water: revisited

Back in September of 2008 I wrote a blog on the sustainability of tap water over bottled water. In a 2007 online article from National Geographic's Green Guide states that tap water just isn't about sustainability and money - but health. Just another reason not to buy bottled water. Check out the article here.

libraries and healthcare

Headline: “Government leaks to public that public libraries are a socialist idea. Libraries are shut down across the country!”

It sounds crazy, but is it? In today’s world in the U.S. the rich are buying books. It doesn’t matter if it is the hard copy first edition, the second edition soft-cover a few months later, or the $1.00 book at the used bookstore. The poor? Well - they are going to the library. And what about computers? The rich: they have one or two or three in their home. Or for the most frugal using the computer they use everyday at work. The poor? There is not a computer they are working on, because the work they are doing doesn’t involve a computer. And since the cost of computers is so high (even when they are priced in the low hundreds) that certainly the poor who are barely making ends meet what with paying for rent and food for the week can’t afford even the cheapest computer. So – where does someone go that can’t afford books or a computer? The library.

Books and computer may seem just like a form of entertainment, but they are as essential as food and health in today’s world. Well, at least if you want to pick yourself up by your bootstraps. (That is if you have any.) It’s hard to find jobs without the computer these days. You certainly can’t write a resume or cover letter without one. And books? Well, they are the foundation of education, of course. Enough said.

But the library doesn’t sound crazy. And giving access to free books and computers doesn’t sound socialist. Then why is it so crazy to also use public money for maybe the most basic need next to shelter and food – healthcare? Is health a right or a privilege?

As the world seeks to be more progressive and good, why then is it so far away from helping the most basic needs of the ones that can’t afford to help themselves? Would it not be more progressive and good to help instead of hinder and divide? Are we just regressing to a society of kings and serfs?

nickel and dimed review

I just finished Nickel and Dimed. The book is about a journalist’s sojourn into the working class. For me, it was a reminder that I am not working class. I have college degrees, networks (as small as they may be sometimes), a support system, some money saved up, a car, and a plethora of other variables. The book is a must read for anyone that doesn’t have to live in motel day-by-day or a small apartment on weekly rent.

The book was written ten years ago and you can already tell that it is outdated. There are no 9/11 experiences. When Barbara Ehrenreich wrote this book there was a labor shortage. And of course she was not dealing with a recession. Housing prices have skyrocketed since she wrote the book and I presume rent has as well. There is one other thing that has changed. Universal health care is now trying to make its way into law.

At the end of the book, Ehrenreich talks about how the poor have no longer been discovered, but just the opposite forgotten. And now people no longer feel that the poor are there because they are lazy, drug addicts, and thieves. She states that “disapproval and condescension no longer apply” and that guilt doesn’t go far enough, but it is shame in ourselves that kicks in when we think of the poor.

I don’t think shame is the right emotion here. I think she gives people far too much credit, and I think she wants people instead to feel shame. Just as with slavery, people’s minds were changed: from condescension, to guilt, to shame. Those same steps still need to be taken today for continuing class and racial barriers. Ehrenreich does not give enough credit to the social system in place of the individualistic capitalist society we live in. We still live in a society that says the individual is the key to their own success and there are no systems in place to keep people poor.

Maybe the most constructive aspect of the book is that Ehrenreich shows that even a highly successful women with a Ph.D. can’t really “make it” when she is left in the same predicament as the working poor. Ehrenreich really proves that there needs to be some changes with affordable rent, cost of food, salaries, and healthcare. Until then the rich will continue to ride on the backs of the poor. Whether they feel condescending, guilty, or shameful is up to them.

three cups of tea, education, and the urban city

I recently finished Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. And it is a must read for everyone. The book is about one man’s journey to bring a school to a poor community in Pakistan. The book is inspiring. It gives life to the people of Pakistan, to Afghanistan, and the Middle East. It gives a hope for peace that is not through war, power, and death, but through a road less traveled.

The book gives an alternative view to the way life has been lived out since 9/11. It’s a view that involves less U.S. taxpayer money, less death, less destruction of towns and villages in Iraq and Afghanistan, and less fear of terrorism.

Just as the U.S. wages war in the Middle East, the country been raging war domestically since it’s conception. Cities such as Detroit, MI and Gary, IN, and in poorer neighborhoods in cities such as Chicago or Boston were not always poor, dangerous, and places to avoid rather than seek. All these cities have history. Many of them can trace the growth of unrest from their beginnings, to the industrial revolution, to events as recent as white flight around the middle of the twentieth century. These places of course are hit hard with violence and theft. Locals who could get out did. The working class and poor just kept on working.

The alternative is education. A radical idea never used before. Education is the same thing that many people, myself included, have thought for years would help inner cities of the United States. Of course here in the U.S., compared to such places as in Three Cups of Tea, there are actually schools – for the most part. The quality and opportunity of education, of course, are vastly different. Most urban schools are given half the money that a suburban school is given. A quick Google search will confirm this. The administration? What administration? If anyone has dealt with bad school administrations in the ‘burbs or rural area – just try a poor urban community. And what about the quality of teachers? All you have to do to figure this out is to go to a teacher’s job fair in Chicago. The lines for the suburbs are out the door. For the North Side expect to wait an hour to speak to a representative from the school. For the South or West side of Chicago: wait time - zero minutes. It’s an area so desperate for good teachers, yet no one wants to work there.

Just as thousands of miles away education is an alternative to war, violence, gangs, and a life of terrorist groups, Three Cups of Tea provides a realistic alternative for those of us eager to make a difference in the U.S.. We don’t have to sentence our cities to a life of poverty, injustice, and violence. There are peaceful options, if we are brave enough to embrace them.

iraq and the middle east: part I

I’m not sure who is winning the war on terrorism. In 2003 the U.S. decided they would enter Iraq and bring “freedom” to the people. Six years later a few thousand U.S. (UK and other countries) soldiers have been killed. And this doesn’t include the ongoing war that is next door in Afghanistan. The number of casualties seem to keep climbing each month despite the claim for change and peace proposed. Hey! And, what about the people of Iraq or Afghanistan?

