How to Encourage Your Pastor

 Discipleship, Faith  No Responses »
Jun 302005
 

The JollyBlogger gives 8 ways you can encourage your pastor in a response to an email from Curt at the Happy Husband I really appreciated the 8 items and will have to strive to be more consistent in all of them.

Here are the 8 items, but go to the JollyBlogger’s list for his explication of each one:

  1. Take your own spiritual growth seriously.
  2. Give your best to the church, not your leftovers.
  3. Remind him that you are for him.
  4. Find out his “love language.”
  5. Allow the pastor to have a life outside of church.
  6. Take good care of your pastor’s wife and kids
  7. Pay him a fair salary.
  8. Pray for him

Go read JollyBlogger’s full post.

Best Cars For The Bucks

 Life  No Responses »
Jun 302005
 

It is about time for us to be looking for a new family vehicle. I do not want to think about car payments again but our 15 passenger van is starting to show its age and costing more and more to keep running. For the ‘family car’ we cannot even hope to consider any of these ‘regular’ sized vehicles reviewed by Forbes, but some of them do sound interesting.

Forbes’ article, Best Cars for the Bucks gives their take on the best cars for the price. The cars include the Honda Insight, Honda Civic Hybrid, Chevrolet Aveo, Kia Rio, Hyundai Accent, Toyota Echo, and the Scion xA.

After a diatribe about SUVs and Detroit’s stupidity in pursuing that market into oblivion the article states:
Continue reading »

Was it worth it? Insurance Fraud in New Jersey

 Fraud, Insurance  No Responses »
Jun 302005
 

It does not ‘pay’ to commit fraud:

N.J. Division of Criminal Justice Director Vaughn L. McKoy announced that the division’s Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor recently charged an Orange, N.J. man with insurance fraud for falsifying medical records in order to obtain more than $1,000 in Personal Injury Protection payments.

If convicted on all charges, Smithson faces up to 13 years in state prison and a fine of up to $40,000. Smithson also could face civil insurance-fraud fines. Smithson would have to appear in Essex County Superior Court for arraignment and bail because of the indictment.

How did he attempt to commit the fraud? Well, as an example, it appears he got a receipt for $1 from the local hospital towards his bill after the accident. Then he modified the receipt to read $1001.00 and submitted it to his insurance company.

Read the full article

Geocaching adds twist to treasure hunts

 Geocaching  No Responses »
Jun 302005
 

The Appeal-Democrat newspaper of Marysville-Yuba City, California describes geocaching as:

a relatively new pastime that combines the mental rigor of a riddle with the delight and obstacles of a treasure hunt.

Using a satellite-positioning device, and latitude-longitude coordinates culled from special Web sites that guide them toward bounties, players search for hidden “geocaches” that often include small trinkets, a log and a disposable camera to record their find. Cachers leave the camera and their own small presents, posting some finds on the Web.

And gives it a plug:

Educators and parents like geocaching because it gets kids off the couch and away from the television set and another hand-held device – the Game Boy.

“I think this shows kids the connection between technology and real life,” says Kimberly Coldicott, a 4-H coordinator who is trying to recruit children for a local club. Chapters in Washington state, Oregon, and Missouri are already teaching kids how to geocache.

Read the full article

Geocaching – Space age twist on age old fun

 Geocaching  No Responses »
Jun 292005
 

The Cleveland Advocate has a good article about Geocaching: Space age twist on age old fun

How many kids do you know that spend their free time dully migrating from the television to the computer to the PlayStation, Xbox or GameCube?

Do you sometimes wish you’d never heard of the Internet, search engines or 500 channel satellite systems that expand your waistline more than your horizons? Maybe hiking across the room to find the remote control is as far as you’ve walked all summer long, and you hate the fact that even that is leaving you a little short of breath these days. A new “sport” may be the answer to your complaints.

