Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Color Theory
Some children see Him lily white,
The baby Jesus born this night
Some children see Him lily white,
With tresses soft and fair.
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
The Lord of heaven to earth come down;
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
With dark and heavy hair.
Some children see Him almond-eyed,
This Savior whom we kneel beside,
Some children see Him almond-eyed,
With skin of yellow hue.
Some children see Him dark as they,
Sweet Mary's Son, to Whom we pray;
Some children see Him dark as they,
And ah! they love Him, too!
The children in each different place
Will see the baby Jesus' face
Like theirs, but bright and heavenly grace,
And filled with holy light.
O lay aside each early thing,
And with thy heart as offering,
Come worship now the infant King,
'Tis love that's born tonight!
- James Taylor
They played that song at church before the Christmas Eve service. Believe it or not, it was the first time I had ever heard it. But it harkened me back to high school. My senior year I took a speech/drama class. I had waited forever to be able to do that since I had been involved in the community theater since my freshman year. But the drama/speech class at my high school was not much to speak of. They had gone through a turn over of teachers, and suddenly a guy who I had been in plays with at the community theater was now my teacher. That did not work out as well as I had hoped. I didn't learn a whole lot from the instruction of the class, part of it was me and my teen-age know-it-allness, part of it was that it was his first year teaching... ever, and part of it was probably the premade curriculum. I was thoroughly jealous of my boyfriend at the time who went to a different high school where they had what I felt like was a "serious" drama class - not the joke that ours was. They actually put on more than one play a year, and it wasn't always a musical so even the non-musical folks like myself could show their talent for the dramatic arts. I felt a bit robbed because we had one play the whole year and you couldn't be in said play till you were a senior and then ours ended up being a musical. And because I don't sing- I ended up having one little line - "With mayonaise?" and that of course shot all my day dreams of a moment to shine in high school.
But that being said, now that I am grown up, I realize how much I actually learned from that class after all. Not so much on the drama end, but the speeches had a powerful impact. You see, my colleague from the community theater really encouraged us to make our speeches our own. He gave us a lot of freedom in choosing topics and encouraged discussion after them. Probably a wise choice considering the lack of diversity in the class.
It was the first time that I had ever been part of a minority. I was one of seven white kids in a class of 30. It was in that class that I learned a great deal, questioned earlier assumptions and occasionally had my eyes opened to the view of another culture. We faced bigotry head-on in discussions from both sides. It ended up being one of my most memorable classes from high school. Even though I still would have liked to have taken Spring Hill's "serious" drama class too.
One question that was raised and discussed in that class was "What color was Christ?" which led to "What color is God?". I wrestled with that question for several hours after that class that day, but then I believe I found the answer. It is still the answer I go with that satisfies my mind. I don't believe God is devoid of color. He is too amazing for that. But I don't think he is one single color either. I think He is every color. My back up for this is that Christ said he was "the light of the world" and my simple knowledge of prisms. If prisms reflect and split light, and that causes an array of color, therefore color is caused by light, and without light we see no color, and so if all color and light are inseperable and Christ is light, then Christ must be all colors.
This is just my way of thinking and explaining things to my curious mind. Was it God's inspiration that put this in my head? I don't know. But it has satisfied my curiousity and settled the question in my head. And from the word of the song above, I believe I'm not alone in my way of thinking. But I thought I would share my theory anyway.
The baby Jesus born this night
Some children see Him lily white,
With tresses soft and fair.
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
The Lord of heaven to earth come down;
Some children see Him bronzed and brown,
With dark and heavy hair.
Some children see Him almond-eyed,
This Savior whom we kneel beside,
Some children see Him almond-eyed,
With skin of yellow hue.
Some children see Him dark as they,
Sweet Mary's Son, to Whom we pray;
Some children see Him dark as they,
And ah! they love Him, too!
The children in each different place
Will see the baby Jesus' face
Like theirs, but bright and heavenly grace,
And filled with holy light.
O lay aside each early thing,
And with thy heart as offering,
Come worship now the infant King,
'Tis love that's born tonight!