In the end though, Bush (or maybe better put Cheney and Rove) or the Obama Administration can’t be accused alone for starting a war or continuing a war. Like anything, the blame cannot be put on one person or country, or ideal for that matter. I recently just finished Three Cups of Tea and am in the middle of Power, Faith, and Fantasy (a history of the U.S. and the Middle East). I’ve still got to learn about the U.S. relations with the Middle East, but like anything there is history behind the U.S. relationship with Iraq. For example we can’t really understand racism in the U.S. without understanding how the history of slavery, the Civil War, Jim Crow laws, the Civil Rights era, and all the history in between have affected racism is today.

There is a lot of history with the Middle East. And amazing as it was to me, it is not all that bad. In Power, Faith, and Fantasy author Michae B. Oren does, however, string along a common theme – America’s desire to bring the same freedoms, liberties, democracy, and Westernization that they won in 1776 to the Middle East. In the book it really doesn’t seem that bad. I mean who wouldn’t want freedom, right? Well, in 1900 the freedom sounds a whole lot better than the imperialist ideals that other countries were trying to impose in the Middle East.

It is interesting to learn that oil and power were not always a means for war for the U.S. Even when the U.S. finally entered WWI they never declared war on Turkey. A peaceful means by President Wilson. I can only imagine a different outcome if Roosevelt was still president. As I finish the book I will have a second reflection on the U.S.’ involvement in the Middle East.

still kicking...

Despite my long absence from blogging this blog continues to live on. Next week: my thoughts on the Middle East and hopefully in the near future some posts from a guest blogger. Until I get a job the blogs will continue to be sporadic, but hopefully more frequent than in the past three months.

Random thought of the day: Sitting in a Borders this morning I have come to the realization that Glee has totally ruined Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing. Come on!

life on the fringes

I’ve been out for just about two months. It’s not due to writers block or lack of things to write about. In fact, there has been plenty to write about. Hopefully some of that will make it into the pages of this blog in the coming weeks. Mainly though, I have been out from lack there of employment.

Of course being unemployed is more than just being unemployed. Well, usually. I live in a place that I don’t call my own. I am living the life of a nomad – and I don’t like it. The connections, people, and familiar things of Chicago I have lost and until I find a new place, new connections, and new people, familiarities won’t come. There is no permanent place to go to church here, no permanent friends, not even a permanent place to get groceries or to have fun at the park.

So – looking for a job hasn’t been fun. I think there must be people out there that like looking for a new job, but in today’s “climate” I do not know anyone that does. The frustrating part, of course, of not having a job is not having a place in life. We all know that having a job is the most important thing in life, right? I mean it is the first question everyone always asks, “What do you do for a living?” It is never what are your hobbies or what do you like to do for fun, or even what gives you life or what is your passion in life? Because in reality many, many people are just living for the weekend. But life and passion, that is another thing. It is the things in life that being joy and love, and meaning beyond a job. (Of course a job can bring joy and love and meaning. Many people have this everyday. But today isn’t for those, it is for those who do not.)

I actually have received a phone call for work. Three in fact. But, they’ve all been from my Monster.com profile, and I have no desire to join a pyramid scheme. Until then, I continue to plug away and wait. Sometimes patiently, sometimes not.

wolverines travel schedule

The Wolverines won’t be traveling much this fall when they take the football field. Four away games in all including: Michigan State, Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin. It looks like everyone will be coming to the Big House.

those 2003 tigers

This is for all of those baseball fans out there. Do you remember the 2003 season? Probably not, unless you are a Detroit Tigers fan. That year the Tigers went 43-119 almost becoming the worst team in baseball history. Luckily for the Tigers they won their last two games of the season to become merely the second worst team ever. Inspired by the site http://www.flipflopflyin.com/ (weird name cool site) and its chart on the 1986 Mets World Championship, I’ve created a little chart showing the team that was assembled for the 2003 season to never become great.

(click to enlarge)

just business

The question was razed today – what’s the point of marriage after the age of forty. With no future of children, it was brought up that the only reason would be for business – cheaper insurance. People called in and affirmed that indeed there is no good reason. Which raises a larger question: why get married at all?

The radio station, which I listen to everyday on the way to work, has been perplexed by the idea of marriage lately. It was topped off today by asking the question: why even be married? Other questions have included: do you like spending time with you family? The whole idea of marriage has been mocked and rendered useless, culminating with the question: do you even like your wife?

Of course that’s not the only place that underestimates the idea of marriage. In the February issue of Real Simple the statement was made that your spouse shouldn’t be your best friend. Included in the statement was a quotation from a “sociologist”: “I agree. I think you’re asking a lot of your marriage to have the level of confidentiality, truthfulness, and disclosure that a best friendship has. Your marriage can fulfill only so many roles.”

It seems that indeed the radio and the “sociologist” have come to an agreement that a marriage is just a legal business transaction. All sacredness of the ceremony, life-time meaning, love, friendship and commitment are left by the wayside as mere foolishness.

It’s become a sad day. Of course there are exceptions. But this is a mainstream radio station and a mainstream magazine. It’s become a common view and way of life – that marriage is no longer a union, but just business.

stewardship of a paid education: part 1

This is part one of a two day blog on an article I read from Real Simple magazine. In the article a woman was interviewed and asked how much money, total, she would need for the rest of her life. The answer to that question and the bulk of the article will be tomorrow. For today I am just going to write on one part of the article. In the article she stated that she would want $100,000 to go toward her child’s education. (A.K.A. her child’s education is paid for. They are granted at least a free bachelors’ degree in life.)

Now being asked the question how much money would you need to live on for the rest of your life, of course you would include your child’s education into the mix. In reality, though, almost everyone has to earn their own money. In turn when this question is brought to mind in real life, should we be paying for our children’s education?

What does it do to a child when everything is paid for including one of the most prized assets someone can have: a college education? I myself have a Bachelors’ and Masters degree. Along with a trail of college loans to be paid off. That trail got me up for 8:00 AM classes. It made me go to night classes when I would rather be at the University basketball game. It made me appreciate the cost of books and the cost of food. But what if that was all paid for. I wonder how many 8:00 AM classes I would have missed or how many basketball games I would have gone to?

