondness for tandems and 'bents) and occasional tinkerer (although not nearly at this level), I get a big ol' grin every time I see something like this. It's not a cure for cancer, but it somehow makes me believe that such a thing will come, and when it does, it will be through the vision and work of a tinkerer.

[Note: As far as I can tell, MIC WIC doesn't yet have a website. This website belongs to a dealer and accessories manufacturer, and it has some additional info about the bike, and several others of "unusual" design.]

Salonica 1.0: A Dawn Eden Joint

Dawn Eden has just announced the first ever (because she's inventing it!) "Salonica," a Sunday brunch gathering designed to bring Christians and those curious about Christianity together for fellowship and discussion. If you're in the New York City area on March 21, this is bound to be a great place to be. If her social gatherings are anything like her blogging, prepare to be amused, challenged and encouraged.

More details are, of course, on her site.

Oil Production in India

I read in today's Herold Oil Headliner that Cairn Energy PLC has made another major oil discovery in the Rajasthan province of India. According to news reports, the British company's latest find could have recoverable reserves as high as 80 million barrels.

Cairn is on a roll in India. Just a month ago, it announced another discovery in the same area with estimated recoverable reserves of up to 200 million barrels. This is huge, not only for Cairn, whose stock has skyrocketed on the news that its booked reserves may double, but also for India.

According to the CIA Worldbook, India's oil reserves total only about 4 billion barrels, and the country imports 70% of its required oil. These two discoveries alone could eventually add 5% to the country's production capacity.

It remains to be seen whether an oil boom in one of the poorest nations in the world can provide meaningful economic benefits for the average citizen, but we do know that developing a big oilfield is a labor and capital intensive undertaking, and you just don't bring in a bunch of day laborers from the UK or US to twirl pipe on the India-Pakistan border. Cairn's discoveries haven't garnered a lot of press coverage outside the industry, but it can only be good economic news for a country that has far too little of it.

Tony's on the move...

Just discovered that Tony Rosen has some new digs over at "I Am Always Right." Adjust your blogroll and bookmarks accordingly, please.

And, need I remind you that he's also a co-contributor to "Spare Change"?

TDF Blog

Today was beautiful (about #$(*&^ time, too!) and I was able to get out on the bike for the first time in three weeks. It also marked the first ride of the year in shorts and a short-sleeved t-shirt; winter is definitely on it's way out.

A big plus was that my tree-impaired knee did just fine. I may not be able to walk in the morning, but at least I can ride in the afternoon.

Then, to top things off, I discovered that my go-to TdF website is now located at TdFBlog.com, which I take as a good sign that it will be around for a while. This blog is the product of one Frank Steele, a self-confessed "liberal arts geek" with the hots for Macs, cycling and baseball...and .667 ain't bad. Frank keeps a "regular" blog with the provocative title of "Nicest of the Damned" (his most current post compares and contrasts a couple of ongoing approaches to making weblogs into revenue-generating publications, and is interesting reading; we also find that Frank is generating enough cash from his own blog to make a car payment, although he doesn't specify what make or model), but his TDF blog is where I'll be directing my eyeballs as the Tour approaches.

I know some of you share my enthusiasm for the Tour de France, with the spectacle and intrigue ("and crashes...don't forget the crashes!"). I've blogrolled TdFBlog, and so should you.

I'm still planning on doing my running commentary on the race come July, by the way, so you've got that going for you, too.

Blogging Survey

Via TulipGirl, I found and completed an online survey about blogging, to help a fellow blogger complete the requirements for her Master of Arts in Christian Ministry with and emphasis in Youth and Family Ministry.

If you are a blogger I guarantee you'll have fun filling out this survey, because you'll get to write a lot about your favorite subject: you! and your blog!! (Hey, I know you pretty well, don't I?) It will take about 20 minutes or so for part one. Part two will be emailed to you, and that will take another 20 minutes or so.

Some of the questions seem deliberately designed to elicit imaginative responses. [Example: What kind of church do you attend? My response: A big brick one. (OK...I went on to give a serious answer.)]

I'm intrigued by how Michelle will use the results of this survey; she's intentionally vague at this point, apparently so as not to unduly influence the responses. As if bloggers could be influenced. Really, now. ;-)

Eric Meyer's CSS Books (Cha-Ching!)

The most frequently used tech book on my shelf is Eric Meyer's "Cascading Style Sheets: The Definitive Guide." Published in May, 2000, it quickly became the gold standard for CSS references, by an acknowledged master.

Like everything else, CSS has moved significantly during the past four years, and so it's no surprise to find that Meyer is putting the finishing touches on an updated version of this book, which will bring the text up-to-date through CSS 2.x. Meyer writes that nine chapters are either completely new, or significantly revised from version one. It's due out in April, or even a little sooner, and I'll be at the head of the line to buy a copy.

He's also publishing a sequel to "Eric Meyer on CSS," which is another great book that gives hands-on examples for rebuilding non-CSS sites using CSS. He's picked ten brand new projects, and this is another must-have.

Now, if Zeldman will just get to work on a sequel to "Designing With Web Standards"...

Tips for Staying Off Camera at Church

I operate a television camera a couple of times each month during one of our Sunday morning worship services (we have three, two of which are televised), and one of our biggest challenges is finding good audience shots during the sermon.

Most people will tell you that they are not happy about the idea of being put on camera. I think most of them are fibbing, becaus