- James Taylor
They played that song at church before the Christmas Eve service. Believe it or not, it was the first time I had ever heard it. But it harkened me back to high school. My senior year I took a speech/drama class. I had waited forever to be able to do that since I had been involved in the community theater since my freshman year. But the drama/speech class at my high school was not much to speak of. They had gone through a turn over of teachers, and suddenly a guy who I had been in plays with at the community theater was now my teacher. That did not work out as well as I had hoped. I didn't learn a whole lot from the instruction of the class, part of it was me and my teen-age know-it-allness, part of it was that it was his first year teaching... ever, and part of it was probably the premade curriculum. I was thoroughly jealous of my boyfriend at the time who went to a different high school where they had what I felt like was a "serious" drama class - not the joke that ours was. They actually put on more than one play a year, and it wasn't always a musical so even the non-musical folks like myself could show their talent for the dramatic arts. I felt a bit robbed because we had one play the whole year and you couldn't be in said play till you were a senior and then ours ended up being a musical. And because I don't sing- I ended up having one little line - "With mayonaise?" and that of course shot all my day dreams of a moment to shine in high school.
But that being said, now that I am grown up, I realize how much I actually learned from that class after all. Not so much on the drama end, but the speeches had a powerful impact. You see, my colleague from the community theater really encouraged us to make our speeches our own. He gave us a lot of freedom in choosing topics and encouraged discussion after them. Probably a wise choice considering the lack of diversity in the class.
It was the first time that I had ever been part of a minority. I was one of seven white kids in a class of 30. It was in that class that I learned a great deal, questioned earlier assumptions and occasionally had my eyes opened to the view of another culture. We faced bigotry head-on in discussions from both sides. It ended up being one of my most memorable classes from high school. Even though I still would have liked to have taken Spring Hill's "serious" drama class too.
One question that was raised and discussed in that class was "What color was Christ?" which led to "What color is God?". I wrestled with that question for several hours after that class that day, but then I believe I found the answer. It is still the answer I go with that satisfies my mind. I don't believe God is devoid of color. He is too amazing for that. But I don't think he is one single color either. I think He is every color. My back up for this is that Christ said he was "the light of the world" and my simple knowledge of prisms. If prisms reflect and split light, and that causes an array of color, therefore color is caused by light, and without light we see no color, and so if all color and light are inseperable and Christ is light, then Christ must be all colors.
This is just my way of thinking and explaining things to my curious mind. Was it God's inspiration that put this in my head? I don't know. But it has satisfied my curiousity and settled the question in my head. And from the word of the song above, I believe I'm not alone in my way of thinking. But I thought I would share my theory anyway.
Thursday, December 21, 2006
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Oh Deer, not again.
So you remember me mentioning that I have a tendency to listen to lyrics of music? And how I sometimes get annoyed with lyrics that don't make sense? Well, did I mention that I also get annoyed and rather over analytical when I hear the same song repeated over and over and over again?
Just such a thing happened last year around this time. Last year two of my co-workers kept their phone's 24-7 Christmas hold music going all day long, via speaker phone. I was good for a while, even enjoying it, but after hearing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer 8 times a day for four days straight, I got to that over analytical point, and I made the mistake of commenting to my coworkers what an odd song Rudolph is and what kind of mind possibly came up with it. Who thinks up a red nose for a reindeer? What would cause a reindeer's nose to turn red and glowing anyway? Radioactivity hadn't even been publicized yet. And I also mentioned that reindeer are just not aerodynamically sound to fly.
I know, I know, I sounded like an old scrooge. But I was thoroughly sick of that song and that was my way of showing it. Plus, I've never really been fond of Rudolph anyway. I blame it on that claymation TV special. Although a Christmas classic to many, it always gave me the heeby jeebies.
But I should have kept my mouth shut, as wiser people would have. Because you don't mess with people's beloved traditional characters. My co-workers scoffed and teased me all year for being a "Bah Humbug" and the "Anti-Rudolph". I came back from a trip to find hey had reindeered my desk. I thought they would forget. But nooooo. This year as soon as Christmas stuff started coming out - back around Halloween, they started pointing out every Rudolph they saw. Since things got busy at work, that has kind of calmed down.
Until today.
When I turned around to find a giant Rudolph leering at me from the back corner of the room. The picture is taken from my desk.
Yep. Never going to live that one down.
Note to self: Never mention the "Do You Hear What I Hear" thing to your co-workers, or any other frustrated or non-frustrated disection of a holiday song. They are just too "deer" to people's hearts. And they will never let you hear the end of it.
Just such a thing happened last year around this time. Last year two of my co-workers kept their phone's 24-7 Christmas hold music going all day long, via speaker phone. I was good for a while, even enjoying it, but after hearing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer 8 times a day for four days straight, I got to that over analytical point, and I made the mistake of commenting to my coworkers what an odd song Rudolph is and what kind of mind possibly came up with it. Who thinks up a red nose for a reindeer? What would cause a reindeer's nose to turn red and glowing anyway? Radioactivity hadn't even been publicized yet. And I also mentioned that reindeer are just not aerodynamically sound to fly.