It gives a pretty good description of the hobby:

The fun in finding hidden treasure, using what is essentially an electronic pirate’s map is appealing to younger children. You will find that people who balk at anything resembling exercise, no longer complain when they trek several miles in search of these geocaches. There are a surprising number of these geocaches secured in out of the way places all around our area. The website geocaching.com allows you to enter your zip code to discover all the listed geocaches around your location, complete with descriptions of the appearance of the cache and its contents in the shape of hints, clues, and sometimes encrypted messages.

Read the rest of the article at The Cleveland Advocate

For the Sins of the WHOLE World?

 Reformed  No Responses »
Jun 282005
 

Phillip Johnson answers a friend’s question of why

Calvinists never seem to face 1 John 2:2 head on. It says, “He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” Calvinists always dismiss the plain meaning of the verse, saying that “whole world” can’t possibly mean the whole world, because if it did, it would include trees and mountains and rivers and slugs and termites and other stuff.

This and similar verses always are a challenge for Calvinists. Primarily becase out of context as proof texts they seem so clear.
Phillip (the thoughtful Calvinist ) answers this particular question very well: Continue reading »

Allstate Will Repay Policyholders $30 Million

 Insurance  No Responses »
Jun 282005
 

Looks like Allstate got nailed by the California Insurance Commissioner. Credit scoring is a hot topic in the insurance world. An explanation of why insurance companies do credit scoring would make an intersting post. I will tell you that it is not because they are afraid of not getting paid – the only thing the insurance company is afraid of is paying for an accident.

According to Insurance Journal:

Get a GEICO Quote.

Allstate Insurance Company will pay $30 million to California auto and homeowner policyholders that were overcharged, according to the Los Angeles Times. Approximately 250,000 customers will receive refunds, while the company also agreed to pay a California Department of Insurance fine of $4 million.

Allstate has not admitted liability. Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi said in a statement that Allstate used a form of credit scoring and did not give appropriate discounts, thus violating California insurance laws. The company also reportedly did not charge the lowest premiums that consumers qualified for in auto and homeowners insurance.

Some customers will receive a refund check, and others will receive credit on future bills, Garamendi said.

Real World != Material World

 Apologetics  No Responses »
Jun 282005
 

Doug Wilson answers the question about “what students at NSA and Logos learn about the scientific method.” His answer struck me as so true:

one of the first things they might learn is that the phrases “the real world” and “the material world” are not interchangeable.

Why is this important? Because the clear assumption is that there are 2 worlds, the “‘real’ world of science” and the “world of faith.” But is the “world of faith” part of the “real world” or just a figment of our imagination? So if it is not ‘scientifically testable’ it is not ‘real’. Continue reading »

Be Car Care Aware – Auto Maintenance

 GTD, Life  No Responses »
Jun 272005
 

Car care is one of those things I can do but don’t ever seem to ‘find’ the time to do it. My ToDo list has regular oil checks and changes and tire pressure checks scheduled regularly but must admit most other checks get done when there is a problem and the mechanic asks, “Have you had your rotated/changed/flushed? I ran across this Service Interval Schedule which is designed to help you keep track of regular maintenance and says most can be done at little or no cost. I would like to find something a little more detailed, or possibly that looks more organized, something that I can pin up in the garage or incorporate into my Shadow Plan ToDo list. Guess it is time to go to the library or if that fails Barnes & Noble – where for the price of a cup of coffee you can read just about anything you need to know.

The site says:

the key to keeping your vehicle running well – today and down the road – is routine maintenance. Yet many drivers tend to stall when it comes to keeping up with some everyday auto-basics. A recent survey by the Car Care Council found:

  • 38 percent of cars had low or dirty engine oil.
  • 54 percent had low tire pressure.
  • 28 percent had inadequate cooling protection.
  • 19 percent needed new belts.
  • 16 percent had dirty air filters.
  • 10 percent had low or contaminated brake fluid.

Contrast of Auto Insurance Rates

 Insurance  No Responses »
Jun 272005
 

It is amazing to see the difference in prices for auto insurance. This study by Runzheimer shows that rates can vary by more than $5,000 between cities for an average car and driver. Runzheimer International is a Wisconsin-based vehicle costing and management consulting firm.

Get a GEICO Quote.

