Seminary survival skills...

As a new "Senior" at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, I thought the following may be helpful for new and continuing seminary students. Please feel free to add your suggestions to the comments.

1. Listen... in class, to other students, to your spouse, to your children, to staff members, to your church family, to the news, in chapel, on the bus, in line at the grocery store, in the dining hall, etc.

2. Pray... out loud, silently, for people you know and those you don't, with people, alone, for your self, for those you will serve in the future.

3. Turn things in early. (I count 45 minutes before the deadline as early on papers.)

4. Use what you already know.

5. Get to know the quiet people as well as the loud.

6. Make time for yourself.

7. Don't over-commit.

8. If all else fails, read.

9. Sit in front of your computer and stare at the screen until you know what to write.

10. Remember who you are.

11. Be open to the possibility that you may be wrong.

12. Suck it up.

13. Know that there will always be last minute corrections.

14. Go at your own pace...

15. Spend time in the library, in the dining hall, in your professors' offices, in your friends' homes, on the playground.

16. Follow some of those rabbit trails.

17. Keep in touch with old friends.

18. Enjoy the moment.

19. Learn something that will have an impact on your daily life.

20. Keep meetings short and sweet.

21. Don't plan what classes you will take according to the projected class list.

22. Have a backup plan.

23. Don't count on your Presbytery's COPM to be on the same schedule as you.

24. Read the Bible for your personal enrichment as well as for class.

Summer vacation (Part 1)

Well, it's here. I will soon begin my summer internship that will last through mid-August. I will be in Austin for the greater part of the summer--but first, a week off to vegetate. We plan on getting some swimming in--and maybe some light reading.

Time for a new look...

We are currently packing up about a quarter of our books and knick-knacks. We are getting the place ready for a crawling baby. I figured the change in my physical environment should be reflected in my virtual environment.

A clean house starts with a clean sink...

The sink is the battlefield... if you are able to get it under control, then the rest will fall into place.....
okay, that took 20 minutes...only about 4 sidetracks. Now I have music playing and I have checked the mail. Need to add "Wonder Boys" to my profile.

Next project is the living room... I think I will start where I am and move counter-clockwise...to dust or not to dust? No..still have to pull books (very dusty). Do I need to email Sara the info from Dad? May need a change of music... okay, now I am stumped... I really want to be reading The Life of Pi, (30 minute sidetrack...)

A least the sink got cleaned and the living room is staightened up.

Jumpstart your blog

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog* along with these instructions.
[5. Don't you dare dig for that cool/intellectual book you hide away under the bed for occasions such as these ... Yes, I'm lookin' at you! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.]

My results:

Atqui locus prior sit necesse est quam corpus locatum. Locus igitur primo designabitur, id quod planum uocant" (Every body exists in some state and it is necessary for it to exist in some place. That which thus exists, which exists first, we must also consider to exist prior to this. And it is necessary for the place to exist prior to the object. Therefore the place must be in the first instance designated, and they call this a plane").

From Perspective as Symbolic Form by Erwin Panofsky, which I pulled off my bookshelf a little while ago to revisit the 3 basic princilpes of linear perspective (which are: (1) perpendiculars meet at the central vanishing point, (2) parallels have a common vanishing point, and (3) equal dimensions diminish progressively as they recede in space.)

*or perhaps here in the comments

Advanced Exegesis: Gospel of John

Many great works of art begin as nothing more than an idea. The artist’s task is to draw out of the inanimate, a semblance of life. In doing so, the artist transforms ordinary material into an extraordinary expression. For the sculptor, the process often begins with lumps of clay that are pressed together—each building on the last. Once the clay model is completed, the artist may employ other media (wax, resin, bronze, marble, etc.) in the attempt to capture the message. The Gospel of John is a great work of art—and like a cherished masterpiece, it comes to us with its own sense of mystery, perspective, and awe. The Gospel of John is also a great artist—molding us into new shapes, like little bits of clay that are pinched and pushed until they are in the proper place. The text lives because it is an expression of the spirit, and as a living text, it stakes its claim on its audience. Engaging a “live” text in conversation is both transformational and frightening—at times it may seem that the text is intent on pursuing avenues of discourse that the audience does not care to tread. Yet, like any good teacher, the text knows when to push and when to be pastoral...

Resolution:

No new posts until I turn in my advanced exegesis project next Friday.

Binary theology

The pattern presents the platform. Every new factor changes the system. Thoughts of the gospel of John.....


1: 00001
2: 00010
3: 00011
4: 00100
5: 00101
6: 00110
7: 00111
8: 01000
9: 01001
10: 01010

ps. There are 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't.

Feliz Cinco de Mayo

Mis peciculas favoritas son "A River Runs Through It" y "Amalie". Me gustan peliculas de ciencia ficcion, accion, e historia. El relato es muy importante. Mi esposa y yo vamos a una pelicula o una obra dee teatro muchas veces durante el ano. El teatro es muy importante para nosotros porque nos conocimos en una clase de drama. No tengo un actor o actriz favorito pero el dramaturgo Shakespeare es mi favorito. Yo no miro television mucho. Me gusta leer libros de historia y poesia. Mis favoritos son los transcendentalistas. Emmerson, Thoreau, Whitman y Hawthorne son muy interesantes. A nosotros nos gusta mirar los classicos cuando vamos a un cine, teatro o un espectaculo.

Wordcloud

A visual depiction of the content of a body of text. This word cloud is arranged alphabetically and depicts more frequently used words in larger fonts.

Click here to make your own.

Final Week of Class (a cross-section)

Bring it on
the papers
the workshops
the final projects
the cramming
the rushing
the fear
the anxiety
the knot in my stomach
the coffee
the Gatorade
the incredibly hectic schedule
the daily trip to pick up the baby
the dishes piling up in the sink
the lack of clean clothes
the catch-up
the release
the prayers
the friends
the tears
the tortures
the treasures
the tick, tick, tick
the to-do list
the scholarship aps
the elections
the calls
the resolutions
the lessons
the dreams
the presence
the absence
the plans
the politics
the polity
the comments
the concerns
Bring it, bring it now...
As the walls of the canyon grow closer
the water rushes faster, deeper and with more force.
Each day for its own reward.
Amen.