Oh, Dusty...

Why don't you tell us all about the world class gymnast with the MBA?

Lazy bums...

So the one guy with the best excuse not to post on here is the first one to post a new string in 10 days? Have you guys lost the fervor of your first love with traber6updates??? So this post requires twofold responses:

1) What's your excuse not to post anything here? Satirical answers welcomed.

2) Do we really have a general consensus condemning online dating services? I'm interested to know. What, if any, are the conditions when it would be okay to meet people that way? My own feelings may be posted at a later time.

I know that these questions don't have the same gravitas as our previous thread based on Coye's article, but maybe we can get people talking again. And you, there in the nosebleed section, feel free to contribute.

God on the Quad

I just received a new book in the mail, God on the Quad - How Religious Colleges and the Missionary Generation are Changing America, by Naomi Schaefer Riley. It just came out in 2005, and is the result of several years of studying US schools. I will let you all know how it turns out, but I have already seen some interesting quotes by Rich Powers and Noel Jabbour.

“In practical terms, these students challenge what has become, since the sixties, the typical model of college-student behavior. They don’t spend their college years experimenting with sex or drugs. They marry early and plan ahead for daily life. Indeed, they oppose sex outside of marriage and homosexual relationships. Most dress modestly and don’t drink, use drugs, or smoke. They study hard, leaving little time for sitting in or walking out. Most vote, and a good number join the army. They are also becoming lawyers, doctors, politicians, college professors, businessmen, psychologists, accountants, and philanthropists in the cultural and political centers of the country. While they would disagree among themselves about what it means to be a religious person, it is assumed that trying to live by a set of rules, generally ones laid down in scripture, is the prerequisite for a health, productive, and moral life.”

Civil Unions II

First, I want to thank Andy, Adam and Strauss for carrying on this conversation with me. I also want to re-extend my invitation to everyone else: come and talk with us. I think this issue is desperately important and increasingly prominent in our social/political climate. I linked back to my original post with the intent of continuing the dialoge that has been taking place there. The original post also has a link to my column in the Amarillo Globe-News and log-in information for that site. I know that there are many, many issues that are related to the justice/legality of homosexual civil unions, so I don't want to place any narrow limitations on the topic that would cripple any genuine attempts at understanding. At the same time, I think that we can benefit from talking through the smaller issues one or two at a time rather than publishing manifesto-length position statements in a series of intesecting monologues. And, in as much as love is a greater than truth, I hope that we can all work towards genuinely understanding one another before we consider trying to change those positions. So...

Hey, old man...

Hey you! the one in Japan... no, not you, I want the other one... the one without the beard... yeah, you, Stephen, happy birthday! You're now firmly entrenched in your mid-twenties, which sort of makes you an old man (not really, but it is well beyond the pale of childhood). They say that youth is squandered on the young, so have fun squandering yours today. Sake wa doko desko.

Wild Nights.

611 Studios: hot-n-steamy, extra-spicy .

Aeijtzsche & H Hitt Facktory involved in world-wide fame.

Taking over the world?

Not exactly the theme song I'd choose if I were the Orlando PR officer...

picture idea

What would you guys think about some type of picture circulation. One person could send their collection of Wheaton photos on a cd to one person, who then copies them and sends them to another. I would love to get some of the great T6 photos and other campus shots that some of you have. Mine will fit on a DVD-R. The small cost of shipping 10 times would be worth it to me, and I would also then get 10 cds worth of pictures in return.

2E T6 Brosis Cult

Ahh....I found a "2E T6 Brosis Cult" blog ring today.

Rock On

I was just asked to pass along a message to you fellas that the many named viking will soon be with us online. You might remember him as Snort, Sota, the human torso, or "you stupid viking", but his mother named him Jordan and his daddy's name is Van Oort. He should be here in just a few days (at least that's what he told me to tell you, but I always find it hard to trust the Dutch). Happy New Year.

interesting link

Hope you guys find this page as funny as I did. A history professor at the college gave it to our class to illustrate that you can rarely, if ever accurately predict the effects or directions that new technology might go. http://my.athenet.net/~jlindsay/SkepticQuotes.html

is it true?

Two different Wheaties have verified that Andrew Kehoe ('02) died in a car accident. That really sad. I had good memories from hanging out with him. He sang that song for Irate, titled VOCAB. I might post the MP3 I have.

weird coincidence

Hey you guys will never guess who stopped into my store tonight. One of our old 1 south sisters Carrie Tanana. When she walked in I thought how weird it was that she looked so much like someone I knew from Wheaton. Then she came and asked me if I'd gone to Wheaton. She's married now and lives in Chicago. Her husband Tom is in Seminary there. Her sister Jill is working at a Christian camp in Branson, MO and Carrie was on her way home from a visit. What's really amazing to me is that she remembered me at all. Strange the people you can run into.

Lucy Larcom

Have any of you read Lucy Larcom's stuff before? I recently received her diary in the mail (published in the 1800s). If you are ever looking for some new poetry or hymns to ponder on, she is a good one. She taught at the other Wheaton; too bad it wasn't ours.