At $5,162 per year for insurance coverage for a mid-size sedan driven within a 50-mile radius of the city, Detroit-areas drivers pay approximately $4,400 more a year than similar drivers in Roanoke, Virginia who pay only $758 for the same coverage. These rates are based on both male and female drivers over a minimum age with clean driving records and include comprehensive, collision, bodily injury, property damage, and uninsured motorist coverage.

Philadelphia and Newark also represent expensive locations for insurance coverage at $4,142 and $3,482, respectively. Los Angeles at $3,225 and New York City at $3,127, round out the Five Most Expensive Cities list (See attached table).

Other areas, in addition to Roanoke, are insurance bargains. The same driver, driving the same vehicle in Wapakoneta, Ohio pays only $871 for this all-inclusive coverage. In Chattanooga, Tennessee, vehicle owners pay $911; in Green Bay, Wisconsin, $948; and in Raleigh, North Carolina, $949.

Makes me real glad to live in rural Washington state! I don’t have the numbers for here but would guess them to be in the the under $1,000 range.

An Eight-Part Music Test for Church Worship

 Faith, Music  No Responses »
Jun 272005
 

Tim at Challies.com gives an 8-part music test that gives some methods for ‘testing’ music to see if it is suitable for a worship service. The test was based on two books he read recently, Perimeters of Light andWith Reverence and Awe: Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship. Quoting the last book:

“It is crucial that the church’s songs be substantial enough to express accurately mature Christian belief as well as the subtlety of Christian experience….Simplistic, sentimental, repetitious songs by their very nature cannot carry the weight of Reformed doctrine and will leave the people of God ill-equipped on occasions of great moment” (page 173).

An Eight-Part Test Continue reading »

Lambs among Wolves – Christians & Culture according to Doug Wilson

 Dominion, Faith, Politics  No Responses »
Jun 262005
 

How are Christians supposed to affect Culture? Are we to ‘take over’? Are we to fight for a ‘place at the table’? Doug Wilson’s explanation of Jesus’ sending out the disciples as lambs among wolves is very poignant:

. . . When Jesus commissioned His disciples, He ordained them to something that was almost the exact opposite of this. He said that He was sending His preachers out as lambs among wolves (Luke 10:3).

. . . Why would the Lord use this kind of image? What is the nature of lambs? What is the nature of wolves? One of the most obvious differences is that lambs are in no position to try to coerce anyone to do anything. Still less are they in a position to compel wolves to do anything. But wolves do not think the same way. They have no scruples about imposing their view of the world, or their view of lunch, on the lambs.

. . . The reason believing Christians love freedom the way we do is because God has promised us that “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Cor. 3:17). We are not interested in trying to force those who differ with us to do anything. They, on the other hand, are not shy at all about the free and liberal use of coercion.

. . . There are only two fundamental ways to walk in the world—the way the Lord showed us, or our own autonomous way, the way of unbelief. Genuine faith in God the Father through Jesus Christ always leads us into the law of liberty. Rejection of God’s sovereignty, and of His kindness to us through the death of Jesus Christ, leads necessarily into patterns of coercive attempts to run the lives of others.

NotePad2 – Replacement for Windows NotePad

 Windows Software, Windows Software Installed  6 Responses »
Jun 242005
 

I installed Notepad2 today, which was the first of Scott Hanselman’s “The Big Ten Life and Work-Changing Utilities” from his list of Ultimate Developer and Power Users Tool List for 2005

Notepad2 (Scite also uses the codebase) – A great text editor. First class CR/LF support, ANSI to Unicode switching, whitespace and line ending graphics and Mouse Wheel Zooming. A must. Here’s how to completely replace notepad.exe. Personally I renamed Notepad2.exe to “n.exe” which saves me a few dozen “otepad”s a day.

Continue reading »

Brians Threaded Comments plugin

 WordPress, WP-Plugins  No Responses »
Jun 232005
 

Status: Testing
Version: 1.5.2

Right now it is throwing an error when it goes to save the comment – the comment is saved but is not nested and I receive an error . I hope to get this fixed right away. I got the errors to go away but it will not ‘thread’.