I know, I know, I sounded like an old scrooge. But I was thoroughly sick of that song and that was my way of showing it. Plus, I've never really been fond of Rudolph anyway. I blame it on that claymation TV special. Although a Christmas classic to many, it always gave me the heeby jeebies.
But I should have kept my mouth shut, as wiser people would have. Because you don't mess with people's beloved traditional characters. My co-workers scoffed and teased me all year for being a "Bah Humbug" and the "Anti-Rudolph". I came back from a trip to find hey had reindeered my desk. I thought they would forget. But nooooo. This year as soon as Christmas stuff started coming out - back around Halloween, they started pointing out every Rudolph they saw. Since things got busy at work, that has kind of calmed down.
Until today.
When I turned around to find a giant Rudolph leering at me from the back corner of the room. The picture is taken from my desk.
Yep. Never going to live that one down.Note to self: Never mention the "Do You Hear What I Hear" thing to your co-workers, or any other frustrated or non-frustrated disection of a holiday song. They are just too "deer" to people's hearts. And they will never let you hear the end of it.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
I am just a posting fool lately
But I had to post this for my friends here to see as well. I ran across this on needcoffee.com and have giggled till my sides hurt at the pictures.
Proof positive that St. Nick, though a kindly old man, is just plain scary
Maybe this is why he only delivers toys after kids are asleep. :D
Proof positive that St. Nick, though a kindly old man, is just plain scary
Maybe this is why he only delivers toys after kids are asleep. :D
In Case You Don't Hear from Me
It isn't because I don't like you. It isn't because I don't have anything I want to say to what you blogged about...
No, it is because like many - I can't comment right now. It is highly frustrating. Some of them I can comment just fine on, but honestly it's kind of a crap shoot for lack of a better term.
At first I thought I was having an unusually harder time with the letter combination codes you have to type in to prove you aren't spam. I always struggle with those anyway, because my brain has to really concentrate to put them in the right order and sometimes to read them at all. But that wasn't the case I discovered after reading other people's blogs and seeing that they are having the same problem.
Blogger- get it fixed! You're non-paying customers demand it.
No, it is because like many - I can't comment right now. It is highly frustrating. Some of them I can comment just fine on, but honestly it's kind of a crap shoot for lack of a better term.
At first I thought I was having an unusually harder time with the letter combination codes you have to type in to prove you aren't spam. I always struggle with those anyway, because my brain has to really concentrate to put them in the right order and sometimes to read them at all. But that wasn't the case I discovered after reading other people's blogs and seeing that they are having the same problem.
Blogger- get it fixed! You're non-paying customers demand it.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Parody Paradise
My family has always been big on Parodies. We like to laugh. It was not unusual to hear Weird Al playing in our house on any given day. After a good friend who was spending time with us one Christmas sang Christmas at Ground Zero during our annual carol sing around our Christmas tree, it became a regular favorite just to bring a laugh. That is of course until there became a real "Ground Zero" in 2001. I even gave my sis the new Weird Al album for Christmas. (Did I mention that we did Christmas with my family this past weekend?) She could be a Weird Al if she wanted to. She's very talented at coming up with new & humorous lyrics for popular songs at the drop of a hat. She's been doing it since we were teenagers, and it's part of how we'd bond. We'd sit there working on possible new lyrics to things and I'd help with suggestions. She's far better at it than I am, but I've got a few lines in some of her collections. Some of my favorite creations of hers are "The ADD family" to the tune of "The Adams Family" written about all of us, but mostly her husband, two kids and herself, and "Get Around You Any Way We Can" to the tune of "Walking in a Winter Wonderland" about the really slow traffic while traveling at Christmas. This year for the family memory book (oooh remind me to write about the Memory Book on here someday!) she typed out the words to some of her parodies. It was one of my favorite gifts.
Her kids are following in her footsteps. Although they aren't old enough to master the art of word play and rhyme yet, but you can already tell they are working on it and practicing. They love Veggie Tales "Boys In The Sink" which is about as parody as you can get for little ones. My oldest neice is already making her own wordplay jokes. It's great!
My father-in-law does parodies too. He works with the music ministry at his church and makes praise lyrics to Beach Boys and Beetles tunes. They are very fun. DH and I are often his test subjects when go visit on Tuesday nights.