Would the luxury of free school made me not appreciate it as much? In general when someone’s education is paid for is the appreciation there? Is there good stewardship in having a free education? Is it teaching our children to live in the real world when that happens? When someone else has to pay for it? I’m not sure if there has ever been a study on this before, and I don’t have the means (a University Library) to find out. Just thinking about it though: 1) it would be hard to determine, and 2) would the test results come out the way I think they would.

When we talk about stewardship if we compare a student with a free education to a student that had to pay for their education (almost all of the time) the person that had to pay is going to have more debt - whether school or credit card. So, already stewardship may be screwed. Maybe spending habits could be looked at, though. And savings accounts probably are skewed too. A person who doesn’t have to pay for college has a better ability to build a savings account.
What about overall degree. Well, if someone has a free education they may have a better ability to have a bigger and better degree where someone paying for all of their education may only be able to afford a community college, an associate’s degree, or a smaller, less powerful college.
And what about appreciation? Is there a way to study this? It’s easy to mark on a survey when asked “Do you appreciate the free education you received?” Yes. In reality, though, does the person really appreciate and understand what it means to receive it and understand what people go through to have the same education?

My personal history, in undergrad and graduate school, would suggest that indeed people whose education is paid for by their parents or from a scholarship from sports, etcetera are not as appreciative. Their understanding and stewardship of money are often twisted and blind, and often marks of superiority are there. Of course there are plenty of exceptions. Many of the exceptions that I saw were in undergrad - in students who grew up with no chance of going to college and were given a scholarship because of their low socio-economic status and given a chance. In the whole though I wonder if this is just an experience I have seen, or is universally true.

a walk through the neighborhoods

I walked to downtown last weekend. It’s about an eleven mile walk. Not really a far distance when you can drive or even bike. But, when you walk – yeah it’s a long distance. It was a nice sunny Saturday morning and afternoon. The temperature was probably around the mid 80s. A little hot, especially since it has been such a cold summer. We were going to walk the lakeshore to downtown but then decided that we walk downtown under the shade of the trees and we could keep cooler that way. It worked. Couldn’t have done that in the ‘burbs. We packed lightly for the walk – two water bottles and some granola bars and headed out the door.

We went east for a little bit and then followed streets going south until we arrived downtown. We followed mainly residential streets and stayed away from the main thoroughfares with all the loud traffic. We were able to do this for most of the way. We got to see several neighborhoods this way and got an eclectic feel of Chicago that few people ever get in at one time. It was great to see all the different houses, apartments, and condos, and to take in the different personality of each neighborhood.

We were able to walk that far without getting too tired. Well, at least until we got home and realized we had major blisters and aches in our legs. It was well worth the experience of being able to walk downtown and really see what Chicago is for one last time.

hummers

The hummingbird is really small – like really small. And their nest? It’s small, too. In a recent discussion over the weekend over how big a hummingbird feeder is, no one could quite figure out how big the nest was. Well, YouTube comes through. Below is a (lengthy) video of a hummingbird (and babies) and its nest. Quite fascinating. Take a minute to watch a little bit.

i'm not so sure about silver suits and flying cars

Have you ever seen a futuristic movie? I’m not talking about Star Wars or Star Trek. That’s like really future where Earth is no longer inhabitable because of all the trash so everyone had to leave for space. No, I’m just talking about the near future where everyone has a flying car and wears a silver suit.

It’s kind of funny to imagine the world in the future. To think that what we think as progression is flying cars and silver jump suits. The only thing though is that I don’t think in the future everyone is going to be wearing silver jumps suits. And I’m really not keen on everyone having a flying car.

Silver jump suits, really? That’s a step back in the fashion world. That would be like men going back to the short-shorts of the 1980’s. It’s just not going to happen. Has silver ever been a color of choice for clothing? I mean it works for jewelry and cars, but not clothing. Plus, when did everyone start wanting to wear the same exact thing as everyone else? Even if people did have to go to space suits that happen to be silver (which does not seem too far a stretch when you think about what astronauts wear) you’d think Nike or someone would create a line for people to have different suits.

What about flying cars? Sure it would be great for the economy. I mean car companies would have to create new plants and be able to put out a whole new product that everyone would want. Think of the job possibilities. It’s similar to the whole green energy market that is right now trying to be created. Besides it being good for the economy (or at least I imagine it would be), it would just be really cool to fly everywhere. Instead of being restricted by roads you could fly in a direct path to your destination. It would be faster, easier, and there would be no traffic jams. Right?

I’m not so sure flying cars should ever be a possibility, at least for everyone. Driving is already dangerous enough: road rage, people driving drunk, traffic jams, city traffic, etcetera. Imagine adding flying into the mix. I don’t want to know what a drunk person driving a flying car could do to the world. I don’t want to know what cars going every which way over houses and buildings and so on would do. And that’s how it would be, right? No more roads, no more restrictions. People could fly over whatever they wanted. It could try to be restricted, but why would someone sit behind another flying car when they can just go above them, below them, or any which way to their destination. Imagine what commuting would look like. Without roads, flying would be chaos. The roads would looks less like a go-cart track and more like bumper cars.
But, what if flying was only restricted to a few - say emergency vehicles. Fire trucks could arrive at fires faster. Ambulances could get to a crash faster. And police could get to a robbery faster. In a world with flying cars I am not sure if is safe enough for this world to handle, but it could be a great resource for helping others.

travel anyone?

by the numbers: my morning commute

15 minutes to get ready



10 minutes waiting for the anti-theft lock to turn off so I could drive to work



16 lights to the highway



30 miles to work



40 minute commute

yes, sometimes i do speak

Today I got the privilege of speaking at work for their weekly Wednesday morning chapel. My little speech is below in its entirety. I stuck to the script for the most part, only straying away from it a few times so you will get the basic gist of what I had to say. We also sang two songs. The music was great for both, but neither song was well known so the singing was a little quiet. The hymns were sung one at the beginning and one at the end. The first song was “Worship the Lord in the Beauty” and the second was “Living and Dying with Jesus” which I thought fit quite well. At the end I also gave a benediction. I had never done that before. Kinda weird. Overall I think it went well. I was a little nervous, but after that I was able to speak with solid rhetoric.



What are we doing with grace?