Brians Threaded Comments plugin looks to be a fantastic additon to my WordPress Blog. It will allow people to comment on comments so that the comments show like forum threads instead of just by date. Not only that you can click the little open/closed image in the upper left to colapse or expand the threads.

Mods:

Need to see if still need to apply Martin Geisler’s comment‘:

Please update the btc_alter_comment() function to properly escape the $_POST['comment_reply_ID'] variable! As it is now, it is open to all sorts of nasty SQL-injection attacks…

Specifically, change the SQL statement so that is uses mysql_real_escape_string($_POST['comment_reply_ID']) instead of just a plain $_POST['comment_reply_ID'], I believe that should have things secure again.

You Know You’re From Eastern Washington If. . .

 Humor  6 Responses »
Jun 232005
 

Lisa at oh-BLOG-de oh BLOG-dah life goes on has put together a list that I thought was pretty funny -

You Know You’re From Eastern Washington If. . .

 2. You’re idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway.
 3. “Vacation” means going to Seattle, Portland, Spokane.
18. You know how to pronounce Yakima, Wenatchee,and Spokane.
19. You know Walla Walla is a REAL town, not just a cartoon.
21. You install security lights on your house and garage, and leave both unlocked.

I was listening to a radio show the other day and they were talking about Yuka-ma Washington. Not sure why it seems so hard? I have also heard it pronounced Yak-ee-ma before on TV.

Cops Gone Wild – Officer charged in road-rage incident

 Tri-Cities  1 Response »
Jun 232005
 

Kristin M. Kraemer at the Tri-City Herald reports that a Kennewick police officer, Ryan J. Bonnalie (age 29), was fired and arrested for a road-rage incident that occurred in April. He is accused of pointing a loaded pistol, while off duty, at a motorist who didn’t use his turn signal and was driving slowly. Bonnalie is being charged for second-degree assault.

Fifty Tools Which Can Help You in Writing

 Blogging, Education  3 Responses »
Jun 232005
 

In Fifty (50!) Tools which can help you in Writing, Roy Peter Clark from the Poynter Institute gives 50 tools to help you improve your writing.

At times, it helps to think of writing as carpentry. That way, writers and editors can work from a plan and use tools stored on their workbench. You can borrow a writing tool at any time. And here’s a secret: Unlike hammers, chisels, and rakes, writing tools never have to be returned. They can be cleaned, sharpened, and passed on.

Examples:

  • Tool #1: Begin sentences with subjects and verbs, letting subordinate elements branch off to the right. Even a very long sentence can be clear and powerful when the subject and verb make meaning early.
  • Tool #2:Use verbs in their strongest form, the simple present or past. Strong verbs create action, save words, and reveal the players.

Go read all 50 Writing Rules

BrailleNote PK – PDA for the Blind

 Cool  No Responses »
Jun 232005
 

BrailleNote PK, a PDA for the blind! Never even thought about the posibility. The 8 key ‘keyboard’ looks real interesting.

The BrailleNote PK is the worlds smallest Braille and speech personal digital assistant. This 18-cell model combines a crisp, high definition Braille display with clear responsive speech output.

Features:

  • Bluetooth technology – talk to wireless devices including cell phones and keyboards plus have a wireless ActiveSync connection with your PC.
  • USB functionality – connect effortlessly to your PC for ActiveSync
  • WiFi connectivity – surf the net wirelessly at high speed.
  • Media player – Listen to music in stereo

Hat-Tip to Gizmodo

Wi-Fi Positioning System for Urban GPS

 Cool, Geocaching  No Responses »
Jun 232005
 

What to do when you are in an urban location – especially if you are actually inside a large complex and need to know where you are? Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS) could be the solution:

The Wi-Fi Positioning System (WPS) from Skyhook Wireless is the first outdoor positioning network to utilize Wi-Fi rather than GPS or cell tower systems to determine location. Building on the explosive growth of Wi-Fi, WPS includes a nationwide network of access points used to accurately pinpoint a user’s position.