So this year I got myself a Christmas gift. Well really it's more for myself, my sister, my father-in-law and my neices. Just recently I discovered a new Parody band. And I believe I am in love. Not only are they excellent Parody artists, but they are parody artists with a message. They aren't corny - they are just fun. Wish I had discovered them when I was a teenager - because I can feel them appealing to that teenager that is still in me. I only just ran across them a few weeks ago. The group is the Apologetix. They've apparently been around for quite a while, but I'm just now discovering them. I heard one song of theirs on a website I found while looking for something else, so I looked up their website, read some lyrics and then they had an offer I just couldn't refuse. 3 CDs for the price of 1. So I bought them - sound unheard. They arrived yesterday and I love them. They actually play the music well and are able to memic the sound of the actual songs they are parody-ing, which to me is what makes a parody artist good. And the message just rocks! I'm spreading them around to everyone I know. Especially my neices, and I've got a feeling my Godchild will like them too. I've been listening to them in the car on my way to and from work and have gotten tickled at the lyrics and even moved by them. We're going to visit my in-laws for our bi-monthly dinner with them and Jay and I intend to introduce father-in-law to them tonight. And I hope I've just introduced, or perhaps re-introduced you to this fun band as well. My personal favorite so far is "All the Stalls Stink" to Blink 182's "All the Small Things" about Noah. And "Another Kick in the Wall" to Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" about the Walls of Jerico coming down.
Good stuff. :D I wonder if they have a Christmas album?
Her kids are following in her footsteps. Although they aren't old enough to master the art of word play and rhyme yet, but you can already tell they are working on it and practicing. They love Veggie Tales "Boys In The Sink" which is about as parody as you can get for little ones. My oldest neice is already making her own wordplay jokes. It's great!
My father-in-law does parodies too. He works with the music ministry at his church and makes praise lyrics to Beach Boys and Beetles tunes. They are very fun. DH and I are often his test subjects when go visit on Tuesday nights.
So this year I got myself a Christmas gift. Well really it's more for myself, my sister, my father-in-law and my neices. Just recently I discovered a new Parody band. And I believe I am in love. Not only are they excellent Parody artists, but they are parody artists with a message. They aren't corny - they are just fun. Wish I had discovered them when I was a teenager - because I can feel them appealing to that teenager that is still in me. I only just ran across them a few weeks ago. The group is the Apologetix. They've apparently been around for quite a while, but I'm just now discovering them. I heard one song of theirs on a website I found while looking for something else, so I looked up their website, read some lyrics and then they had an offer I just couldn't refuse. 3 CDs for the price of 1. So I bought them - sound unheard. They arrived yesterday and I love them. They actually play the music well and are able to memic the sound of the actual songs they are parody-ing, which to me is what makes a parody artist good. And the message just rocks! I'm spreading them around to everyone I know. Especially my neices, and I've got a feeling my Godchild will like them too. I've been listening to them in the car on my way to and from work and have gotten tickled at the lyrics and even moved by them. We're going to visit my in-laws for our bi-monthly dinner with them and Jay and I intend to introduce father-in-law to them tonight. And I hope I've just introduced, or perhaps re-introduced you to this fun band as well. My personal favorite so far is "All the Stalls Stink" to Blink 182's "All the Small Things" about Noah. And "Another Kick in the Wall" to Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" about the Walls of Jerico coming down.
Good stuff. :D I wonder if they have a Christmas album?
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Christmas Carol Ponderments
Not only two in two days but now two in one day. Amazing.
Anyway on my way to work this morning I heard a Christmas carol - specifically Do You Hear What I Hear.
I personally am a lyric person. I like music with good lyrics, I love ballads because of the lyrics, I'm one of those people who if I can't understand what they say I look it up. I'm one who visualizes my own little videos in my head to the music I listen to.... so it should be no suprise that when lyrics don't make sense, it bothers me.
I really like the carol Do You Hear What I Hear up until the third and fourth verse. Up until then I can visualize the wind moving through the sheeps wool causing it to look up and notice the star, and curious reaction of the sheep helping the shepherd to notice the star and also the voices of the angels, but it's when the shepherd goes to the king that I get confused. Because in the Bible the king wasn't too thrilled to hear about the Child shivering in the cold and he sure didn't tell the people everywhere that He would bring goodness and light. No instead he told them "I'm going to kill every one of your male children under 2 years old till I find this Child and end his threat to my rule." And it's highly unlikely that a shepherd would get in to see a king anyway. They weren't the most respected of occupations. They went and joyously told all they had witnessed to everyone they knew but Herod seemed rather suprised by the news of a newborn king when the Magi told him, so I'm guessing the shepherds' news didn't reach him.
