Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Mini Update

11.Floss once a week - I somehow have gotten into the habit of flossing every night before I go to bed. Yay for habits!

19. Attend basketball games for each cousin - I have now seen all 4 of my cousins who played high school ball play. Bonus points for also seeing the one who played in college.

63. Add 5 new tricks to the rotation - Between pork curry in a hurry, porkzinni, chicken and corn chowder, zucchini pie, spicy turkey sausage zucchini casserole, chicken salad sammiches, and quick chicken tiki masala I've got this one covered.

65. Grow something and eat it - Radishes, Cherry tomatoes, Basil, Zucchini. Yum.

66. Visit Australia - Changed to Visit Europe. It's gonna happen.

91. Make a will - We have created the will and it should be legal even though our notary messed a few things up and we need to redo that. But the will is all set.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

The Magician's Book: A Skeptic's Adventure in Narnia by Laura Miller

I love to read. I have for as long as I can remember. I would sequester myself off in the woods during the summer, burying my head in a book as I solved cases with Encyclopedia Brown and the Boxcar Children, wondered if maybe my teacher was an alien, and wished my school was as awesome as Wayside. In the winter time I would crawl into one of my parents' cars, trying to find a secluded and warm spot as I journeyed off to other worlds. And despite my love for the stories and worlds of Louis Sachar, Bruce Coville, Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Gertrude Chandler Warner, and Madeleine L'Engle, the world of Narnia was my favorite of all.

I don't remember when I first encountered The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. But I do remember how long and hard I searched for that magical wardrobe that would transport me to Narnia. My grandmother's house seemed the most likely place. After all, the Pevensie children found their magical portal in the Old Professor's house. My grandmother's old farm house, with its many staircases and attics seemed just the place. I still remember the disappointment I felt, when I pushed past dusty clothes in an upstairs closet only to find an old, but very solid wall.

Despite these disappointments, the world of Narnia always seemed real to me when I was a child, and I'd roam around the woods surrounding my parents house looking for places that reminded me of the forests of Narnia. I thought the journey Edmund, Lucy, and Eustace had aboard the Dawn Treader was just about the coolest thing that could ever happen, and I was devastated when I finished The Last Battle and realized there wouldn't be anymore stories. I still enjoyed The Last Battle, but I wanted nothing more than for the story to continue, and I even remember asking my 5th grade teacher if it would be legal for me to continue the story!

Later on, I discovered that C.S. Lewis was a Christian apologist, and that the Chronicles of Narnia contained many Christian religious symbols. I was raised Catholic, so I was dumbfounded that I had missed what now seemed so obvious. The death and resurrection of Aslan represented the death and resurrection and Jesus. How could I have missed that? I also felt a bit cheated. One of my most treasured and loved childhood memories had been turned out to be religious propaganda. I still loved the Chronicles, but they now seemed somewhat tarnished.

Thankfully, the New Yorker reviewed a book by Laura Miller, entitled The Magician's Book: A Skeptic's Adventures in Narnia. The review mentioned that Miller had also loved the Chronicles growing up, had also been disappointed when she learned of the religious symbolism, but then she returned to her love of the books as an adult. I was excited and immediately headed down to the bookstore. As soon as I opened the book and saw one of my favorite passages of my favorite book (The Voyage of the Dawn Treader) quoted I knew I was in for a treat.

I loved hearing Miller's story, and how closely it echoed my own. I also enjoyed her perspective on the Chronicles of Narnia. Most literary critics focus on the Christian symbolism, but Miller focuses on her own experiences and the non-Christian inspirations which are much more fascinating than another long winded explanation about men with beards in sandals. Reading Miller's book made me realize the Chronicles of Narnia are so much more than religious propaganda, and just re-reading some of my favorite passages gave me goosebumps. I was returned, for a few moments, to my childhood, when it seemed that Narnia could be waiting for me behind any door. If you are a fan of Narnia, you will not be disappointed in this well written and thought provoking book.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

#97. Start an account for my wife's godson

So since I started this list, each month I've taken 10 bucks and set it aside for my wife's godson. One I hit $100 I went and bought a $200 savings bond. I'll continue to do this until the kid is 18. Then, we'll take the bonds down and cash em in and give him a nice graduation gift. The first savings bond arrived yesterday!

Unless the kid turns out to be an ass. Then we'll keep it :)

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

#56. Buy a GPS for running/biking

I saw a Garmin Forerunner 305 on sale at Amazon last week for around $160 (they normally cost $300) and I just had to pull the trigger. So now I can watch my heart rate, know my pace, and how far I've gone with this nifty little device.

If only it would stop snowing so I could give it a test run....