2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (TNIV)

As God's co-workers we urge you not to receive God's grace in vain. For he says, "In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you." I tell you, now is the time of God's favor, now is the day of salvation.

We put no stumbling block in anyone's path, so that our ministry will not be discredited. Rather, as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; through glory and dishonor, bad report and good report; genuine, yet regarded as impostors; known, yet regarded as unknown; dying, and yet we live on; beaten, and yet not killed; sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians, and opened wide our hearts to you. We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us. As a fair exchange—I speak as to my children—open wide your hearts also.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Faith and grace – it doesn’t seem to come at a cost anymore. Martyrdom is a thing of the past. (I’m not saying it doesn’t still happen. Occasionally we hear a story here or there.) But in general we don’t hear the stories of people like Paul who boasts of his hardships or a modern day martyr like Dietrich Bonhoeffer. If you don’t know who Dietrich Bonhoeffer is – he was a German pastor and an author who during the Nazi reign stood-up against what was wrong and was eventually imprisoned and killed for it.

Grace is often called the quality that makes Christianity unique to other religions and the rest of the world. So, what does grace look like? And, what are we doing with it?

Grace is more than proclaiming John 3:16 – to say this gift God gives us is free. But we are cheapening God’ grace when we leave the proclamation at that. It’s only half of the equation. But it is hard to proclaim repentance, confession, discipleship, and even sometimes a life of hardship; like that of Paul who had been beaten, imprisoned, hungry, who cried out about being poor and dying.

And yet… Paul rejoices!

Has the church lost what Paul rejoiced in 2000 years ago? Have we lost grace in the church today? We talk about living our best lives now. We make Christianity into Americanism. And even sometimes we proclaim that grace maybe isn’t for everyone, creating moral barriers of superiority and division. All of those examples are completely the opposite of what Paul was trying to teach. Now this would be the time where I would do a PowerPoint. But, because of Annual Conference all the projectors are in San Diego. Instead I’ll do the little PowerPoint verbally. I’ll name a person or group and you will decide for yourself whether they deserve grace or not.

Hitler… the KKK… Mother Teresa… Martin Luther King Jr… Obama…How about George W. Bush… Your favorite athlete or singer… Sadam Hussein… the homeless.. Enron or Madoff …

How far were you willing to extend grace?

Did you extend grace to Mother Teresa or Martin Luther King Jr? How about Hitler or Enron?

Yet, grace goes beyond hate, beyond racism, beyond any sin of this world.

Are we keeping grace under a rock? Are we hiding it in the ground? OR – are we giving grace, are we being unconditional in our love as, God is for us? In the parable of the workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20)… Do you know this one? Where the owner of a vineyard hires some workers at the beginning of the day for a denarius, then at noon hires more for a denarius, and again in the afternoon for a denarius. At the end of the day all the workers from morning to afternoon are all paid the same amount one denarius. This grace doesn’t make sense to the world. It doesn’t even make sense to us most of the time. This is not just the second half of the equation, but it is like adding 2 + 2 and it equaling 5. It’s as if God has changed the fundamental truth of the problem to not equal 4 anymore, but 5. Just like the math problem grace is beyond what the world sees as ‘good’. God’s fundamental truth of the equation of grace is different from the world’s it is extended to all.

On our own, attempting to give grace to everyone without any sort of conditional filter is impossible. We’re human, and we are going to become frustrated with our co-workers, with bad drivers, with irritating neighbors. It is only when we live in the depths of God’s grace, and allow his strength to pour through us, can we seek to live in a different way. And it is this grace-filled lifestyle that has the power to really change the world for the better, as Jesus did. Are you up to the challenge?

tipping point in life

What’s the tipping point of awareness? It’s seems these days everyone wants to make everyone aware about something. If we just know, the world will be a better place. That appears to be the motto of the philanthropist today. It today’s over-stimulated world, does it not seem that we already know about everyone? Indeed too much. I mean I know about hunger issues around the world, racism, sexism, cancer, heart disease, autism, Vets without proper medical care and on and on, and on, and on. And there isn’t just one organization trying to stop cancer or help hunger around the world. There are hundreds of people reinventing the wheel each year. Yet, it seems that only a few have made it to the tipping point of awareness, and that is only because one involves a person who can ride a bike exceptionally well and another who is well very famous. How did anyone get help before rock stars?
And what about the whole green thing? Now that the economy has tanked it seems the only green that people want is in their wallets. Although the economy had a lot to do with the slump of being more environmentally conscious, was it more the economy or people’s constant search for the next thing (aka societal ADD)? With everyone saturated with knowing everything, the will to help has been displaced by a lack of community organizing. An example of this can be seen in the average family life. In an average family with kids, there is so much going on that there is a lack of concentration in one thing such as a single activity, hobby, or even being too busy to include a weekly church service. Life has become so busy that some of the fundamentals of life such as a sit-down dinner, family night, or Sunday morning worship have been left off the to-do list. Has the tipping point already happened in many families’ lives? Is anyone noticing? Is anyone looking at living beyond just physical and material things, or is family, friends, and daily living too much to expect in today’s culture?

the echidna

I’m often stated as loving squirrels. And that statement is true, but only because of my love of all animals. When I go for a walk or look outside my window there is usually a squirrel doing something at some point. There is an encounter. I don’t get to see penguins or anteaters everyday; and not surprisingly since they are only at the zoo. And although I see a fair share of deer, groundhogs, and opossums they are usually only glimpses, not encounters. The squirrel represents my fascination with all animals. It helps that squirrels are interesting creatures (check out the Youtube video below) and not mundane.

But seriously, how often am I going to see a long-beaked echidna (only found in the area of New Guinea)? In a recent article in the NYTimes they honor this shy creature. Usually the platypus gets all the publicity as the weird animal and the joke of the animal kingdom, but I have to say that the echidna is fairly weird looking itself. The popularity of the platypus may be because you can see a platypus swimming down a river in Australia, but you may never come across an echidna in the jungles of New Guinea.

I’m sure if I could follow one of these creatures around I would drop everything to do so. For now I have the squirrel to watch.

birding in chicago

You don’t usually think about there being a lot of species of birds in the city. Or at least I don’t. I’ve recently started to get into birding after receiving binoculars for my birthday. I’ve been interested in birds for years, watching many of the birds coming to the feeders at my parents’ house. But, that is only a small amount of birds and only a select few even go to home feeders. So, in May when I went on a North Park Nature Center migratory birding walk, I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw.

