I am one of the most wired people I know. Being a field engineer, means I thrive on the ability to connect wherever in the world I am.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/10/technology/circuits/10resi.html
So if you were to question what kind of technology I have in my life.
I only have one computer.
Although I'd like to have another, I figure I spend all my days maintaining the company laptop, on which I'd say quite a bit of my life depends. I hope the exchange server doesn't go down.
I've got ethernet to all the rooms in my house and a VPN to the company server.
I've got dial up service for most countries where I might do business, so far tested in the US, Japan, Taiwan, Germany and Austria.
(but not Korea, but I don't imagine that'd be too much of a problem).
A hotel with a broadband connection to the internet, isn't a problem anymore for me to connect my laptop.
DHCP is not a foreign concept to me.
When tired and exhausted in a foreign country, it's reassuring to hear the sound of an analog modem connecting, meaning I'm no longer alone, but connected to the rest of the networked world.
I don't journal too much anymore.
I blog, maintain a web site, or e-mail my friends when I have a profound thought.
I had a palm organizer, but scrapped it. Realized the phone book in my cell phone did the same thing, just waiting for a phone that has the synchronize feature with my outlook.
I have a cell phone, but am realizing that I am over dependant upon it. I will carry it, but not always pick it up. And it is okay for me to leave it at home. But if I'm going to wander around, it does make life convenient. Besides, the only reason I need a land line, is because you can't connect a modem to it. And I can't understand why the pricing for land lines doesn't reflect the pricing for cellular service. Every call on my cell phone is a local call, no roaming in the US, although the service might be spotty. LA, SF, NY, and a couple other places I've decided to go seem to have decent service. The only place that doesn't is my office. Although my bills might be ridiculous if I talked on my cell phone in the office.
I went down to NYC for a wedding in Long Island. Additionally, I saw two old friends on Saturday night. Even though they're still young, it's fascinating, how they finally turned out.
I'd forgotten this story, but it's somehow fitting:
Five years ago, Jim was a Investment banker for Goldman Sachs (in NY), and Chris was a mutual fund manager for State Street Bank (in Boston). They went to to trading floor of Goldman-Sachs and stood there, then looked over Wall Street as the sun was setting over New York.
And Jim says to Chris "You know, I could get you a job here if you want."
Jesus also stood on a high mountain, and looked out over all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.
And the devil says to Jesus "All this I will give to you."
Chris replied "Away from me Satan!"
That was five years ago, Jim now works for WorldVision - a global nonprofit organization, and Chris is a missionary to China. Chris no longer lives in Boston. The only thing that seems to remain is Jim's rent subsidized apartment, where I slept on the floor all those years ago.
I wish for you...
Comfort on difficult days,
Rainbows to follow the clouds,
Laughter to kiss your lips,
Sunsets to warm your heart
Gentle hugs when spirits sag,
Friendships to brighten your being,
Beauty for your eyes to see,
Confidence for when you doubt,
Faith so that you can believe,
Courage to know yourself,
Patience to accept the truth,
And love to complete your life.
God Bless you!
I asked the Lord to bless you
To guide you and protect you
As you go along your way....
His love is always with you
His promises are true
No matter what the tribulation
You know He will see us through
So when the road you're traveling on
Seems difficult at best
Give your problems to the Lord
And God will do the rest.
"Kannon is the goddess of compassion, she has an androgynous face, which is tranquil but not warm. I am a cynic by nature, with the skeptical heart of a scientist. But deep inside I have a desire to believe."
There was an article in the NYTimes a while back called "Mourning My Miscarriage" written by a woman trying to reconcile somthing that will never be. Being like so many things in the NYtimes, it is quite well written. It accomplishes it's purpose, like all good writing can be, it makes one think about the points it makes, and compare it to your own experience.
The article, uses one of the most inflammatory topics in our lives, and while making a personal connection to it, it neither condemns nor exults it. Instead choosing to operate in the middle ground; where the mizuko lies. Understanding that instead of being a sequence of absolute certainties, life is a continuum and that there can exist a space in-between.
The reasons in which we do things are not always clear, and often times they can seem quite selfish. Yet in the whole picture of things, it might not be wrong. Part of me long ago embraced there is a duality of life, two sides of the same coin. A reflection that God himself is both divine and human without contradiction, and yet there is no paradox. It's an essential character of God, and the nature of reality which we are placed within. "Conflicting realities can exist without contradiction, Both readings are true".
That there are no clear answers in life. Yet we have faith. It's reassuring knowing that there is a higher power, and a divine purpose. Somehow we can be satisfied, even comforted, with the uncertainties in our life. This is what allows us to live with the possibility of hope.
