Taido J. Chino, Ph.D.
I obviously don’t have much going on if I’m resorting to posting random music. The day has been filled with tidying up things that have been accumulating for weeks, months, and years in various corners of my house. The sad thing is that I’ve got several more corners needing similar attention. These songs make work like this slightly more tolerable.
Tokyo Police Club – Breakneck Speed
Cloud Cult – Running with the Wolves
Ghosts I’ve Met – Payphone Patience
… Aspen.
During our Colorado tour, we got to spend several days in this pretentious (yet lovely) mountain town. I’ve been to Aspen four times now, and every trip has left a lasting impression. My first time was nearly twenty years ago during a winter trip for a couple days of skiing. It happened to be Gay Pride Week which meant that my traveling companion and I sat as far apart as a ski lift chair will allow.
Time two was with half a dozen or so would be mountain climbers. The trip was in mid-September which apparently is a fairly unpredictable time as far as weather is concerned. I can’t do justice to the catastrophe that followed, so if you are curious ask my friend Josh all about it.
My third time there was another climbing trip. This time with a far more positive outcome. There were four of us, and we tackled some of the most challenging 14er climbs Colorado has to offer.
This latest trip there was far more laid back, but equally enjoyable. Here are the photos to prove it.
Aspen is notoriously expensive, but with a little meal planning and some the help of Difficult Campground, it can be done on the cheap.
If you need a little something to make your music collection more interesting, you’ve just found it. They took a some getting used to, but now I can’t get them out of my head. Sleigh Bells… Enjoy!
Sleigh Bells – Crown on the Ground (this was a huge hit at middle school camp this summer)
Sleigh Bells – A/B Machines
Sleigh Bells – Ring Ring
Alison pretty much covered our time at Crested Butte, but I’ve got a few pics on the phone that she didn’t necessarily have. So… here’s my contribution to remembering it. Since I was a small child, a bike has been synonymous with freedom. Loved seeing my kids experience that same joy.
Notice the snow on some of the mountains. Just looking at it can cool me off a bit.
Somewhere between the all the comings and goings of the summer, Alison and I found a couple hours of unoccupied time one evening. We hadn’t seen a movie in a while, so we looked to see what was available and there was a movie called Adam that I knew nothing about. By the way, having zero knowledge about a movie is my favorite way to see one. I love the experiencing a story unfolding, and seeing previews or reading write-ups tends to predispose me one way or another towards the film. This penchant of mine is aided by our next to non-existent exposure to the television, and therefore most story-ruining previews. Sometimes this strategy backfires, but whatever.
So given my unintentional rant, I won’t ruin the movie by telling you all about it. Other than it is a love story. But it’s not your typical Hugh Grant-ish type of romantic comedy (not that there is anything wrong with that). If you enjoyed Lars and the Real Girl, then you stand a chance of appreciating this one too.
Bonus… great soundtrack.
The Weepies – Can’t Go Back Now
The vast wasteland known as my summer is drawing to a close. The pace of activity combined with long absences hasn’t left much time for keeping this little project going. However, I do desire to return to the world of blogging, and recent shaming encouragement from Alison has provided the needed stimulus.
And so I’m going to be joining Alison in her thirty-day blog-a-thon. While there will be a certain amount of “flashing-back”, I reserve the right to do whatever I want around here.
Like starting a day late.
Or simply putting up a picture and calling it a post.
To get the ball rolling, here’s Simon and Ben in a canoe at the home of some dear friends early in the summer.
See you tomorrow!
Ok, so by my reckoning, I’ve neglected this blog for about a month and a half. I’m not sure what any of you have done to fill the empty void left by my blogging absence. Probably just watched a few more minutes of American Idol or NBA playoffs.
There are a few reasons to explain the lack of activity around here, but frankly they are pretty uninteresting. So I’ll spare you. My return would have been delayed indefinitely, but I got tired of visiting here only to see the lame excuse for a post staring back at me. Not that this is going to be much of an improvement. Its only redeeming quality will be that it is different.
