Celtic Odyssey

O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

            O Lord my God, Teach my heart this day where and how to see you, where and how to find you. You have made me and remade me, and you have bestowed on me all the good things I possess, and still I do not know you. I have not yet done that for which I was made. Teach me to seek you, for I cannot seek you unless you teach me, or find you unless you show yourself to me. Let me seek you in my desire, let me desire you in my seeking. Let me find you by loving you, let me love you when I find you.   Saint Anselm (1033-1109)

As most of you know, I really love OpenSource software (OpenOffice.org is a great example).  But I am wondering about Dell selling laptops and desktops with Ubuntu pre-installed.  On one hand, I think it is a great idea.  The more people know about linux, the better.  On the other hand, however, as with Windows, so with Ubuntu.  What I mean by that is, if people want a linux solution from Dell, they only have one choice, Ubuntu.  But there are a bunch of other linux distros out there (PCLinuxOS being my favorite).  And most people don't know that.  That is how Microsoft got such a stronghold on the market.  When people go to buy a computer and the only thing they see is Windows, well, that's what they buy.  I'm concerned that the same thing will happen with Ubuntu.  Especially since it looks like HP may be doing the same thing .  So, here again, we see that, for the average person, Linux will only be one distro, Ubuntu.  A...

Wow, nothing like a few weeks of being sick to take the wind out of you sails.  But, I'm doing a lot better now.  To let you know how sick I was, I missed church and two different studies!  And, if you know me, you know that that is not me.  But, again, I'm back and ready to get this show on the road. I have been having some good discussions with a friend of mine regarding the resurrection and the Full Preterist view.  That view is all of the 'end-time' prophecies of the Bible were fulfilled in AD 70 at the fall of Jerusalem.  (For those of you who don't know, this was a war with the Romans that lasted 3.5 years.  It is an incredible story and a lot of it reads like a commentary to the book of Revelation.  You can read it online but I would suggest getting a hard copy of it or, at least, a software module for you Bible software.)  I used to hold to this view but the historical work of Bishop Tom showed me the errors of my position.  The historical view of FP is ver...

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and may also have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

In listening to a lecture by Bishop Tom, he made a startling statement about 'Saints' -- like St Bartholomew, or St Joan, etc. -- that I had never considered before. The lecture was in answer to the question, 'Could a scientist believe in the resurrection?'. He then went through various meanings of 'believing' and 'knowing'. The scientist, he contended, is all about the repeatable event(s). The historian is all about the non-repeatable event(s). 'There can only be one first moon landing' he said. He then went through the evidence for the resurrection, summarizing his book, 'The Resurrection of the Son of God.'  And finally ending with a more holistic view of knowing and believing based in the evidence for Jesus' resurrection and surrounded by 'faith, hope, and love.  And the greatest of these is love.'  After the lecture, the evening was opened up for question and answer (my favorite part, actually). A gentleman stated t...

Here are the lyrics to the song 'Dear Mr. President' by Pink from her album 'I'm Not Dead.' Dear Mr. President Come take a walk with me Let's pretend we're just two people and You're not better than me I'd like to ask you some questions if we can speak honestly What do you feel when you see all the homeless on the street Who do you pray for at night before you go to sleep What do you feel when you look in the mirror Are you proud How do you sleep while the rest of us cry How do you dream when a mother has no chance to say goodbye How do you walk with your head held high Can you even look me in the eye And tell me why Dear Mr. President Were you a lonely boy Are you a lonely boy Are you a lonely boy How can you say No child is left behind We're not dumb and we're not blind They're all sitting in your cells While you pay the road to hell What kind of father would take his own daughter's rights away And what kind of father might hate hi...

O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to your with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen .

As you know, I am all about Free and Open-Source Software (FOSS). And today I want to point you in a slightly different direction. That of web based applications. Specifically, Zoho Office . Zoho Office is an online office suite.  It has a word processor (Zoho Writer),  spreadsheet app (Zoho Sheet), presentation tool (Zoho Show), database app (Zoho Creator), groupware app (Zoho Mail), etc.  About twelve apps in all.  Most of them are free.  Some have limitations set for individual use while others have set limits for businesses. One of the great thing about this suite (and that is what it actually is, a suite of office apps) is that you can access your documents anywhere, anytime, provided that you have Internet access. Another great feature is that you can import existing documents so you can work on them while on the road.  This is extremely helpful for those people who don't have laptops.  In addition to this, one can even share the documents you are working on with others so...

Sorry, folks.  I have got some sort of cold.  I feel like I've been hit by a truck.  My daughter, Sumi, feels similar.  At first I thought I was just having an allergic reaction to all of the pet dander while ripping out the carpet in sumi's room.  But I was mistaken.  I've slept off and on pretty much all day.  I hope I'm feeling better tomorrow 'cause there are a couple of things I want to share. Peace be with you. + OD

...and no, I'm not talking about the movie. Today, and another late post,  we tore out the carpet of our daughter's room.  We took the carpet out of our living and dining room a few years ago and it was (more than) time to do Sumi's room.  This took a little while because we had to move furniture and stuff (she doesn't like it when I call it 'crap') but we got it finished.  It's nice.  We have descent wood floors underneath so it looks alright.  Besides, it's nice to get the mildew scent out of the house (our house is really old). Also, we have rented out our upstairs room again.  This guy...  Man, this guy has been through hell and back.  He's a good man, but dang.  His was a very hard life.  After a long conversation I suggested that he write down certain aspects of his life.  It would make a great book and it would spark action from the world around us.  My prayer is that he will do so.  The things he talked about should not happen.  And we are at...