Praising God in advance

Today our worship leader was talking about Palm Sunday, and how the praising that went on that day was really a glimpse into what would come the week after. It got me thinking. Why don't we praise God in advance more? They were praising Jesus for a salvation they had yet to see, based on miracles they had seen. No, they didn't know what "the King who comes in the name of the Lord," was going to do, or how it was going to work, but they were praising Him, because they knew their salvation was near. We may not know how He's going to answer our prayers, but we know He's going to. We've seen Him do it. Why do we wait til after He answers them to give Him honor and glory? Praise Him now!

Oh heavens - I'm a book thief again

I stole another book.

But again, not on purpose! I honestly thought I returned it. So when I got an email saying it was due that day, I called and told them that. The librarian said, "Oh, it probably just didn't get scanned right. We have tens of thousands of books coming in every day, and that happens sometimes. I'll change it to say that you returned it." I had been thinking she'd check the shelf to see if it was there. But she didn't check, and I (shame on me) didn't tell her to, figuring I didn't want a fine if she couldn't find it.

Well, I found it. Don't worry, I will return it Monday, but yeah, until then I have a contraband library book. I'm so horrible.

Psalm 104:31-34

May the glory of the Lord endure for ever,
may the Lord rejoice in His works,
who looks to the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke!
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to Him,
for I rejoice in the Lord.

Book Review: "The Elegance of the Hedgehog," by Muriel Barbery

Excellent book. I don't really know what to say about it, though, since I kind of reviewed it in my not-a-book-review.

It's French, so it's kind of artsy-fartsy. It's nice to read something with a different tone, though. I like to expand my horizons. It got me thinking a little bit, too, which is nice considering that I have a job in which thinking is optional. My one complaint is the ending, but it's not bad enough to change my opinion of the book as a whole.

If you're looking for a fast read that's not fluff, this is the book for you. I highly recommend it.

My really long quote

I open the envelope and read this little note written on a business card whose surface is so glossy that the ink, to the dismay of the defeated blotter, has bled slightly underneath each letter.

Madame Michel,
Would you be so kind as, to sign for the packages from the dry cleaner's this afternoon?
I'll pick them up at your loge this evening.
Scribbled signature

I was not prepared for such an underhanded attack. I collapse in shock on the nearest chair. I even begin to wonder if I am not going mad. Does this have the same effect on you, when this sort of thing happens?
Let me explain:
The cat is sleeping.
You've just read a harmless little sentence, and it has not caused you any pain or sudden fits of suffering, has it? Fair enough.
Now read again:
The cat, is sleeping.
Let me repeat it, so that there is no cause for ambiguity:
The cat comma is sleeping.
The cat, is sleeping.
Would you be so kind as, to sign for.
...we have this dribbling scribbling on vellum, courtesy of Sabine Pallieres, this comma slicing the sentence in half with all the trenchancy of a knife blade:
Would you be so kind as, to sign for the packages from the dry cleaner's?
If Sabine Pallieres had been a good Portugese woman born under a fig tree in Faro, or a concierge who'd just arrived from the high-rise banlieues of Paris, or if she were the mentally challenged member of a tolerant family who had taken her in out of the goodness of their hearts, I might have whole-heartedly forgiven such guilty nonchalance. But Sabine Pallieres is wealthy.
...Sabine Pallieres has no excuse. The gifts of fate come with a price. For those who have been favored by life's indulgence, rigorous respect in matters of beauty is a non-negotiable requirement. Language is a bountiful gift and its usage, an elaboration of community and society, is a sacred work...Society's elect, those whom fate has spared from the servitude that is the lot of the poor, must, consequently, shoulder the double burden of worshipping and respecting the splendors of language. Finally, Sabine Pallieres's misuse of punctuation constitutes an instance of blasphemy that is the more insiduous when one considers that there are marvelous poets born in stinking caravans or high-rise slums who do have for beauty the sacred respect that it is so rightfully owed.
To the rich, therefore, falls the burden of Beauty. And if they cannot assume it, then they deserve to die.
- from "The Elegance of the Hedgehog," by Muriel Barbery

The prelude to my long quote

Hm...What is "The Elegance of the Hedgehog" about? It's hard to say when there's not much happening in it. Basically it's written as the journals of the two main characters, who are both too smart for their stations in life. A German review said, "Free of any real 'action' it is nontheless immensely exciting and captivating...Whoever is convinced that philosophical discourse is highbrow and boring will think otherwise after having read [it]."
I love that it's an intelligent book, and yet is approachable. There was one part that was so very me.