They gather early - the bird watchers. At eight o’clock in the morning on Saturdays they gather for two to three hours to see (and hear) all the birds they can. I wasn’t sure how many people would show up. I mean, it is eight o’clock on a Saturday morning and it is birding. I was surprised by the amount of people each week (probably around thirty). We had to split into two groups each week. From there we would walk around the grounds with our binoculars and search out what we could find.

I saw about forty-eight different species of birds. Many of them common to the area, but many more I’d never seen before. Here’s what I saw:

Permanent Abundant
Canada Goose, Mallard, Mourning Dove, House Sparrow

Permanent Common
Ring-billed Gull, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, American Crow, Northern Cardinal, Song Sparrow, American Goldfinch

Permanent Uncommon
Red-headed Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker

Summer Abundant
Chimney Swift, Tree Swallow, American Robin, Red-winged Blackbird

Summer Common
Green-backed Heron, Black-crowned Night-Heron, Eastern Wood-Pewee, Willow Flycatcher, Gray Catbird, Brown Thrasher, Red-eyed Vireo, Blue-winged Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Indigo Bunting, Brown-headed Cowbird, Baltimore Oriole

Summer Uncommon
Eastern Phoebe, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Summer Rare
Cooper’s Hawk, Veery

Migrant Common
Magnolia Warbler, Palm Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart (warbler)

Migrant Uncommon
Solitary Sandpiper, Brown Creeper, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Northern Parula, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler

Migrant Rare
Black-throated Blue Warbler

The Saturday mornings brought adventure, thought, and a birding community. One of the best things I learned from this birding experience is that identifying birds is a skill and it takes time and practice. I hope to do more in the near future.

not simply happiness

Joel “happiness” Osteen. He’s the one-stop-shop to happiness and seven steps to a better life now. He is the definition of Marx’s “opium of the people.” If you’ve ever read Marx’s quote beyond the one phrase, there is much more to what Marx is saying, and ironically enough even an average student of religion like myself can easily refute Marx’s statements.

Unfortunately, Osteen’s church has become a catalyst for a watered down Jesus and Christianity that brings well deserved criticism from non-Christians. No wonder in today’s world non-Christians find it hard to distinguish between a liberal non-Christian who seeks out equality and justice and a moral-induced Osteen follower. The essence of Christianity has been left out.

Fortunately, Christianity is more than happiness and fuzzy kittens. It’s more than optimism. It is about hope. It is about the beatitudes that Jesus talks about in Matthew chapter 5. A radical way of living that is far from an opium, happiness, or seven steps. Christianity is beyond instant gratification, beyond the American Dream, beyond simple living, beyond ‘going green’, beyond pro-life, beyond day and night, it’s beyond just living. In a world of hurting, suffering, and starving - Jesus brings an alternative.

burb nation: a review

I recently read Suburban Nation. It’s a book that lays out what is wrong with Suburbia and how to fix it. The authors are neighborhood planners, so the facts, claims, and evidence for their thesis are fairly concrete. The overall book is great. A must read for anyone - whether they live in sprawl or not. The book bases its ideas on practicality, function, and economics. Although the book does reference racism and sexism as issues in suburban/urban problems, they are not the theme. I think this is an important prospective, as it can convince the average Joe White that the sprawl that is going on is bad without turning average Joe off with harsh language and realities he would rather not face. For example: claiming that much of urban decay began in the 60s (although racism and redlining was a factor), the policies that were in place to build a mass highway system, and housing laws back then (and today) that allow developers and such to cater to the ‘burbs and care less about the urban city.

In the end the book gives excellent reasons to move away from Suburbia the way it currently exists (and even more reason in a recession nine years after the book was written). I am still left with some questions though, and wondering this: is the idea that the authors present actually possible in the United States?

First, let’s address the idea of the neighborhood being less car reliant. In the neighborhoods that are created, it would create towns that depend less upon the car. It would allow people to walk almost everywhere they need to be including work, school, grocery store, and shopping. In an every growing globalized world is walking really the way America is going to go? Kids have travel soccer in the next town. That takes a car. Now, the authors at no point say that cars are bad and should be done away with. They just want less driving, especially since as a nation we are too dependent on cars and oil. But, for example, for a Chicagoian one day to be working in Chicago, the next to be vacationing in Wisconsin, the next to be carpooling a kids’ group to Indiana, public transportation certainly can’t accommodate the demands of American life.

The book builds an idea of more community in neighborhoods in a world that is expanded past its city limits. Although the book addresses many of these issues, it doesn’t fully address the problem of cars verses public transportation. Until there is a full overhaul in public transportation that makes it not only easier, but also faster and cheaper than a car, cars will the mode of transportation. This means when I do need to travel somewhere beyond my community that public trans will actually be a better idea. In today’s world if I travel from Chicago to Elgin it would take about 2 ½ hours compared to 45 minutes in a car. I don’t have to continually wait for a bus or train, or to transfer. Plus, to go to Elgin by train I would have to go south several miles even though Elgin is directly northwest. And in the end when the authors call the car “free-good,” it is actually cheaper for me to drive to Elgin than to spend money on two buses and two train fares one-way.

The authors present the idea that the car is “free-good.” It’s the idea that I can travel places, park places, etc for free. In the end it is more expense overall compared to public transportation. However, as I stated above, until it is made clear to the public’s perception that public transportation is easier, faster, and cheaper the “free-good” will always win.

Secondly, like many Americans, members of a household do not necessarily work in the same town. Many families live in between workplaces or live in one workplace area but the other may be miles away, thus making car travel inevitable for someone in the family. I think many of the ideas for a traditional neighborhood, the type of neighborhood that the authors present, would bring less driving in the community but may never address the practicality of multiple job locations.

Thirdly, American culture loves the one-stop shopping of big box stores. The book doesn’t fully address what to do with big box stores. In such a capitalist country that is driven by low prices, big box stores are not going away anytime soon. And every town can’t provide a Wal-mart, Target, IKEA, etc. within walking distance or even in each town, which will inevitably just create the same traffic and parking problems that the book is trying to disperse.