Hmm… wonder if we could start to have some GeoCaches that are hidden indoors?

Continue reading »

StatTraq plugin

 WordPress, WP-Plugins  7 Responses »
Jun 232005
 

Status: Upgraded to StatTraq for WordPress 2.x
Version: 1.0b

Randy at Stattraq has created a WordPress plugin I am constantly using. I like the fact that I can quickly see how many people are visiting my blog, what pages they are going to, and who is sending them to those pages. It not only shows what search terms are used to locate things on your blog – but also the ‘Search Engine Saturation’ ie how many of your pages have been indexed by Google, Yahoo, and MSN. Besides this you can display these statistics on your sidebar and as seen below I have even added some other statistical views.

Continue reading »

Moretti La Rossa Birra – Italian Red Beer

 Beer, Tri-Cities  1 Response »
Jun 222005
 

I speak no Italian – but what I know of Spanish I would guess that La Rossa Birra means the red beer. I have never had a ‘red’ beer before. My wife and I went out to eat tonight at Nothing but Noodles and I asked the girl at the counter what kinds of dark beer they had. She offered Guinness and ‘La Rossa’. I had never heard of La Rossa but between something I had never heard of and a Guinness – well the La Rossa was an easy winner.

I was pleasantly surprised! The beer was fairly sweet with a rich, malty flavor. It went real well with my spicy Thai noodle dish. The label showed 7.2% alc/vol! I would not want to drink too many of these at poker night but would like to find somewhere to purchase them by the six pack instead of $2.95 a bottle :)

Ultimate Developer and Power Users Tool List

 Programming, ToDo, Windows Software  No Responses »
Jun 212005
 

Scott Hanselman presents his list of Ultimate Developer and Power Users Tool List for 2005

There are some utils in his list that I will start using right away. I plan on going through this list in more detail and add some of these to my utils directory.

Everyone collects utilities, and most folks have a list of a few that they feel are indispensable. Here’s mine. Each has a distinct purpose, and I probably touch each at least a few times a week. For me, util means utilitarian and it means don’t clutter my tray. If it saves me time, and seamlessly integrates with my life, it’s the bomb.

He has sorted his list into the following categories:

  • The Big Ten Life and Work-Changing Utilities
  • A Developer’s Life
  • The Angle Bracket Tax (XML/HTML Stuff)
  • Regular Expressions
  • Stuff I Just Dig
  • Low-Level Utilities
  • Websites and Bookmarklets (that change the way you work)
  • Smart People and their Pages for Utils They Wrote
  • Browser Add-Ins
  • Things Windows Forgot
  • Ultimate Registry Tweaks
  • Windows Explorer Integration (and other Integrity things)
  • Continuous Integration
  • TabletPC Indispensables
  • ASP.NET Must Haves
  • Visual Studio.NET Add-Ins

Go check out the whole list

Eiffel Tower, Paris – Google Maps does Europe

 Cool  No Responses »
Jun 212005
 

Eiffel Tower Google maps now is getting images from Europe. This image of the Eiffel Tower is interesting. It is almost hard to see the tower since the shadow is so prominent, but finally saw it pointing to the 8:45 position. Also interesting to zoom out and see the large traffic circles.

The Eiffel Tower needs no introduction as we’ve all seen it a thousand times in pictures, movies and TV. The odd angle of this aerial photo makes the tower seem sideways and upside down but you can’t miss the great shadow.

Top Five Accident Claims and Safe Driving Tips

 Insurance  No Responses »
Jun 202005
 

GMAC NDT I wrote earlier about the GMAC Insurance National Drivers Test (take it yourself). Now GMAC Insurance and the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety have come up with the 5 most common mistakes drivers make and some tips on how to avoid them.

  1. Following Too Closely. According to GMAC Insurance’s claims managers, the majority of claims are for rear-end accidents resulting from following too closely. > Driving Tip: One Thousand One, One Thousand Two. Don’t knock it, leaving a two-second cushion between you and the vehicle ahead could save your life and your bumper. Make sure to double or triple that time when the weather is bad or the pavement is slick.

Continue reading »

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