Here sit I, as a little child;
The threshold of God's door
Is that clear band of chrysoprase;
Now the vast temple floor,
The blinding glory of the dome
I bow my head before.
Thy universe, O God, is home,
In height or depth, to me;
Yet here upon thy footstool green
Content am I to be;
Glad when is oped unto my need
Some sea-like glimpse of Thee.

Santori Times

I just re-watched "Lost in Translation" (one of my Christmas gifts [smile]). I couldn't help wondering if Steve and Ryan have seen it and, if so, what you guys thought of it's Japanese aspects. Personally, I love it; there's simply no way in hell that "The Return of the King" is a better film. There's just no justice in Oscar. At least Sofia Copola got best director. And remember, "For relaxing times, make it Santori time. " (By the way, I'm in love with Scarlett Johansson.)

new user

I just talked to Barnes...he is in DC still. You guys over there should give him a call, invite him to this site, or something.

Juicy Software

Google has a great way to gather the latest news on any subject you want. Just go to Google Alerts and select the subject you want news on and how frequently you want a news summary. Using this method I get a weekly condensed email that has many different articles on Wheaton College and other subjects I select. Just throwing this out here in case you didn't know about that feature.
There is another recent software release which I also recommend to you. It is Picasa 2, a free desktop image organizer. Using Google software, it indexes every single image on your hard drive and organizes the data so a user can search easily. You can organize your photos, edit them, or quickly scan everything you have. With all of my digital photos, it has really helped me.
I also like the Google desktop search. This program scans all of your documents, making it easy to find anything.

yikes...my childhood fear! 

Gathering

A large crowd should be gathering here shortly. It feels good to be home.

Junk Cats

End Fat Cat oppression of the urban and migrant Working Cats!

Nearing 100

One of our posts has nearly reached 100 comments. Check the January archives if you want to help make history.

Name-A-Jones II

It's all fun and games until they share your DNA.

Nate Callender...

Anybody else notice that Natey-boy tied the knot? I saw it in the last issue of the Wheaton Alum mag. Nobody else read the fine print, did they?! Apparently, some of those Terrace romances worked out.

Musings and other such rumors

Well, last week I promised you guys an update about my new job, so here it is. LOVE IT! I'm not a huge fan of all the paperwork that I have to do, but working with the girls is fantastic. It is also quite challenging from time to time (I AM working with with mostly adolescent girls from less than wonderful home environments), but the hardest parts are also the most rewarding. I got my first paycheck yesterday and laughed that they paid me for doing work I would have gladly done for free: it's a job and the Gospel all rolled into one! My only complaint is that I don't get to go to work more often.

Ok, blood may be a strange topic of conversation, but I'm going to bring it up momentarily. We all know that blood banks always have a shortage of blood in this country, and given the fact that we're fighting wars in two countries and the world is dealing with one of the most devastating natural disasters in recent history, it seems like a very good time to donate blood. Thinking this, I went to the local blood bank last month to give a pint or however much they take out. I haven't had any problems recently with my nervous system/heart condition that makes me pass out, so I was relatively certain I could donate without any problems. And I figured that even if I did pass out, they'd have me lying on a table so it wouldn't really matter. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Long story short, I got lightheaded/blurry vision while they were testing my iron content, and they wouldn't let me donate. The annoying thing is that the next day I got hit in the face with a racquetball racquet and bled all over the court without getting so much as dizzy (I even had to pick flecks of racquet paint out of my face with a pair of tweezers); I think it's just something about my fingers that freaks me out when they stick them. Anyways, I just want to encourage eveyone that doesn't have a medical condition preventing them from doing so to go give some blood. It's just a good idea.

Here's a topic of mutual interest that might be worth discussing. I'd like to know what you guys think about it, anyways. I have a slightly longer version of this piece, so if you'd like a little more meat on the argument just send me an email and I'll send you the 1000 word version.

Friends of Traber 6

There is a lot of controversy over Traber 6 guys today. The main thing we hear about them is how we are supposed to communicate with them. There are many reasons why we must help save the Traber 6 community but the one that is often looked over is how the 1999-2001 Traber 6ers have been affected since they were driven out by college housing policies. There are many members of the T6 extended family who need help in reconnecting their communities. Before anyone can help T6 they need to learn about its former inhabitants and their ways of life beyond Wheaton. Once people know what is going on they have to find ways to contribute and that is your job.

The Task
It is your job to help the former inhabitants of Traber 6 save their community. You need to find out what your T6 friends do, what they live in, what they eat, and how they cure sickness, etc. You need to find out as many facts about the culture of the people as you can and then write a post as the friend of T6 that you are. As soon as you finish the post you will begin researching ways to help further the community. So get to it. Save the rainforest, whoops, I meant T6.

Donations
If you would like to make a written contribution, submit a post to (future open floor blog site or Dusty's site). All posts are tax deductible.

This could be the home page to an "open floor" blog or forum.

Chat Time

What if we tore a page out of the play book for online newspapers? We could set a time for an online chat. We could use instant messenger. Once the time is announced, interested parties could post their screennames here. Then, one of us at the given time sounds out invitations to everyone on that list to join the chat. What do people think? Or I should say, what do men think?