Burbs verses the traditional neighborhood layout


Finally, can the culture of the suburbs be really tamed? Isn’t the idea of driving run by the spirit of freedom? Don’t people like driving? Don’t people like living in cul-de-sacs? I mean, I pass by thousands of people sitting in traffic everyday trying to get to work in Chicago who would rather sit in traffic and have a big house with a big green lawn than an overpriced smaller house with no lawn in the city. The book again addresses many of the problems of creating better laws for the city to compete against the city, but would it create cheaper housing? Isn’t Chicago about location? The junky house at the end of my block isn’t selling for $700K because it is nice, but because it is in Chicago. Until the city can compete in pricing there may always be traffic jams (either that or like I stated above do an overhaul of public transportation).

The books also states over and over again about a priority for narrow roads over wide roads. I agree with this statement as the authors claim the roads function better for pedestrians. The authors also claim it will slow traffic down. Do people want to slow down? It seems as though everyone is in a rush today to get anywhere and everywhere as fast as they can. Just yesterday standing next to a narrow road a car buzzed by at an alarmingly high speed (for seemly not reason except to speed). Although narrower streets, and especially shorter streets (compared to long streets that are uninterrupted by street lights, stop signs, and speed limits of 55) I am still not convinced that the narrower, shorter streets fully address the safety issue.

At one point in the book it is stated or inferred that there is no end to sprawl. There is no tipping point. An example is that if instead of creating a four lane highway we created a ten lane highway that it wouldn’t exhaust any of the traffic problems. The best example of proof of this is in Atlanta. The idea is that if we create more people will come and use it and fill in the spaces that were created. Therefore requiring more lanes, etc to be created. I’m not sure that the amount of lanes are the problem as much as the problem of diverging and merging traffic of multiple highways. An example where I live is by O’Hare airport where three intersecting highways convene at once, creating traffic jams not because of the amount of lanes, but because people have to merge to a different highway or merge onto the existing highway. In the end the authors are probably right: there is no end to sprawl. And that’s a scary thought.

I loved the book. I am just not convinced and unsure about everything the book addresses. Much of American culture, developer and building laws, and city, state, and regional laws would have to do a complete 180 to make many of these dreams a possibility. In the end, the traditional neighborhood is a direction I would like to move toward rather than the ever growing sprawl that America is moving toward.

out this week

Somtimes life is just delayed a little bit...and like life so is this blog this week. The editor is out this week.

at the zoo

Here is a compilation of our recent Lincoln Park Zoo visit.

pondering chicago 2: what i will miss

Yesterday was the bad. The things that I dislike, cringe, and fear about Chicago. Today, are the things that suck me in to such a great city. These are the things that I like and will miss when I leave.

Diversity. The diversity of the city is amazing. So many different ethnicities, races, and cultures all huddled into one place as community. Life as it should be, or at least close.

There is something about urban life that is so great. The culture, thoughts, activities, and life in the city is just different and it is ‘good’!

Urban design. I love narrow streets, back allies, and diverse housing. The city equips neighborhoods to have mixed housing. This creates diversity among the rich and the poor, black and white, and different cultures. Among that, there are sidewalks everywhere. Creating the opportunity to walk or bike where you need to get to. I will also miss street parking.

I love getting on a bus or the el. Mass transit is underrated. I feel like we are missing something when we forgo community in transportation. The el brings a viable and fun way to see the city. It allows people to get around the city fast and views of it that are otherwise not possible.
Really tall buildings. There is something ingenious about seeing the engineering and design that goes into a skyscraper.

I’ll miss my church.

I’ll miss my friends.

It’s been something of a privilege to live next to Lake Michigan for the past four years. The beach is a wonderful place to be in the summer time. Picnics and walks are also fun.

The endless opportunities for food. You can find just about anything in Chicago and best bets are that it is close. From Thai to steak to anything in between it is all here.

I’ll miss the North Park Nature Center. It houses nature trails, nature programs, and birding. Also on the grounds is the recycling center.

Sometimes the parking lot is a little small and the aisles a little narrow, but Traders Joe’s serves up some of the best groceries in the city for your money. I’ve come to love Joe Joe’s and mango vanilla soy ice cream.

Kind of an odd thing – but the $5 pizzas at Dominick’s on Friday nights. It’s not as good as a quality pizza place in Chicago, but it is way better than Pizza Hut or Dominoes.

Chicago hot dogs. Yummy!

Wrigley field. It isn’t the cheapest place to see a ball game, but there are very few places left today that have so much history and baseball in one place.

Good radio stations. If you’ve ever been in a region with a bad assortment of radio stations you will appreciate this one.

Someone is always standing up for justice. It seems as though there is always a rally, march, or activist fighting for someone here.

It’s always easy to pick some one up, drop someone off, or take my own trip with O’Hare being so close. I will miss the easy access to a big airport.

It’s impossible to be bored in Chicago. The countless museums, parks, festivals, and programs make the city a tourist attraction and a fun place to be.

Grant Park Music Festival. World class music for free.

I love being so close to Michigan and Wisconsin. I will miss the days when I am only a quick drive to the border.

I love Chicago and Great Lakes history. It will be sad not to be a part of that.

pondering chicago: the bad

At the possibility of moving from Chicago I ponder the things that I love about Chicago and the things that I do not like so much. Back in December I wrote about my love-hate relationship with the city. Over the next two days I’ll be describing some of the likes and dislikes.