So… this edition of Four for Friday was inspired by the fact that this weekend there are some parties around town that are sort of a big deal. These four should pretty much carry you all the way through.
1) Miley Cyrus – Party in the USA
I understand that it might be a bit shocking to see something so blatantly mainstream on here. But my favorite moment yesterday was driving around town with my nearly thirteen year old son and embarrassing him by blaring this song with the windows down. He was literally sinking down in his seat to avoid being seen by others. A great choice to get the ball rolling this weekend.
2) Sleigh Bells – Crown on the Ground
This one brings things up a notch. Hard not to love.
3) Broken Bells – The High Road
This one is for when you are hanging late night with your friends and want to look like you are in the know on what is hip. That’s right… hip.
4) Romany Rye – All the Boys
When you are winding down things on Sunday, this is a good one to help you get there. Romany Rye is largely made up of some great local musicians. They are on tour with Delta Spirit this summer. That’s sort of a big deal.
Alright, my work here is done. Enjoy the weekend!
The music situation hasn’t been all that great lately. So I’m going to share a few (more like four) things that I’m liking some right now…
1) Kyte – Dead Waves
I realize that I just said that the music situation hasn’t been all that incredible the last few weeks, but there is one stand out for me. Kyte, a band from some other country, put out a new album recently. I like it.
2) My Chaco’s
Alison bought these for me around Christmas time, and since it has warmed up a bit, I’ve been in them pretty much non-stop. I don’t see that changing anytime in the next six months.
3) Huevos Rancheros
Lunch for me is typically leftovers from the night before, but lately the eating capacity of my crew has taken a turn for the unbelievable. This is my lunch in a pinch, and it is always good.
4) After You Believe by N. T. Wright
I realize how this looks… that I have a man-crush on N. T. Whether that is true or not is beside the point. This is a good book. It is the third (and I think final) in series of books written on a more popular/pastoral level. The other two are Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope, and any of the three are worth your while. They don’t really build on each other, so you could pick any of them up.
Looking back on this foursome, I’ll understand if you don’t find my likings very remarkable. I guess sometimes it is finding enjoyment in the little things.
Kyte – Fear from Death
This past week’s reading was pretty straight forward. King after king (with very few glorious exceptions) led both the Northern (Israel) and Southern (Judah) kingdoms away from God into idol worship.
They set up sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree.
They worshiped idols, though the LORD had said, “You shall not do this.”
They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their fathers and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless.
They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshiped Baal. They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire.
So the LORD was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence.
Selected verses from 2 Kings 17
“Removed them from his presence” is another way of saying, they were taken by force to be slaves by conquering nations. The Northern Kingdom is carried off by Assyria, and Judah is eventually taken into captivity by Babylon. This period of time is often referred to simple as “the Exile.”
It is hard to overstate the significance of their exiled-ness. It obviously impacted their living circumstances, but it more profoundly affected everything else about them. The way they understood their relationship to God. Their place in the world. Their ethos as a nation. Hopes for the future. And so on.
And while there was something of a return during the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, their life in the land was a shadow of their former way of life. Over some centuries, this sense of being in exile developed not only in a geo-political sense, but also in a spiritual one. All this is important to hold together as we head into the prophets sometime soon. And of course, all this sets the stage for an even greater deliverance… what one might even call a resurrection.
There’s so much more that could be explored in the verses above, but maybe the most striking line is “they worshiped worthless idols and themselves became worthless.” I don’t necessarily think that the verse is suppose to be a once and for all statement about their value as human beings. However, it does make quite clear that we become like what we worship. And worshiping idols (of any sort) takes away from the dignity of our humanity… always. Of course, the opposite is equally and wonderfully true as well.
Sorry to pull the old bait and switch. No music here today.
I’m in Wheaton, Illinois for the weekend listening to this guy talk about the Bible. If you watch all four (or really any) of these videos, you’ll be a smarter person than you are right now. No need to thank me.
On Adam and Eve
On Worldview and Our Reading of Scripture
On Genesis 1-3
On Heaven