Yesterday (June 15, 2010), I attended the funeral of my maternal grandmother. All of my other grandparents passed away well before I was born. She was the only grandparent I ever knew. She was 99 years old. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Family, Relationships
For many of you who do not know, ever since I lived in Vancouver, I have grown to love the nature around me. In my last place, my landlord — a pastor and his family — had a compost bin in his back garden. We would fill the bin with all sorts of rubbish (vegetable clippings, tea leaves, egg shells — I even threw in some pork bones which I later found you are not supposed to do) and, after a few months, it would all turn into this very rich soil (bones included). Aside from the fringe benefits of having stuff to plant with, it was also a means to minimise the amount of waste thrown out for the garbage trucks. Afterall, things that could be composted are usually tightly wrapped in plastic bags and added to landfills – a place where worms, slugs and other friendly critters could not help in the decomposition process. Read the rest of this entry »
The day after Apple introduced the iPad, Macmillan went to Amazon to negotiate the pricing of their products. Amazon was selling their ebooks at $9.99, when their print versions normally go for between $5.99 and $14.99. Amazon was also taking a huge cut of commission, but Macmillan basically wanted to get the same deal they were getting with Apple. So, as a result, Amazon stopped selling Macmillan books. However, on Sunday, Amazon said it would start reselling Macmillan books because they have a “monopoly over their own titles.” [1]
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Ethics, Technology
A French parliamentary committee has recommended banning Muslim headcoverings. The committee’s report claims that it “is the symbol of the repression of women, and… of extremist fundamentalism.” [1]
BBC reports that many in the UK also want this ban, claiming that it is “not British.” There is obviously a racist underpinning to such a statement, but I’m not even going to go there for now. What really unnerved me was what the journalist was implying about freedom of religion: “In a country [France] where the separation of state and religion is enshrined in law, a parliamentary committee report ruled the veil as “contrary to the values of the republic’…” [2]
And now begins my rant. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: China, Christianity, Ethics, United Kingdom, USA
In literature, there is a concept known as a “suspension of disbelief” where you are mentally are willing to belief in the unbelievable. This then allows the story to make sense, despite the fact that chipmunks don’t sing and different worlds don’t exist deep inside your wardrobe.
Since coming to England for my postgraduate, theological studies, I have come to the realisation that there needs to be a “suspension of belief” — that, in my writing, I cannot appeal to my biblical or doctrinal convictions as authoritative. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Dissertation, Education, Theology
For the first time since getting married, Betty and I have a place of our own to call “home.”
When we first got married, Betty moved into my basement suite underneath the home of a pastor and his family. They were good people but, on a regular basis, we could hear the piano playing next to our bedroom and the ping-pong table being used next to our kitchen.
The next time we moved was when we relocated here to the UK in September of last year. We stayed with good friends in a shared home as “temporary housing.” Honestly, we have been really blessed by good friends and strangers who have opened their places to us to live. But, as a young married couple with a desire to bless others, we thought it would be important to find a more personal “home”. So, this all changed last week.
Here’s a shot of the front (with our Civic parked there) and our back garden (with the new compost bin we got — which, incidentally, is sold at a reduced cost since most municipalities actually subsidise them). Our hope is that we will be able to use this place for God’s glory and, perhaps, entertain angels unaware. If you would like to visit, drop us a line!
WARNING: You are about to encounter a long rant.
So, since Betty and I have been here living in the motherland (England), I have been merrily driving around in our eternal blue Honda Civic without a license. Well, without a proper UK license to be precise. I can legally drive on my US license for the first year but have to go through the process to apply and test for a UK license if I want to drive anytime after that first year. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: United Kingdom, USA
Its been 365 days since Betty and I wed. Since the exchange of vows, it has been quite a whirlwind. She changed jobs; I began a PhD. We moved countries and have lived in two homes (Lord-willing, going to a third one at the end of this month). Had the addition of two members to our family — a MacBook and MacBook Pro (what else were you thinking?). We have been homesick, rejoiced at the news of an expectant nephew, mourned the passing of a loved one, surrounded by encouraging friends, faced with major decisions of housing and traveling and weddings to attend or miss, and had much anxiety over exams to come (my first year PhD panel review in June and Betty’s professional certificate exam THIS TUESDAY — prayers appreciated!). Needless to say, in one sense it seems like we have been married for much more than one year. Yet at the same time, I feel as though we are still newlyweds. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: God's creation, Relationships, Wedding
No, no, I am not talking about rapture. A few months ago, I talked about my research proposal purgatory. I have done five major revisions. Then, I met with my supervisor today and he said, “Aside from this one small item you left out, I think you are done.” I was sure I misheard or he was talking about just a subsection or something like that. But, no, he was talking about my entire research proposal! Alas, something in which he deems acceptable. You don’t know how ecstatic I am! :)
Tags: Dissertation
Over the past three decades, I have lived for extended periods of time in three different countries. Each, however, have been English speaking. The first being my beloved U. S. of A. — my homeland and my place of birth. The second being Canada, where I found my beloved Betty. And now, I find myself in the third, England, where I have lost my beloved sanity in pursuit of a PhD. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Canada, Dissertation, United Kingdom, USA
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