Especially over the past few months I have felt an even bigger urge to just “get out” of Chicago. Here are some of the reasons why:

• 
  Although Chicago is full of alternative ways of travel: buses, trains, and bikes the city and surrounding suburbs are still controlled by car travel. Many people are able to walk or bike to most of the activities in Chicago, however many more still have to depend on a car (or bus) to do shopping and other community activities. Wherever you go cars are everywhere in huge amounts. Working outside of the city has created quite a commute for me. And I will never miss it. Traffic is by far the greatest thing I will love leaving.
• 
  Along with traffic is the amount of time it takes to get somewhere. Even though the closest grocery store is only a mile away, it can sometimes take up to twenty minutes to get from point A to B. A “quick” trip to the grocery store can take thirty plus minutes.
• 
  The home prices in Chicago are outrageous. Many people are taking advantage of cheap houses right now. As I stare at the $700K house for sale at the end of my block, I think I could never be a home owner here.
• 
  No yard, no garden, no fun. Without any seeable future of owning a home in Chicago the only prospect left is a condo or rented apartment. Like most in the city they have no yard, no opportunity for a garden, or to use the yard for activities.
• 
  Chicago has its own culture like any place. As I wrote a couple weeks ago, some of it is not so good. People don’t say ‘hello’ to each other here. Driving etiquette is out the window. And it always feels like I am wearing an invisibility cloak around when I am here.
• 
  Much of this bad culture is expressed in mass aggression and dangerous driving. Everyone feels like they can do whatever they want to other drivers. Much like what we all did in the first-grade lunch line to get the food first.
• 
  It always feels odd to walk or drive in the dark. Why? Because in Chicago the street lights are always on and they are everywhere.
• 
  With thousands of lights always on that means I can’t see the stars. Well, unless they are moving stars.
• 
  I live in a fairly busy neighborhood. There are always cars driving by. (You could never play a pick-up hockey game in the street.) But, that’s not the problem. The problem is there is always noise. Whether it is a car, blaring, ambulance, and sometimes simply just noise.
• 
  Chicago has a lot of people. So many in fact that everywhere I go it always feels like it is crowded.
• 
  High food costs. Jewel is out of their mind! I don’t know how people can afford it.
• 
  My job is thirty miles away. Enough said.
• 
  It is hard to run (and I won’t bike) because of all the unsafe drivers in the city. I don’t know how the bikers bike around without a helmet.
• 
  President Parkyn. Grrrr.
• 
  Police that disregard red lights just because they are police. Just the other day a police car got stopped by the red light. No one was coming so the car just went through the intersection. It didn’t do it because they had to get somewhere. No flashing lights were involved. They gladly stopped at the next light that was 100 yards ahead without going through that one. No wonder regular drivers decide to do the same thing.
• 
  Jewel. It deserves its own bullet point.
• 
  Fear of little children. I always feel like when walking around all the punk kids are going to pull out a club and beat me. Why does everyone have to have an attitude problem around here? Would it hurt so much to smile every once in a while?
• 
  Flooded apartments. Never again!
• 
  Weird and crazy neighbors. Never again!
• 
  The sight of sleazy, pay-by-the-hour hotels.
• 
  High sales tax. Chicago has a 10%. What do you have?
• 
  Everything is so fast paced. I don’t mean slow paced, as in when I say I’ll build you a shed in two weeks time I it actually end up doing it in 4 months time. I mean everyone is going 80 in a 30, cutting me off, running red lights. Just take a chill pill - we are going to all get there at the same time anyway. At least you could drive safe!

If it looks like I am ready to move you are right. That doesn’t mean there isn’t anything good about Chicago. Tomorrow I write the even harder list: the reasons why I love Chicago.

serenity now!

For the past week in a half I've needed a little "serenity now."

it really is an audacity of hope

There is something audacious about being hopeful in politics isn’t there? When it comes to politics the glass always seems to be half-empty. When we look to Washington or to our own state capital for leadership we end up with a lot of let-downs and are left unfulfilled. Politics always seem to be influenced by money not rights, power not needs, and that guy looming behind the scenes.

So, when I read Barack Obama’s book The Audacity of Hope I was pleasantly surprised by what else – hope. Unfortunately, I’m not certain it is a hope that everyone sees. Obama talks of health care for everyone, quality of education that is available for everyone and not just to those who can afford it. It seems strange to say that everyone doesn’t want such things as health care and education for everyone, but it is true. To make those things available to everyone it may take sacrifices from the haves to the have-nots. And what Americans hate the most is giving their hard-earned change to people who are poor (aka work less hard). How do you bring hope to the hopeless and appease the rich?

In the first half of Obama’s book he talks mostly of his platform and ideas that he stood by (and stands by) before he became president. The second half of the book is not about his platform directly, it is more about him. The chapters are based on faith, race, and his family. The faith chapter is probably the most intriguing in the book. Obama describes his faith story as a kid who grew up surrounded by a family of pluralistic ideas and faith. Eventually, during Obama’s time in Chicago as a community organizer he sees a different kind of Christianity. It is a Christianity that helps the poor, one that seeks justice, and one that fights for those rights. He finally embraces the religion on the streets of Chicago.

Obama also talks much about his struggles as a Christian and as a democratic politician. What over the years now has become the standard for Christians is to be republican and to uphold prolife rights no matter what other issues they may stand for. In reading this book, Obama describes wrestling with himself in debates and with voters wondering how they can be anti-life. You can tell that Barack is struggling with being pro-choice. Yet, probably on the same streets of Chicago where he found his faith, he probably saw the injustices of back-alley abortions, the history of racism of the inner-city that set the cornerstone for those abortions, and systemic racism that sets the laws in place today that keeps women from continuing to go to those allies. It is probably ironic for many people to see that Obama wants the same education for young people (including abstinence) to help stop abortions, but he holds the same value of life as pro-lifers.

In the book you can see the joys and adversities of a politician; the money that it takes to be a senator, the miles of driving and flying and being away from family. With adversity comes joy like when a law is put into place, or when a factory is re-opened. Hope is in the midst of a failing economy, a failing health-care program for all, and the possibility of quality education for all.

ghosts of communications failed

[Some exciting news for the day. For the first time I have a guest blogger. Without further ado here is Jess.]

I’ve recently seen several films dealing with relationships. More specifically, relationships in trouble. This past weekend, we went to see the new Matthew McConaughey film, Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. The primary reason for seeing this film was because the chapel where we were married (the Martha Mary Chapel in Sudbury, MA) is featured during the wedding scene. While it was really a kick to see our wedding location on the big screen, the plot was somewhat disturbing.

The main character, Connor Mead, uses women to escape himself. By going through relationship after relationship (most not lasting more than a day or two), he finds a way to avoid having to invest in another human being. So he drowns in himself. Drowns himself in his lust, desire to be wanted, and seeming inability to connect with a woman. The root of this problem stems from a middle school dance, where he couldn’t get up the nerve to ask his best friend, Jenny, to dance. Instead, another boy beats him to it. This disappointment, coupled with a seemingly unending stream of bad advice from his beloved uncle, set Connor on his path to self-destruction. Connor’s uncle teaches him how to coerce women, how to convince them they are worthy of attention (albeit physical) only to leave them moments later, and basically how to “get out” before getting hurt.

The second movie we watched was The Break-Up with Vince Vaughan and Jennifer Aniston. It pretty much about what you would expect – a horrific break-up between two people who used to be so much in love. As the movie plays out, you find out that Vince’s character – Gary – is so used to getting his own way, and doing what he wants to do that he’s never bothered to make room for the needs of the people that he interacts with (which includes his best friend, brother and ex-girlfriend). Almost the entire movie passes (filled with some serious fighting, cheap attempts at getting attention, and jealous antics) before Jennifer’s character – Brooke- and Gary finally have the conversation they should have had after their first month of dating. She finally tells him that she feels like she carries the whole relationship, makes all the plans, does all of the arranging of details, and makes her life bend to what he wants. She’s empty – she has no energy left to put into the relationship because she hasn’t been cared for.

In both of these movies I shook my head and wondered what was wrong with the characters. In Ghosts… I couldn’t figure out what drove so many women to convince themselves that they weren’t worth more than a one-night-stand with Connor Mead. In The Break-Up it was just beyond me how people could be together, in a seemingly close relationship, without having honest conversations with each other. And how they could be surprised when it fell apart. It all points to brokenness and human frailty.

We are all broken. There’s no getting around that. And knowing that brings incredible freedom and significant responsibility. We are free to accept the fact that we are broken, get over ourselves, and do the best we can with what we have. You could also take advantage of this brokenness by reveling in being broken, deciding that attempts to summon yourself from the depths are in vain, and taking people down with you. Those are your two choices. Various characters in these movies exhibited the weaker option in obvious ways.

So, I suggest that you see these movies. And then think about your relationships. Don’t wait until you are a few years into a relationship to talk about the difficult stuff – start right now. When you learn to talk honestly with each other, you learn how to better support and nourish the other person. You learn how to listen. We all have room for improvement in this department. Be inspired by these movies to do a better job at loving your family, friends, and spouse.

~Jess

cubs in april

Baseball seems a bit cold in April doesn’t it? I can contest that it does. Jess was able to score some cheap tickets to a Cubs/Reds game. So we walked to the El and got to see a great game at Wrigley. We were two out of 38,000+ people at the cold rainy ball park on a random Tuesday night game. The Reds who are usually a powder-puff team are actually doing well this season. Although the rain did seem to hold off for most of the game it did get considerably chilly. The Cubbies ended up winning the game 7-2 with some great pitching by Rich Harden (8 strikeouts) and some great hitting by Micah Hoffpauir and Aramis Ramirez. The funniest part of the evening was when a cat got loose on the field and ran about the outfield.

now, but not yet

I had a friend say the other week that “it is hard to live life in the present when you are thinking about the future.” As a population in general we seem to have a hard time with this. When we have a vacation coming up all we can think about is the vacation in two months. When someone is graduating soon all they think about is the day they graduate and not about the exam the next day. When a transition is happening good or bad it is hard to keep track of the here and now.

Living in the Kingdom of God is much the same idea. In Christianity this can be seen just about everywhere in every situation. “Who cares about the stewardship of the earth when someday I will be in heaven?” There is so much thought about the future that the present is forgotten about. And as N.T. Wright points out to us, as Christians we plain and simply don’t live out the theology of heaven and resurrection correctly.

But when graduation, a new job, or a new baby is coming how do we live in the now and not the future? The answer doesn’t seem to be black and white. It is as grey as living in the Kingdom of God - now, but not yet. It is much more than just heaven or just earth. Life is much more than perusing a new job and mucking the present. Life is more. Life is living out the kingdom of God now, but not yet.

culture gone bad

As much as I love Chicago sometimes; its diversity, endless activities and sights – sometimes the city makes me go crazy. At the core of Chicago culture is good ole fashioned Midwest culture. The culture that was founded on farming, thrived in industries like steel, cars, and logging, and was populated by trains and canals. Here in Chicago though, it’s where ‘friendly’ goes to die. Common courtesy dwindled away like the train in the 20th century. Mores treated as if they never existed.

It all started about four years ago when I moved here. I was at a red light patiently waiting for it to turn green. Next to me was a turn lane. Across the intersection was my lane and to the right many parked cars. The light turned green. I let off the brake and on to the gas. The car to the right of me instead of making a right turn slammed on the gas, sped in front of me, cut me off before it slammed into the cars parked in front of it, and preceded to pass me for absolutely no reason. That day I didn’t know it, but it would only be the first of hundreds of times that this exact scenario would happen or something similar.

I’ve seen cars in the left lane of a two lane road cut off the rest of traffic to make a right turn. I’ve seen cars pass me illegally down a highly populated street going 80, skipping stop signs, only to catch up to them because they were stopped at the light. I’ve seen cars drive backwards down one ways. I’ve been honked at to go at a light even before the light turns green. I know if I leave room for a car to fit itself in while driving on the highway, that a car will manage to fit itself there. I’ve seen cars swerve to the break down or on ramp just to be in front of another car while in a traffic jam. I know at any time a car from a side street or side parking lot may dangerously pull out in front of me.

I know when I go running I have to make sure cars actually stop at stop signs before running across the cross walk so I don’t get hit. I know when I run I will have to get out of every single person’s way because not one of them will get to their side of the side walk or move over for a runner. I know while taking a walk I have to do the same thing.

Living in Chicago sometimes is like always having an invisibility cloak on. These are the new mores of Chicago. It’s a society of neighbors that don’t even look at each other or say “hi” when walking by. A society that sees more birds flying than friendly waves.

Not everyone is like this. Every time I go running I give the guy that sells the watermelons on Peterson a smile and he reciprocates. Sometimes I get a friendly greeting at a store or restaurant. And just last week while going for a run two little girls actually stopped their game on the side walk to move over and let us run by.

I don’t think I ask for much: just that people obey basic traffic laws, respect each other, and give up half the side walk when passing each other.