It really is too bad that he's married

My chiropractor (with a big grin), when I went in the other day: "I was so excited when I saw your name on the schedule for today! My own personal scouting report! How did they look? Who did you see pitch? What did you think of Ben Revere? Oh, and did you get a new hairdo?"

Book Review Preview: The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery

I'm loving it. And I'm trying to figure out how long of a quote I can put here. Doesn't copyright law say 10% or something like that?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Disney World

When I was 7, my family went to Disney World. I did not get to go on the Dumbo ride. I was extremely disappointed. My mother says now that if she had known what a big deal it was to me then she would've seen to it that I got to go on it. As it is, not getting to go on it is one of my main memories from that Disney World trip. Well, when we were down in Florida for Spring Training, we also went to Disney World (thanks to the Give-a-Day, Get-a-Day promotion). And I got to go on the Dumbo ride. And that's my happiest memory of this Disney World trip. :) Yep, I think that sums it up.

How's this for convicting?

"If we do not devote all that is within us to the glory of God, which part is it that we should leave unconsecrated?...'All that is within [us]' must bless God's holy name. To withhold part of the price is robbery; to reserve part of our territory from our King is treason."
- Charles Spurgeon

"Full Attention" - Jeremy Riddle

May Your voice be louder
May Your voice be clearer
Than all the others
Than all the others

May Your face be dearer
May Your words be sweeter
Than all the others
Than all the others in my life

Please keep my eyes
Fixed on You
Please root my heart
So deep in You
Keep me abiding
Keep me abiding
Keep me abiding
That I may bear fruit

May Your presence be truer
May Your presence be nearer
Than all the others
Than all the others

May Your light burn brighter
May Your love move deeper
Than all the others
Than all the others in my life

Baseball Review: Spring Training

I loved it. Sunshine, blue skies, palm trees, relaxed atmosphere, not being in Minnesota in March, everything. My nieces were able to get their picture taken with Michael Cuddyer (they tried for autographs, but the marker didn't work), and autographs from Matt Tolbert, who was kind enough to pull over on his way out of the parking lot (the next day - when they had a working marker).
I think another part of what made it so enjoyable was that since these games don't matter as far as the regular season goes, the fans weren't as competitive. Yes, we were cheering for our teams, but, as cheesy as this sounds, we were all there because we love baseball. I also really liked that at the second game we went to, when the person who was supposed to sing the national anthem had to cancel because of laryngitis, they had everyone sing it instead. Again with the cheesiness, but it just felt so American.
We had a lot of fun (even with our Standing-Room-Only seats for the one game), so I highly recommend it.

Things I learned on vacation

1. Florida does not believe in road signs. If you're looking for Merritt Island Drive (or whatever it is) so that you can get to the manatee boat, there will neither be signs for Merritt Island Drive nor the manatee boat. This means you will not get to go on the manatee boat and you'll have to entertain your nieces in some other way while your sister and brother-in-law are being space geeks.
2. If you're looking for another way to entertain your nieces, ask the gas station people about putt-putt. They'll look really confused if you ask them if there's a mini-golf place around.
3. Dinosaurs did exist. If you don't believe me, look at the size of some of the pterodactyl-type birds they have down there, like the Big Black Scary Birds of Death.
4. The phrase is apparently "See you later, crocodile," according to the little boy on my plane.

Just so y'all know...

I won't be posting for a few days. Because I'll be in Florida. Not looking at snow. Watching manatees. And baseball. And Mickey Mouse. Aw yeah.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss! "I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope, which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities."