Non-church miscellany
This post is not about General Assembly. Neither is it about Presbyterians, or even Christianity. Thank you, blog readers, for sticking with me through some heavy PC(USA) polity and politics. Instead, this post is about three things (which, I promise, has nothing at all to do with the fact that some sermons have three points.)
1. Living in Grand Forks, North Dakota has its perks — no, really, it does. For example, for eight months out of the year you don’t have to worry about ice cream melting in your trunk on the way home from the grocery store. Actually, in seriousness, I’ve found another.
I receiving a parking ticket a few weeks ago for parking on the street outside our apartment on day the city does road cleaning. Having lived there for a year and unaware of the Monday no parking policy, I called the city to complain. Before I could get an angry word out, the nice guy I spoke to said, “Well, we’ll be happy to forgive your ticket. As a courtesy, the city council has a policy to forgive any questionable first time tickets, so let’s get this erased.” And in about a minute, we did.
2. You big city folks will not believe this next story. Yesterday I was working at the church in Hallock, Minn. and made a phone call. On accident, though, I switched the numbers and ended up … Continue Reading
What? My phone has an off button!
I’m not a huge multi-tasker, but my skills for doing one thing at a time are slipping fast.
Though I don’t tend to talk on the phone, chat online, listen to the radio, etc. at one time — mostly because I’m just not very good at it — I find my attention span shortening. I read for shorter spells. I check emails or facebook when I might be writing. I tend to value responding to an email quickly more than working hard while my inbox fills.
I am not alone. The solution, many are saying, it to get an iPad. Their clean interface and lack of ability to do more than one thing at once forces users to focus on one task. Just read. Just email. Just tweet rather than doing all at once.
I find the iPad solution wishful thinking, wishful both because, sure, I’d love an iPad and because of the certainty that the technology will allow multitasking in the future.
As I ponder this trend, I recall students who claim they “studied for four hours straight” but whose studying was constantly interrupted by text messages and phone calls. In truth, they studied maybe 3 hours total, and never more than 15 minutes consecutively.
This is all quite problematic, because every technology that interrupts my tasks has an easy way to be turned off. I can leave Twitter alone. I can close my email program. I can silence my phone and leave it in another room. The world would go on, I’m sure. And I, likely, would be more productive.
But it’s very hard to turn off. Extremely difficult. I’m of two minds about the reason for that. Either, I can’t turn off because of the alluring (even sinful) human tendency to be led away from what’s best for ourselves and the world. Call it pride, sin, stupidity, lack-of-focus, whatever but it certainly could be that simple: I should turn off and its just a poor decision, a moral misjudgment when I don’t. Or, perhaps I can’t turn off because of what those peeps and tweets and emails mean: human connection. Maybe what’s keeping me away from the “quit” button is that I don’t want to quit people and the connections made through technology.
Quit Facebook Day was supposed to occur recently. If you didn’t hear about it don’t feel bad. You didn’t miss much. It was a flop. Perhaps that’s because in a world where we long for human connections, quitting facebook would feel like dumping one’s friends, family, and community. People didn’t quit because ultimately they love what facebook does for them: connect them one to another.
Sure, it’s not as easy as that. Virtual connections are a bit different than others. Fine. But, at the end of the day, I think virtual communities are a net positive and that’s part of the reason they are so hard to turn off, even for an hour.
What do you think? How do you turn off your technological connections for a time? Surely I am not alone.
image by Jakub Krechowicz
Is Grand Forks the next Atlanta?
In the past ten years I’ve lived in a Florida town of 350,000 people, in the Atlanta area of 6 million plus, in a Scottish coastal town of 50,000, become quite familiar with the Twin Cities of 3 million, spent significant time in a Minnesota town of 1100, and now live in Grand Forks with about 50,000. In each place I’ve preferred neighborhoods that promote walking or biking, provide easy access to shopping and restaurants, and encourage relationships with my neighbors.
I enjoyed this video on suburban expansion versus the merits of in-town living. Sure, it’s PR, but it’s well done and points to an important issue, both environmental and social. Though it focused on Atlanta, I wonder now that I’m a Grand Forksian (is that right?), if Grand Forks can’t do more to address southward expansion. When I drive in the neighborhoods south of town I just feel, well, like I’m worshiping closed garages, viewing unsustainable expansion, and am more connected to pretty lawns than kind people. That’s probably not fair, as I haven’t actually lived out there, but my point is that Grand Forks would do better to improve downtown development than southward expansion.
If Grand Forks really wants to tackle North Dakota’s brain drain, leaders should fix downtown parking problems, fix up downtown living, address the loud and long trains, incentivize shops for groceries and every day products, and improve the bus system. This weekend’s arts festival was a great example of what Grand Forks can do and be. I hope leaders build on this success, emphasizing smart, sustainable, friendly community life.
Garrison Keillor as unwise grumpy grandpa
Writing a critical response to Garrison Keillor feels like arguing with a beloved grandparent, but I was most unimpressed with his recent piece “Coming to the end of an era in publishing” (May 26, 2010, Tribune Media Services). Perhaps the article was satire, in which Keillor accentuated the grumpy Ishmael any-change-is-bad attitude of a grumpy grandfather to emphasize that, in fact, the sky is not falling. But, I’m afraid, Keillor intended the piece as straightforward rhetoric. In that case, it is a flawed argument, and I really feel sorry for the guy.
Publishing is changing, it isn’t dying. Sure print publishing is not what it used to be like in the days of type-writers and smoke-filled newsrooms. And thank goodness for that. Keillor repeatedly bemoans the fact that writing is now ubiquitous, which comes across as pouting for an accomplished author such as himself. Fear not, Mr. Keillor — the fact that more people are writing will not endanger your pension funds. Instead, it will just mean that more people will enjoy the opportunities afforded to you as a young writer, more people will have access to reading a variety of perspectives, more people will try their hand at writing and more people will fail. Access does not equal disaster. In an open market, a meritocracy (which the writing world is and will continue to be as long as we have the First Amendment), more access leads to better copy.
Now, indeed, future generations publish in different ways than those to which Keillor has grown accustomed. Just like the shift from scrolls to bound books and later from quills to printing presses was both jarring and largely positive, the shift to electronic media may feel disruptive. But, the sky is not falling. A beautiful poem scans the same on an ebook as in 1950s ink. A stellar short story is just as powerful when downloaded from Amazon as purchased from a bricked storefront. The world will still enjoy great writing. Great writers are not married to paper and ink, but words and ideas.
Does anyone know for certain what the future of writing will bring? Certainly not. But to be as pessimistic as Keillor marks not wisdom, but failure of imagination. It’s also factually inaccurate (see Publishing’s Not Dead: The Industry Responds to Garrison Keillor). The gist of Keillor’s piece is his bemoaning the passage of an era in publishing — his golden era. Mr. Keillor is correct in his assertion such an era is coming to a close, but I don’t share his despair for the era which awaits us. Call me overly optimistic if you want. That’s fine. I’m a writer, after all. We’re a strange lot; sometimes we’re just plain wrong.
The Growing Tech Divide
I played with my first iPad this week. After wiping the drool off my chin, I was able to walk away without assistance. But, yes, I want. Or, more honestly: I lust.
On Sunday morning at church, the high schoolers are often seen at their own table at coffee hour, playing on their iPods. I take some blame — or praise — for this predicament as I gave them the password for the church wireless (with some ground rules). Now, even when they go to church, they are connected.
I got an HTC Droid Incredible last week. (Translation: an awesome touch-screen phone, Google’s answer to the iPhone.) It’s amazing. I can now stream NPR on long runs while charting my time and pace, I can access info like you wouldn’t believe, maintain my Foursquare mayoral status as several Grand Forks and Hallock hot spots, and tweet away.
But with all this awesome technology I wonder: is there a growing technology divide in our culture, and in the church?
I know someone, a very high-functioning retiree, who almost daily feels frustrated and challenged-to-the-breaking-point by his lack of computer skills. He wants to join in on the tech fun, but just doesn’t have the skill set.
I know other folks, even younger ones, that despise email and wouldn’t use an iPad if they were given one for each room in the house.
I know a youth who takes pride in not having a facebook account. I know people who despise electronic books — though they have certainly never read one. I know many people who see technology and know, just as instinctively as some know how to work an iPad, that it’s not for them.
And — no happy conclusion here — I just wonder what to make of all this. Will the tech divide become a real cultural barrier? Will there be a Tech Party movement to rival the Tea Party crowd? If changing technology is just in the water of the 21st century, what happens to those who can’t bring themselves to drink?
image by channah
Outdoor Baseball and Target Field
Change is hard, especially if it is from a dependable convenience to uncertainty. Such is the case in Minnesota this season, as the Twins transition from the covered climate-controlled Metrodome to the outdoor Target Field. After personally taking-in a weekend of cold rainy baseball — and the first rainout in thirty years — I’m still very happy with the switch.
Yes, families from out of town can’t plan trips to Minneapolis with total certainty a game won’t be rained out — but that’s how nearly every other baseball city functions, and they get by.
Yes, some games will just be darn cold. Some will be snowed out. But there are some big heat lamp things near the concessions for folks who are especially chilly, and, well, wear some layers and enjoy creation.
Yes, it would have been handy to have a stadium with a retractable roof, but those things are expensive and Minnesotans are cost-conscious folk.
After taking in two games at Target Field last weekend, I have to admit I was blown away with the quality. The seats are comfy, roomy, cup-holder-equipped, and face home plate. The local limestone highlights all over are gorgeous, without being too much. The food, though expensive (of course) is tasty and they do feature some local beers and restaurants. And I love the huge Minnie and Paul retro logo in right — the character shake hands after every Twins home run. In sum: I’m a big fan of Target Field. Well done all. Go Twins!
images by Fifteenthirty and Dana Leigh
A Few Product Recommendations
Ok, so the writing-on-the-side thing is going well so far, but it does deplete my blogging somewhat. I hope to start putting up short posts more often, but we’ll see. In any case, here’s a few products that I’ve really enjoyed recently that I thought I’d recommend for you all.
I received a pair of these great kicks for my birthday (thanks Terry & LouAnn) and I love them. Very comfortable. Styling with khakis or jeans. Good summer shoes that are way comfortable — I imagine they put chucks to shame. To top it off, $60 for a well-constructed good-looking shoe ain’t bad. I recommend.
Two Good Books: Last Night in Twisted River by John Irving & The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver
I bought these books together at a bookstore going-out-of-business sale, and it turns out they are similar in several ways. Both tell the rather long story of an author finding his way in the strange world of the US, with signifiant time in another country. Both plots are very well-construed and as tight as 500+ page books can get. Neither are quite beach reads, as they deal with death, love, sexuality, violence, and other not-so-simple issues. But they are well-written and well worth the non-beach time.
Target Field, the new home of the Minnesota Twins
For as long as I’ve off-and-on lived in Minnesota (since 2001) folks have been fighting over whether to build and now to fund a new baseball stadium. Well, it’s here. It’s called Target field. It’s funded in large part by Hennepin County tax payers. And it’s pretty nice. I may post more later after I take in my first game this week (Thursday — can’t wait!), but by most accounts it is an impressive success. There’s no dome, which is both risky and right in my book. But it’s a field to befit Minnesota: reasonably sized, shows attention to detail, energy conscious, innovative without being ostentatious. Go Twins!
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