Perhaps the shepherd was talking to one of the "Three Kings" who weren't really kings at all but rather wise men from the east, they seemed to realize they were to worship what the star lead them to and that the Child was something to celebrate. They may have told the people everywhere that the Child would bring goodness and light.
I don't know but those lyrics just bother me a bit. What is your insight into it? What Christmas lyrics bother you?
Perhaps my co-workers are right. Maybe I just over-think things ;)
Anyway on my way to work this morning I heard a Christmas carol - specifically Do You Hear What I Hear.
I personally am a lyric person. I like music with good lyrics, I love ballads because of the lyrics, I'm one of those people who if I can't understand what they say I look it up. I'm one who visualizes my own little videos in my head to the music I listen to.... so it should be no suprise that when lyrics don't make sense, it bothers me.
I really like the carol Do You Hear What I Hear up until the third and fourth verse. Up until then I can visualize the wind moving through the sheeps wool causing it to look up and notice the star, and curious reaction of the sheep helping the shepherd to notice the star and also the voices of the angels, but it's when the shepherd goes to the king that I get confused. Because in the Bible the king wasn't too thrilled to hear about the Child shivering in the cold and he sure didn't tell the people everywhere that He would bring goodness and light. No instead he told them "I'm going to kill every one of your male children under 2 years old till I find this Child and end his threat to my rule." And it's highly unlikely that a shepherd would get in to see a king anyway. They weren't the most respected of occupations. They went and joyously told all they had witnessed to everyone they knew but Herod seemed rather suprised by the news of a newborn king when the Magi told him, so I'm guessing the shepherds' news didn't reach him.
Perhaps the shepherd was talking to one of the "Three Kings" who weren't really kings at all but rather wise men from the east, they seemed to realize they were to worship what the star lead them to and that the Child was something to celebrate. They may have told the people everywhere that the Child would bring goodness and light.
I don't know but those lyrics just bother me a bit. What is your insight into it? What Christmas lyrics bother you?
Perhaps my co-workers are right. Maybe I just over-think things ;)
That Grace
Oh look, two posts in two days.
This may just be the end of the world as we know it ;)
Actually I am just now getting around to adding another link to my sidebar and wanted to announce it. Somehow through, Farmwife and Inkling, I have found Grace. Well yes, that kind of grace too but also this kind of Grace :)
I call her "That Grace" in my link because that's what I think when I see that name. It comes from some of my favorite kids books The Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Park. In the books, Junie has a friend whom she refers to as "that Grace". And I just can't see the name without thinking that. So therefore, dear Grace you have a new monicker.
I hope you won't mind, but as my mother always said "A child who is loved has many names"
:)
This may just be the end of the world as we know it ;)
Actually I am just now getting around to adding another link to my sidebar and wanted to announce it. Somehow through, Farmwife and Inkling, I have found Grace. Well yes, that kind of grace too but also this kind of Grace :)
I call her "That Grace" in my link because that's what I think when I see that name. It comes from some of my favorite kids books The Junie B. Jones series by Barbara Park. In the books, Junie has a friend whom she refers to as "that Grace". And I just can't see the name without thinking that. So therefore, dear Grace you have a new monicker.
I hope you won't mind, but as my mother always said "A child who is loved has many names"
:)
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
For the crafty people out there
A friend at work ran across this website and I thought I would share it. If you are looking for unique hand crafted and mostly reasonably priced gifts for Christmas this is a good source. If you are looking for a place to sell your crafty wares... this is also a good place.* It's like a hugemongous online craft fair. Very fun.
Now go forth and create.
*Now this does not necessarily mean that I have anything there... because I don't. Someday I may put stuff up there, but during the Christmas holidays my craftiness pretty much runs out after the Christmas card.. but I wanted to have a place to keep the link and I thought of so many of you other crafty people that I know who make baby blankets, gourd statues, knitted wonders and scrapbooky things and I felt the need to share.
So please enjoy with my compliments :)
Now go forth and create.
*Now this does not necessarily mean that I have anything there... because I don't. Someday I may put stuff up there, but during the Christmas holidays my craftiness pretty much runs out after the Christmas card.. but I wanted to have a place to keep the link and I thought of so many of you other crafty people that I know who make baby blankets, gourd statues, knitted wonders and scrapbooky things and I felt the need to share.
So please enjoy with my compliments :)
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